Reference books

For the beginner, we recommend three good books written by past and present members of our Club, all of which give excellent pictures and summaries on a wide variety of worldwide shells:

• Abbott, R. Tucker and Dance, S. Peter (1990), Compendium of Seashells
  ISBN 0-915826-17-8
  
• Dance, S. Peter (1974), The Collector's Encyclopedia of Seashells
  ISBN 1-872532-05-5
  
• Wye, Kenneth R. (1991), The Encyclopedia of Shells
  ISBN 0-7858-1233-4
  

Other general and beginners’ books to which members of our Club have contributed include:

• Arthur, Alex (1989), Eyewitness Guide: Shells
• Dance, S. Peter (1966), Shell Collecting – an Illustrated History
• Dance, S. Peter (1972), Shells and Shell Collecting
• Dance, S. Peter (1974), The Shell Collectors' Guide
• Dance, S. Peter (1986), A History of Shell Collecting
• Dance, S. Peter and Heppell, David (1991), Classic Natural History Prints: Shells
• Dance, S. Peter (ed.), Bosch, D.T., Dance, S. Peter, Moolenbeek R.G. and Oliver, P.G. (1995), Seashells of Eastern Arabia
• Dance, S. Peter (1992), Eyewitness Handbook: Shells
  
• Dance, S. Peter and Aiken, Simon (2022), Eyewitness Handbook: Shells, new edition
  
• Oliver, A.P.H. (1975), Hamlyn Guide to Shells of the World
• Saunders, Graham (1979), Spotter's Guide to Shells
• Saunders, Graham (2001), Usborne Spotter's Sticker Book: Shells
• Scase, Robert and Storey, Eric (1975), The World of Shells
  
• Thomas, Ingrid (2007), The Shell – A World of Decoration and Ornament. See review here.
• Walker, Tom (1995), Collect Shells and Other Molluscs on Stamps
• Wye, Kenneth R. (1989), Mitchell Beazley Pocket Guide to Shells of the World
• Wye, Kenneth R. (2003), The Shell Handbook

One of the most comprehensive listings of books by family, region, etc. can be found on the website of the Sydney Shell Club:

• Regional Books
• Books on Shell Families Gastropods
• Books on Shell Families Bivalves
  

Members of our Club have also participated in the following specialist publications:

• Dixon, R.M. (1977), A Provisional Catalogue of Recent Species of Naticidae
• Dixon, R.M. (1984), An Analytical Checklist of Sowerby's Species of Natica
• Filmer, R.M. (2001), A Catalogue of Nomenclature and Taxonomy in the Living Conidae 1758–1998 ISBN 90-5782-077-3
• Fraussen, Koen and Stratman, Dirk (2013), A Conchological Iconography: The Family Babyloniidae (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany) ISBN 9783939767473
  
• Fraussen, Koen and Terryn, Yves (2007), A Conchological Iconography: The Family Buccinidae, Genus Neptunea (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany) ISBN 9783939767039
  
• Grulke, Wolfgang (2014), Heteromorph: The Rarest Fossil Ammonites – Nature at its Most Bizarre (At One) ISBN 978-0992974008
• Howlett, Derek and Baker, Roy (1998), Freshwater Bivalve Mollusca of Norfolk
  
• Lorenz, Felix (2001), Monograph of the Living Zoila (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany)
  
• Lorenz, Felix (2002), New Worldwide Cowries (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany)
  
• Lorenz, Felix (2014), Monograph of the Genus Pustularia (ConchBooks: Harxheim, Germany)
  
• Lorenz, Felix (2017), Cowries: A Guide to the Gastropod Family Cypraeidae, 1. Biology and Systematics (ConchBooks: Harxheim, Germany)
  
• Lorenz, Felix (2018), Cowries: A Guide to the Gastropod Family Cypraeidae, 2. Shells and Animals (ConchBooks: Harxheim, Germany)
  
• Lorenz, Felix and Fehse, Dirk (2009), The Living Ovulidae (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany). See review here.
  
• Lorenz, Felix and Hubert, Alex (2nd ed., 2000), A Guide to Worldwide Cowries (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany)
  
• Osborn, G., Pirrie, J. and Wallis, M. (1986), The Mollusca of Northampton
• Pinn, Fred (1978), Shells of East Africa
• Pinn, Fred (1990), Sea Snails of Pondicherry
• Seccombe, Alan and A.P. Marais (eds) (2011), Identification Guide to the Shells of South Africa volume 1. Further details here.
• Terryn, Yves (2007), A Collector's Guide to Recent Terebridae (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany)
  
• Various authors, including Fraussen, Koen and Terryn, Yves in Poppe, Guido T. (ed.) (2008), Philippine Marine Mollusks volume II (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany)
  
• Vos, Chris and Terryn, Yves (2007), A Conchological Iconography: The Family Tonnidae (ConchBooks: Hackenheim, Germany)
  

Of the following guides to British shells, those now out of print are marked as such:

• Beedham, Gordon E. (1972), Identification of the British Mollusca
  (Amersham: Hulton Press) ISBN 0-7175-0593-6  out of print
• Cameron, Robert (2003), Field Studies Council Key: Land Snails in the British Isles (Shrewsbury: Field Studies Council)
  
• Graham, Alastair, FRS (1988), Molluscs: Prosobranch & Pyramidellid Gastropods (Published for the Linnaean Society of London by E.J. Brill / Dr W. Backhuys) ISBN 90-04-08771-0
• Kerney, M.P. & Cameron, R.A.D. (1979), A Field Guide to the Land Snails of Britain and North-West Europe (London: Collins) ISBN 0-00-219676-X
• Killeen, I.J., Aldridge, D.C. and Oliver, P.G. (2004), Freshwater Bivalves of Britain and Ireland (Shrewsbury: Field Studies Council)
  
• McMillan, Nora (1968), British Shells (London: Frederick Warne & Co Ltd) ISBN 0-7232-0965-0  out of print
• Tebble, Norman (1966), British Bivalve Seashells (HMSO) ISBN 0-11-491401-X  out of print