What's "the archetypal book" called?

Question

If a book sets the standard of a field, i.e. it is the most important book that students of subject X would all read, what can that book be called?

I've thought of gospel, archetype, exemplar, definitive, but none of them are quite the word I'm thinking of.

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the _________ on C#.

Answer 1

Sometimes bible is used:

a publication that is preeminent especially in authoritativeness or wide readership

the fisherman's bible
the bible of the entertainment industry (M-W)

Also

If someone describes a book about their job or interest as their bible, they mean that it is the best and most useful book about the subject. (collins)

In its definition of the term, OED contains other possible phrases:

A publication regarded as authoritative in a particular sphere or on a particular subject; a reference book, a standard work. Usually with modifying word or phrase indicating the subject area.

Answer 2

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the _________ on C#.

authority.

OED:

I. An authoritative piece of writing.

I.1. A book, passage, etc., accepted as a source of reliable information or evidence, esp. one used to settle a question or matter in dispute; an authoritative book, passage, etc.

1949 The Salafis agree with the modernists..in accepting Koran and Sunna as the sole authority for religious truth. H. A. R. Gibb, Mohammedanism x. 178

Answer 3

Standard itself is used also, as a noun. OED definition of this sense:

A book generally accepted as an authority, or regarded as an exemplar of excellence.

_{Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “standard (n.), sense III.22.a,” June 2024,
https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1070004760.}

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the standard on C#.

Gold standard is a viable option as a phrase also. The modifier 'gold' can serve to intensify the meaning.

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the gold standard on C#.

'Gold standard' is typically used in the sense of a 'benchmark.' While it can denote the best of its kind, it’s usually referenced as a point of comparison or measurement against other similar items. For instance, saying 'C# in Depth is the gold standard for C# reference books' could work better, though the term is not commonly applied to books. In this context, 'standard' alone would be an adequate fit for the OP's sentence.

Wiktionary has this example also (credit to Mari-Lou A) :

The OED is the gold standard for English dictionaries.

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Additionally, standard is used in the same sense in its adjective form:

Of a book or an author: generally accepted as an authority, or regarded as an exemplar of excellence.

_{Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “standard (adj.), sense I.3.a,” June 2024, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/6735049595.}

Answer 4

Simply putting emphasis on the definite article implies that the item referred to is uniquely important and identifiable among other items of the same class. It's somewhat informal and might be more at home in spoken dialogue than in written text.

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the book on C.

Answer 5

You might say,

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the canonical book on C#.

This uses canonical in the sense "accepted as being accurate and authoritative" (Oxford Languages).

Answer 6

A seminal book has a great influence in a particular field.

Seminal sources tend to be the major studies that initially presented an idea of great importance or influence within a particular discipline. These works were generally published in the past 20-50 years. These are the researchers/thinkers/authors that everyone discusses (whether or not current research agrees with their findings).
Source : Rasmussen university

Example : in its seminal book the origin of species, Darwin argued that organisms gradually evolved through a process called 'natural selection'.

However, for a book related to a computer language, I would prefer the term of reference (or reference book/source/document)

Answer 7

Go-to is another possibility.

relied on and turned to as a preferred resource, strategy, option, etc., for a particular purpose:

This is my go-to dictionary.

[Dictionary.com]

Answer 8

A book that sets a standard in a field could be called a classic book. Classic has several related definitions that apply here.

of the first or highest quality, class, or rank: a classic piece of work.

serving as a standard, model, or guide: the classic method of teaching arithmetic.

of or adhering to an established set of artistic or scientific standards or methods: a classic example of mid-Victorian architecture.

basic; fundamental: the classic rules of warfare.

of enduring interest, quality, or style: a classic design; classic clothes.

of literary or historical renown: the classic haunts of famous writers.

definitive: the classic reference work on ornithology.

It can be used as an adjective or a noun.

I've been recommended C# in Depth as the classic text on C#.

C# in Depth was recommended to me as a classic.

Answer 9

Iconic is often used these days, no matter how much I hate it.

Try googling: the "iconic" book on c# programming.

(Recall, use " " on a word in google, to get literally that word appearing.) (As opposed to google contextually literally "understanding your question", which is sort of terrifying!)

Answer 10

You can call it the last word on C#. See meaning 2b from Merriam-Webster:

last word noun

1. the final remark in a verbal exchange

2. • a: the power of final decision
   • b: a definitive statement or treatment

     this study will surely be the last word on the subject for many years

3. the most advanced, up-to-date, or fashionable exemplar of its kind

   the last word in sports cars

Answer 11

If the book has encyclopedic qualities it may be "The only book you'll ever need about X". Not sure whether that applies to "C# in Depth"; but it would be adequate to describe Josutti's The C++ Standard Library.

Answer 12

Two titles from the tech world I think speak to this quite well are 'the definitive guide' and 'the missing manual'

For a single word - I want to say 'lexicon' but it doesn't quite fit. It might given the right subject...

Answer 13

Although the default sense is the literal one, holy writ is used perhaps irreverently for any text (and, broadening further, ethos) considered peerless in its field:

Holy Writ [noun]

• the Bible.
• writings or sayings of unchallenged authority:

"research findings and conclusions are guidelines, not holy writ"

[ODE; courtesy of Google]

Internet examples:

• One thing we are seeing in some more recent studies is that some things that were considered holy writ (e.g., you need to have sad faces in your fundraising) may only be true for acquisition audiences (since that’s where they were tested).

[Agitator: The Donor Voice]

• The writings of Martin Heidegger—liberal academia's biggest superstar—are considered holy writ ...

[F Bardamu; Occidental Observer]

• Although written eighteen years earlier than Kogan's 'Busoni', Zhdanov's formulations on literature were considered holy writ, and only formally disavowed in 1988

[S Belsky, Grigory Kogan: His Life and Times; De Gruyter; courtesy of Google]

• What are the best books about the Battle of Midway?

Even Fuchida's account, for so long considered Holy Writ ...

[Quora: books about the Battle of Midway]