Equipment

Atlas of the Moon by Antonin Rukl. Kalmbach Publishing, 1996.	A pretty good book on the Moon. The charts are very useful for identifying the various formations found on the Moon. Also contains reference and background information.
Atlas of the Universe by Patrick Moore. Cambridge Press, 1998.	Patrick Moore is one of the most highly regarded astronomers in the UK. This is a very good "coffee table" book because it covers everything and has many gorgeous pictures. There are even charts with many of the brighter deep-sky (Messier) objects plotted.
Burnham's Celestial Handbook, Volumes 1 thru 3 by Robert Burnham, Jr. Dover Publications, 1978.	The Standard by which other reference guides have followed. Some information is obviously dated but the exhaustive descriptive notes (background information) Burnham provides is still pertinent.
The Finder Charts of the Messier Objects Volumes 1 and 2 by Brent Watson. Sky Spot, 1993.	These are the best books/charts to have for use with a Telrad. Volume 1 covers M1 - M55. Volume 2 covers M56 - M110.
The Finder Charts of the Overlooked Objects by Brent Watson. Sky Spot, 1994.	This is a set of charts which contains the brighter non-Messier objects plotted for the Telrad.
The Messier Objects by Stephen O'Meara. Cambridge Press, 1998.	Stephen O'Meara has got to have the best pair of eyes of anyone alive today. He also has a profound passion for astronomy which is evidenced by his descriptions and drawings of the objects in this book. He also does a good job of providing the historic descriptions from the original discoverers.
The Night Sky Observer's Guide, Volumes 1 and 2 by George Kepple and Glen Sanner. Willmann-Bell, 1999.	Star charts plotting over 5500 objects. Descriptions pictures and illustrations. Descriptions when viewed in different apertures given for many objects. Volume 1 covers the Autumn and Winter Skies. Volume 2 covers the Spring and Summer Skies. This is my most used chart
NightWatch, A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe by Terence Dickinson. Firefly Books/Bookmakers Press, 1998.	This is the first astronomy book I bought. It's also a very good "coffee table" book because it covers everything. There are also charts with many of the brighter deep-sky (Messier) objects plotted.
The Observer's Sky Atlas by Eric Karkoschka. Springer-Verlag, 1999.	This is a nice little reference book which contains up-to-date position and magnitude information. The charts are easy to follow and are arranged in a very logical format. This makes finding the chart which contains the object of interest very easy. Eric regularly presents at the Tucson Amateur astronomy Association's meetings - (he knows this stuff).
Sky Atlas 2000, Desk Version by Wil Tirion and Roger Sinnott. Sky Publishing, 1998.	A very nice set of charts covering large sections of the sky, though not as detailed as "The Night Sky Observer's Guide". Includes an overlay for calculating stellar magnitudes, angular dimensions, etc. Also has a Telrad pattern for use with a Telrad. I had to draw in the Constellations because there are too many stars plotted to really figure out where you're at.
Splendors of the Universe by Terence Dickinson and Jack Newton. Firefly Books, Ltd, 1997.	A great book for getting into photography or CCD imaging of the heavens.
365 Starry Nights by Chet Raymo. Fireside (Simon & Schuster), 1982.	Reference book which is arranged by month. Very limited number of objects. I got this for free when I purchased Burnham's Celestial Handbook. I definitely wouldn't pay for this because there are too many other books out there that put this one to shame.
Sky and Telescope Magazine	Good articles, reviews and features. I've subscribed to this publication for a while.
Astronomy Magazine	Kind of a Sky and Telescope "wanna-be". I use to subscribe but haven't continued because I found most of the articles geared towards astrologists. Well o.k., not astrologists, but I really think the magazine is a bit cheesy compared to S&T.