 | Principles of Helicopter Flight by W. J. Wagtendonk
Buy new: $16.47 / Used from: $13.57 Makes up for all the shortcomings of the Rotorcraft Flying Manual. Far more than you need to know, but will help you really understand the things that you have to know. I'd get this book first--whether your school requires it or not--and read it before or in tandem with the RFM.
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 | Fatal Traps for Helicopter Pilots by Greg Whyte
Buy new: $26.37 / Used from: $17.31 Not the first thing you should read, but put it somewhere after your PPL but before your CPL. Some of the physical concepts behind conditions that cause accidents are covered better here than anywhere else, but reading one accident report after another has little value for an early-stage student. And a lot of the text is straight from government reports.
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 | Rotorcraft Flying Handbook (FAA Handbooks) by Federal Aviation Administration
Buy used from: $16.74 Not too bad for government work. Contains some really confusing errors, and glazes over some fundamental concepts (what are all those vectors on the autorotation diagram???). But, the FAA is always right, and this book does hit almost everything you need to know, so you need to read it. Supplement this book with Wagtendonk and you'll really get it. Available online for free.
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 | Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge: FAA-H-8083-25, December 2003 (FAA Handbooks) by Federal Aviation Administration
Buy used from: $3.25 The shortcoming of the PHAK is its emphasis on airplanes, but it covers some things that you won't really get elsewhere. Much better than the Jeppesen paid advertisements. It's really not that bad a book, just need to sort out what doesn't apply to us and what does. Available online for free, and a new version too?
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 | Helicopter Pilot's Handbook Of Mountain Flying & Advanced Techniques (Airlife Pilot's Handbooks) by Norman Bailey
Buy used from: $59.90 Get reading this before you start doing confined space and pinnacle operations. Goes into way more detail than the RFM does in the page that it devotes to these topics. Can't imagine that this wouldn't also greatly benefit the commercial pilot or those moving from air taxi and tour operations to external loads and other cool skills.
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 | FAR/AIM 2008: Federal Aviation Regulations/Aeronautical Information Manual (FAR/AIM series) by Federal Aviation Administration
Buy used from: $0.64 Gotta have the most current one. The AIM is actually an excellent source of info, and the regulations you need to know are not adequately covered in the other resources you might have (the Jeppesen books).
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 | Aviation Weather Services (FAA Handbook)
Buy used from: $0.04 Master all the Wx reports and forecasts, and decode all those mystery abbreviations and symbols. Helps with the written and XC planning; picks up where the AIM ends. Skip around to read up on the reports you are learning about. I prefer getting translated info from NOAA, but have never been stumped by a raw report. Check for a new ed.
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 | AVIATION WEATHER FOR PILOTS AND FLIGHT OPERATIONS PERSONNEL by Federal Aviation Agency
Buy used from: $1.38 So it's graphics are from the Flintstones-Jetsons era, it's still a really good book. Weather is covered in more detail than you need to know, unless you're just aiming for memorizing stuff to pass your tests. Stuff that has you going "WTF?" when you read the PHAK or Jeppesen books actually makes sense here. Except for occluded fronts--they never make sense. May be a new edition too.
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 | Instrument Procedures Handbook: FAA-H-8261-1A (FAA Handbooks series) by Federal Aviation Administration
Buy new: $19.77 / Used from: $17.50 Ok, this book has a lot of info, most of it for the guy who wants to fly for the airlines. But still, it presents another side of instruments you don't get anywhere else, and the chart of helicopter VFR minimums is priceless. I wouldn't read it first, but put it on the list. And I think this has a new edition as well.
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 | Instrument Flying Handbook: 2001 (FAA Handbook) by Federal Aviation Administration
Buy used from: $0.91 Even has a section on helicopter instrument flight to fill in the gaps from the RFM. Has all the info you need, and it seems like the FAA has done a competent job here (better than the RFM). Available online for free. (Also google VOR simulator--great resource for learning VOR and NDB navigation.) There's a new edition out I believe.
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 | A Mild Form of Insanity: Recollections of a Helicopter Pilot by Mike Tuson
Buy new: $15.95 / Used from: $9.90 Great book if you need to take a break from reading the RFM. It's a great story, and the career pilot will learn a bit about the lifestyle you'll be facing.
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 | Robinson R22: A Pilot's Guide (ASA Reference Books) by John Swan
Buy new: $10.17 / Used from: $8.63 Not terribly valuable. All the info in this book is in the POH, and all that you'd want to know is either not relevant (the book is based on JAA training) or isn't clarified by this book. The writing is awful and confusing in many places as well. Spend more time with your POH. Better yet, order the R22 Flight Training Guide from Robinson AS SOON AS YOU START YOUR TRAINING!
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 | Helicopters: Military, Civilian, and Rescue Rotorcraft (The Aviation Factfile) by Robert Jackson
Buy used from: $8.91 Eye candy. Pick a good copy up cheap and memorize the specs on the ships you want to fly one day.
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 | IMAX Presents - Straight Up: Helicopters in Action
Buy new: $13.49 / Used from: $8.98 So-so. You've probably seen the Bird-on-a-Wire clip on YouTube. Sadly, that's the best segment of the entire DVD. The first few minutes where they're demonstrating feathering, coning, and the tail rotor are pretty cool tho. Get it cheap and it's worth it.
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 | Instrument Commercial Manual (updated ed)/JS314520 by Jeppesen Sanderson
Buy used from: $12.97 Haven't found much use for this overpriced advertising supplement yet. Almost everything is straight from FAA sources...I guess you'd expect that, but the service you expect from Jeppesen is that they should explain the info better than the FAA. Instead, they mostly copy from the PHAK or IPH and profit nicely from it. There are many typos, especially in the figures. But thats not all
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 | Private Pilot Manual
Buy used from: $12.95 These books will introduce you to the wonderful line of Jeppesen products you can also purchase. You find yourself paying a lot of money for a book of advertisements. The PPL book is slightly worse than the Instrument/Commercial Manual, and if you have to buy one, just get the Instrument/Commercial Manual. Otherwise, just suck it up (and save some) and get what you need from the FAA sources.
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