The Dictionary Society of America publishes a list of books about lexicography and dictionary writing. Here are a few of our favorites:

Dictionaries: The Art and Craft of Lexicography

Chasing the Sun: Dictionary-Makers and the Dictionaries They Made

The Story of Webster's Third: Philip Gove's Controversial Dictionary and its Critics

Dr. Johnson and Mr. Savage

Here's a novel, ahem, idea: Stories that involve books, publishing and writing. Check out:

The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

If on a Winter's Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino

These books offer advice, know-how and personal experience for teachers striving to grow professionally:

The Teaching Gap: Best Ideas from the World's Teachers for Improving Education in the Classroom by James Stigler

Becoming a Better Teacher by Giselle O. Martin-Kniep

Educating Esme: Diary of a Teacher's First Year by Esmé Raji Codell

Holler If You Hear Me: The Education of a Teacher and His Students by Gregory Michie

Attending college or entering college in the fall? These books will help you thrive in school, no matter how many research papers they throw at you!

The Ultimate College Survival Guide

Been There, Should've Done That

MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers

Asking the Right Questions

How to Read a Book

Grammar Smart

These anthologies collect the greatest speeches in history, invaluable for any writer:

The World's Great Speeches

Lend Me Your Ears: Great Speeches in History

Words That Shook the World

The Penguin Book of 20th-Century Speeches

Great American Speeches

We asked Bob Greenman, the author and educator we interview in this week's "Teachers at Work" feature, to recommend books about vocabulary. Here are his picks:

America in So Many Words, by Allan A. Metcalf and David K. Barnhart. "Year by year, the stories behind significant American words like cookie (1703), squatter (1788), hobo (1847), bathtub (1870), muckraker (1906), jukebox (1939), duh ( 1963) and newbie (1993)."

The National Book Critics Circle announced its nominations for its prestigious annual awards earlier this month. Categories include fiction, nonfiction, biography, autobiography, poetry and criticism. Winners are announced on March 6th -- so hurry up and read everything before the results! Here are the fiction finalists:

Sacred Games by Vikram Chandra

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar

The Gravedigger's Daughter by Joyce Carol Oates

The Shadow Catcher by Marianne Wiggins