indychris
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since April 2008
Posts: 81
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Post by indychris on Apr 12, 2008 19:54:45 GMT -5
Hey, Everyone-
Another Newbie question for you all...
I've been looking at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, The Rock Shed, etc. for various Field Guides to Rocks & Minerals (North American is what I am looking for) and have discovered that there are quite a few.
What guides would you recommend to a newbie who would like to identify different rocks and minerals?
Thanks again!
Chris
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thenorseman
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2008
Posts: 4
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Post by thenorseman on Apr 12, 2008 23:48:06 GMT -5
Hello, I am a newbie also. I purchased the National Audubon Field Guide and found it was absolutely no help to me. I was not able to use it to identify a single rock. There has got to be a better guide out there. I hope the folks here that know their stuff don't recommend the Audubon because that will mean I just wasn't smart enough to use it properly.
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cutter
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since February 2008
Posts: 129
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Post by cutter on Apr 13, 2008 9:33:31 GMT -5
Howdy All. I have been doing the rock thing sense I was 11 years old, 1965 . I have acquired several books on the subject through the years. If you are interested in the geology aspect as well as IDs, I feel the best book out there is the "A Field Guide To
Rocks and Minerals" by Pough. The original copyright was in 1953. I learned a great basic understanding of Geology from this book. Just the informative charts and maps printed on the inside of the covers, taught me more than my first Geo course. Now if you want a book to give you pics & details of all the materials that we work with today, this is not the book. Rock finds change with time and I have never seen anybody keep up with them. I even find that the names have changed for some of the materials that seem rather common. Pough's book may tend to be a little tech orientated but you can always skip those pages.
I have worn out two copies and need to get my third.
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Saskrock
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since October 2007
Posts: 1,852
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Post by Saskrock on Apr 13, 2008 11:06:26 GMT -5
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calxoddity
off to a rocking start
Me lying sideways on custard spill
Member since February 2008
Posts: 19 
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Post by calxoddity on Apr 21, 2008 0:10:51 GMT -5
Hi,
There are two nice pocket guides from Dorling Kindersley publishers - one on rocks and minerals and the other on gemstones. I bought these a couple of years ago and they have actually been useful in helping me ID the stuff I find. Good photos and clear concise descriptions.
For guidance on where to go and what to find, I use a combo of local knowledge, and old mining reports. The books are usually way out of date...
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calxoddity
off to a rocking start
Me lying sideways on custard spill
Member since February 2008
Posts: 19
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Post by calxoddity on Apr 21, 2008 0:14:43 GMT -5
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