Research > Guides > Relocation > Reference Books

Reference Books

Central Library owns many reference books that you can peruse at the library. The following pages list some of the most helpful resources, along with their locations in the library. We've compiled a list of Websites that contain similiar information — be sure to take a look at those too!

Quality of life

Use these guides for quality of life rankings for U.S. cities where four out of five people live. Explore cost of living, transportation, jobs, education, climate, crime, the arts, health care, recreation and more.

America's Top-Rated Cities: A Statistical Handbook: R-307.76 A5125 (Science & Business Library)
America's Top-Rated Smaller Cities: A Statistical Handbook: R-307.76 A5126 (Science & Business Library)
The Comparative Guide to American Suburbs: R-307.74 C737 (Science & Business Library)

(covers over 2,200 suburban communities in the 50 largest metro areas -- with rankings)
County and City Extra: Annual Metro, City, and County Data Book: R-317.3 C8556 (Science & Business Industry Collection)
Gale City & Metro Rankings Reporter: R-307.76 G152 (Science & Business Library)
Geographic Reference Report: R-331.2973 G345 (Science & Business Careers Collection)
The Lifestyle Market Analyst: R-658.83 L722 (Science & Business Industry Collection)
Moving & Relocation Sourcebook and Directory: R-307.764 M935 (Science & Business Library)

City Profiles

Find brief profiles of major and mid-sized cities in these:

Editor & Publisher Market Guide: R-659 E24m (Science & Business Industry Collection)
The Encyclopedia Americana: R-030 E561 2001 (Science & Business Library)

Schools

Look for good school districts in these guides:

The College Board Guide to High Schools: R-373.73 C697 (Science & Business Library)
The Comparative Guide to American Elementary & Secondary Schools: R-371.01 C73 (Science & Business Library)

Crime Statistics

Find out the incidence of property and violent crime for the metro area that interests you.

City Crime Rankings: Crime in Metropolitan America: R-364 C581 (Science & Business Library)
Crime State Rankings: Crime in the 50 United States: R-364.042 C929 (Science & Business Library)
Uniform Crime Reports: R-J 1.14/7 (Government Documents Desk)

(also available on the Web: http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/ucr.htm)

Cost of Living

Compare the cost of living and salaries in various cities using these materials.

ACCRA Cost of Living Index: R-338.528 I61 (Science & Business Reference Desk)

(quarterly chamber of commerce inter-city cost of living indicators)
American Cost of Living Survey: R-339.42 A512 (Science & Business Library)

Climate

Find your favorite climate and get environmental information:

Weather America: A Thirty-Year Summary of Statistical Weather Data and Rankings: R-551.6973 W3613 2001 (Science & Business Library)

Health/Retirement

Look for communities with the best health facilities.

Comparative guide to American hospitals: R-362.11 C737 (Science & Business Library)
The Directory of Retirement Facilities: R-646.79 D598 (Science & Business Library)

Politics

Find the political climate in every legislative district in the country.

The Almanac of American Politics: R-328.73 B26a (Government Documents Room)
Politics in America: R-328.73 P769 (Government Documents Room)

Moving Abroad

Would you like to live abroad? Compare countries with these resources.

Encyclopedia of urban cultures : cities and cultures around the world: R-307.7603 E56c 2002 (Science & Business Library)

(four volumes)
The Wellbeing of Nations: A Country-by-Country Index of Quality of Life and the Environment: R-363.7 P933w (Science & Business Library)