Is there a guide or book that will help me identify all the stone I may encounter?

The answer is yes and no. There are several books available that show types of marble, granite, limestone, slate etc. but, there is no one book that shows all the stone available. There are somewhere near 9000 types of stone in the world. There is some stone that is no longer available and there is stone that has yet to be found and quarried. This makes it difficult to identify the exact type. To make it even more difficult there is no standard for naming stone and some stone may have several different names.

One book available is from the Marble Institute of America at 614228-6194. Other books can be found from various quarries and through the stone trade journals.