Whats the difference between a general and a specialized reference work?
A general work covers or tries to cover all fields of knowledge. My favorites are Academic American Encyclopedia, Facts on File, and the Oxford English Dictionary (all twenty volumes!). A specialized work is specific to one field or subject area. Examples are the Encyclopedia of Psychology, the Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms, and Fodor’s Travel Europe guide. Remember, that even a specialized reference work will still be far more general in scope than a book.