Books

Here are some books that I have found useful. Sadly some are no longer in print but may be found in second-hand shops. I wish somebody would explain to me the format of ISBN numbers!

 Author Title Publisher ISBN Comments
Barber & Haworth A Guide to the Morphology of the Diatom Frustrule FBA 44 0 900386 42 8 One of the excellent FBA series
Barnes, Calow & Olive The Invertebrates - a New Synthesis Blackwell Science 0 632 03237 1 A beautifully illustrated book. If you were going to design an invertebrate, this book would explain how to go about it!
Belcher & Swale A Beginner's Guide to Freshwater Algae HMSO 0 11 881393 5 Covers a lot in its 50 pages - a useful starter
Belcher & Swale An illustrated guide to River Phytoplankton HMSO 0 11 886602 8 Some overlap with one above but includes key in its 64 pages
Bracegirdle Notes on Modern Microscope Manufacturers Quekett Microscopical Club 0 9514441 7 4 88 pages with variable coverage of scores of makers. Text only.
Bracegirdle (Ed) Microscopical Papers from the "Quekett" Quekett Microscopical Club 0 9514441 0 7 24 papers from QMC's first 100 years
Canter-Lund & Lund Freshwater Algae - Their Microscopic World Explored Biopress 0 948737 25 5 Superb photographs and descriptions of many algae
Clegg Observer's book of Pond Life Penguin 1 85471 1 063 X Now out of print but useful introduction.
Clegg (Ed) Pond and Stream Life Blandford 0 7137 0641 4 Translated from Danish. Similar to above.
Finlay, Rogerson & Cowling Collection, Isolation, Cultivation and Identification of Freshwater Protozoa FBA 1 871105 03 X 78 pages with excellent diagrams and many references
Hartley  The Light Microscope - Its Use and Development  Senecio 0 906831 05 9 A very readable history with many illustrations
Kershaw & Alvin Observer's Book of Lichen Warne   Handy size but out of print. Covers many UK species but with mainly black & white pictures
Kinchin The Biology of Tardigrades Portland Press 1 85578 043 7 186 page hard-back with extensive details and bibliography
Margulis & Schwartz Five Kingdoms, an Illustrated Guide to the Phyla of Life on Earth Freeman 0 7167 3027 8 520 page paperback which takes a new look at evolution and classification. Useful and humbling!
Marson Practical Microscopy NBS   The 17 booklets rolled into an indispensable book
Möllring Microscopy from the Very Beginning Carl Zeiss   Useful coverage of design and function of microscopes, not just Zeiss
Morris An Introduction to the Algae Hutchinson University Library 09 0807123 8 Detailed introduction to structure, reproduction and classification of this vast group of organisms. Many references.
Nachtigall Exploring with the Microscope Sterling 0 8069 0867 X 160 pages of superb photographs and descriptions. Ideal for beginners like me!
Oldfield Light Microscopy - an Illustrated Guide Wolfe 0 7234 1876 4 This has to be my favourite guide to how microscopes work.
Patterson Free-Living Freshwater Protozoa Manson 1 874545 40 5 Beautifully illustrated with photographs and drawings but I find it hard to use as a key.
Pontin A Key to British Freshwater Planktonic Rotifera FBA 900386 33 9 Identify that rotifer!
Purvis Lichens Natural History Museum 0 565 09153 0 112pp paperback with many colour pictures describing biology and ecological aspects of lichens. Not a guide to identifying all species.
Sanderson Biological Microtechnique RMS / Bios 1 872748 42 2 Aimed at the professional but with much information of interest to the amateur
Wells The microscope Made Easy Warne   Practical guide for the amateur with many good diagrams
White Pollen, its Collection and Preparation for the Microscope NBS   Practical guide with details of collection and mounting with a list of 12 suggested pollens to start from
         

Many of these are available through Amazon or WH Smith's online bookshops.
Also, Savona Books specialise in microscopy books.