Good list but I know only the Bathe's book :) Anyway, any of the books is probably ok for an introduction.

There is also a very good online resource at: http://www.colorado.edu/engineering/CAS/courses.d/IFEM.d/

FYI: we had used in past: @Book{simo_hughes_1998:_computational_inelasticity, Author = {Simo, J.C. and Hughes, T.J.R.}, Title = {Computational Inelasticity}, Publisher = {Springer-Verlag}, Address = {Berlin}, year = 1998, } @Book{crisfield_1991:_nonlinear_finite_element, Author = {Crisfield, M.A.}, Title = {Non-linear Finite Element Analysis of Solids and Structures (Essentials)}, Publisher = {J.~Wiley \& Sons}, Volume = {I}, Address = {Chichester}, year = 1991, } @Book{crisfield_1997:_nonlinear_finite_element, Author = {Crisfield, M.A.}, Title = {Non-linear Finite Element Analysis of Solids and Structures}, Publisher = {J.~Wiley \& Sons}, Volume = {II}, Address = {Chichester}, year = 1997, } @Book{holzapfel_2000:_nonlinear_solid_mechanics, Author = {Holzapfel, G. A.}, Title = {Nonlinear Solid Mechanics}, publisher = {J. Wiley}, year = {2000}, address = {Chichester}, }

Ryan Krauss wrote:

So here is the list of what I have checked out so far:

Segerlind, Larry J., 1937- Applied finite element analysis.

Kikuchi, Noboru. Finite element methods in mechanics / Noboru Kikuchi.

Norrie, D. H. Introduction to finite element analysis, D. H.

Norrie and G. de Vries.

Finite element primer / published by the National Agency for

Finite Element Methods and Standards.

Irons, Bruce. Finite element primer / Bruce Irons and Nigel Shrive.

Huebner, Kenneth H., Finite element method for engineers / Kenneth

H. Huebner, Earl A. Thornton, Ted G. Byrom.

What every engineer should know about finite element analysis /

edited by John R. Bauer.

White, R. E. (Robert E.) Introduction to the finite element method

with applications to nonlinear problems / R.E. White.

Becker, Eric B. Finite elements : special problems in solid

mechanics / Eric B. Becker, Graham F. Carey, and J. Tinsley Oden. v.1

Becker, A. A. (Adib A.) Introductory guide to finite element

analysis / A.A. Becker.

Finite element methods : fifty years of the Courant element /

edited by M. Krizek, P. Neittaanmaki, R. Stenberg.

Bathe, Klaus-Jurgen. Finite element procedures in engineering

analysis / Klaus-Jurgen Bathe.

Martin, Harold Clifford, 1913- Introduction to finite element

analysis: theory and application [by] Harold C. Martin [and] Graham F. Carey.

Cheung, Y. K. Practical introduction to finite element analysis /

Y. K. Cheung and M. F. Yeo.

Norrie, D. H. Finite element method; fundamentals and

applications, [by] Douglas H. Norrie [and] Gerard de Vries.

If you can recommend the best starting point(s), I am open to suggestions. If you have a favorite (especially for beginners), that isn't on this list, I can almost certainly get it (we are a smallish school, but all university libraries in the state of Illinois cooperate). So, I am open to recommendations.