The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations by Angela Partington (Editor) This book is organized strictly by author. There are very detailed attributions (Scene numbers, page numbers, etc.). Another benefit of this book is the fact that foreign quotes are first listed in the original language, then translated into English. This is wonderful for all of those Latin quotes people throw into conversation all the time. [More Reference Quotation Books]
Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable by Adrian Room, Terry Pratchett, John Buchanan-Brown (Introduction) This book provides the reference to the idiomatic sayings in our language. That sounds really boring, but it's incredibly useful. I receive many emails that ask the origin of some phrases such as "the whole nine yards." I'm not able to answer questions like that, but a book like this does, 90% of the time. [More Other Reference Books]
