The Complete Book of Drawing by Barrington Barber. An introductory book on pencil drawing. There are all sorts of subjects that can be copied to practice your basic drawing skill.
	Learn to Paint Vibrant Watercolours by Hazel Soan. Wonderfully colourful examples of watercolour painting at its best.
	How to Make Watercolor Paint Itself by Nita Engle. Experimental techniques for achieving realistic effects.
	Henry Yan's Figure Drawing by Henry Yan. Superb examples of figure drawing in charcoal.
	Putting People in Your Paintings by Laurel Hart. The examples are in watercolour, but the ideas can apply to any medium.
	The Figure in Watercolor by Mel Stabin. Free and loose painting that gives a very fresh look.
	The Natural Way to Paint by Charles Reid. Rendering the figure in watercolour simply and beautifully. Wonderful examples of gestural painting, loosly and quickly painted.
	Harley Brown's eternal truths for every artist by Harley Brown. Harley works mostly in pastels but has some examples in oils. His explanations are very clear and comprehensive. The medium doesn't matter and nor does the subject. I rate this book the highest in my collection. I have re-read it numerous times and learn something new each time.
	Harley Brown's Inspiration for Every Artist by Harley Brown. A book for inspiration rather than tuition. Has a lot of merit.
	Portraits from Life in 29 Steps by John Howard Sanden. An excellent book by a master portrait painter.
	Oil Painting Secrets From a Master by Linda Cateura. A book about the art of David Leffel, which reads as class notes taken by Cateura. Leffel is a master of the modern still life. Leffel introduces the 'concept' of a painting, a level above composition. Well worth reading.
	Problem Solving for Oil Painters by Greg Kreutz. Recognising what has gone wrong and how to make it right. Another master of the modern still life.
	Colour Harmony and Contrast for the Artist by Michael Wilcox. A very comprehensive look at colour and how colour mixing works. There lots of examples of paintings using particular colour schemes. Also lots of colour swatches using various pigments. Michael also has other books of colour swatches. See his web site School of Colour