Phonetics Books

Last updated February 2007

Johnson, Keith (1997): Acoustic and Auditory Phonetics. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-20094-0 (hardcover). ISBN 0-631-20095-9 (softcover). Amazon.com; A good general introduction to acoustic phonetics. The emphasis is on understanding the physics of speech production without too much math. There is not a lot of detail on the acoustic properties of different sounds.
Ladefoged, Peter (1996): Elements of Acoustic Phonetics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Second edition. ISBN 0-226-46763-5 (hardcover) ISBN 0-226-46764-3 (softcover). Amazon.com; An introductory book on acoustic phonetics that does not presuppose much mathematical background.
Ladefoged, Peter (2001): Vowels and Consonants: An Introduction to the Sounds of Languages. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-21411-9 (hardcover). ISBN 0-631-21412-7 (softcover). Amazon.com; A general introduction to phonetics focussing on acoustics. Comes with a CD-ROM containing audio examples, figures, and videos.
Stevens, Kenneth N. (1998): Acoustic Phonetics. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-19404-0 (hardcover) ISBN 0-262-69250-3 (softcover) Amazon.com; The bible of acoustic phonetic theory. Requires substantial background in mathematics and physics.
Ladefoged, Peter and Ian Maddieson (1996): The Sounds of the World's Languages. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-19814-8 (hardcover). ISBN 0-631-19815-6 (softcover). Amazon.com; A survey of the full range of sounds in the world's languages. A good source of information on the more exotic speech sounds.
Dickson, David Ross and Wilma Maue-Dickson (1982): Anatomical and Physiological Bases of Speech. Boston: Little, Brown and Co. ISBN 0-316-18431-4 (hardcover). Amazon.com; A very detailed presentation of the anatomy, with numerous drawings and photographs.
International Phonetic Association (1999): Handbook of the International Phonetic Association. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-65236-7 (hardcover) ISBN 0-521-63751-1 (softcover) Amazon.com; A detailed description of the international standard for phonetic transcription, with discussion of problems and extensions, and sample transcriptions of passages in 29 languages.
Pullum, Geoffrey K. and William A. Ladusaw (1996): Phonetic Symbol Guide. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Second edition. ISBN 0-226-68535-7 (hardcover) ISBN 0-226-68536-5 (softcover). Amazon.com; Contains a comprehensive list of phonetic symbols, including not only the official IPA symbols but numerous variants.