Whisky Library: What to choose?

Hey guys, long time lurker. Recently i've been wondering two things: the first one is where do you find your inspiration for your next purchase? Like do you choose something on the shelf in front of you or do you seek find and destroy your next target by any mean?

And main question: what book do/did you use in your way through your whisky world? I'm talking about beginner book ("gf want to learn" style), reference book (like JM's Bible just to have a big list of existing whiskys), and advanced knowledge book (extensive history about this or that, crafting, distillery etc.).