Question:
What practical, clearly written, useful fire inspection books do you recommend for someone learning and doing?

Answer: Basic skills - get the NFPA Inspection Manual - good start if you want to OJT/self learn -= just be careful as it references NFPA Standards and your local requirements may be different. They (NFPA) just redid the book so it should be right up with the latest thoughts on inspection practices. I always liked it (and used it in training new inspectors) because it has a good philosophy to it as well. Fire Inspectors are usually faced with the much more difficult task of ensuring a property is safe from fire and improving the fire safety attitude of the property owner/user rather than enforcing strict compliance with a code. You gotta be a lot smarter than the code book to be a good inspector. The manual also has a very clear procedural system that makes inspections easy and consistent. A life (and career) saver when it comes to the final E of inspection - enforcement. Have fun - be proud of taking on an extremely difficult job. You'll save more lives doing inspections for a year than in fighting fires for 1000.