I just finished the second edition of Observing the Moon — the Modern Astronomer’s Guide by Gerald North (Cambridge University Press, 2007). Nice. If you fancy yourself a lunar observer, have made a commitment to one day observe the Moon, or even if you’re thinking about checking the Moon out once in a while, I highly recommend this book.
North produced the first edition of Observing the Moon — the Modern Astronomer’s Guide in 2000, and that version went through several reprintings. As the author writes in his preface, however, a lot has changed in the past 7 years, so he rewrote much of the book to reflect amateur astronomy at the beginning of the 21st century.
A good observer’s guide appeals to observers at all levels, and North, as accomplished a lunar observer as he is, doesn’t forget beginners. His first three chapters focus on their needs. Chapter 1, “Magnificent desolation,” describes the Moon generally and talks about its motions, phases, eclipses, and coordinates. Chapter 2, “The Moon through the looking glass,” is a historical account describing lunar observers and mapmakers. Chapter 3, “Telescopes and drawing boards,” is where North makes equipment suggestions, describes visual observing, and talks about sketching.
The meat of the book is Chapter 8, “‘A to Z’ of selected lunar landscapes. This nearly 200-page gazetteer features descriptions to guide your observations, and photographs and sketches so you can compare what you see (or what you image) with high-quality reproductions.
This book has so many great facts and observations sprinkled through it, I suggest you read it all the way through first before you attempt to use it as an observing guide. Or, perhaps, read a chapter or two during the two days on each side of Full Moon. That time period is ideal because shadow detail on our natural satellite is at a minimum. Whenever you read it, however, you’ll find Observing the Moon bursting with ideas for your next hundred lunar observing sessions.