With a naked eye or microscope you will be able to identify 180 hardwoods, softwoods amd tropical woods by following the straightforward techniques described in this text.
R. Bruce Hoadley was Professor Emeritus of Building and Construction Materials in the Department of Environmental Conservation at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
This is a really helpful book for identifying woods. Sometimes to identify already installed stained wood is difficult but working with this book the wood is pretty obvious. I have updated from his lenses recommendations with a new LED USB microscope for only about $50. Comparing photos on the computer is really nice.
Mostly a very good overview of the work involved in identifying woods (including, briefly, doing so from charcoal or paper fibres); as a guide to actually identifying wood, it's just pretty good, and it will be most helpful by far to someone in North America. Some of the most common European species are covered, but the tropical hardwoods are limited to those widely available in the US.
It is frustrating to see him use a razor blade for things for which a well-adjusted plane would be much faster and more consistent.
Not quite as readable as his "Understanding Wood" but a good read. It covers wood microscopy in detail, as well as other methods of identifying wood from timber & finished goods. A must read, if you're into this kind of thing.