The central goal of the field of second language acquisition (SLA) is to describe and explain how second language learners acquire the target language. In order to achieve this goal, SLA researchers work with second language data, which can take a variety of forms, including (but not limited to) such commonly used methods as naturalistic production, responses to questionnaires about motivation and attitudes, grammaticality judgments, and reaction times in online tests. Given the interdisciplinary nature of SLA, the field has drawn on the methodologies used in other fields, including linguistics, first language acquisition, psychology, sociology, and education, among others. As the number of data collection and analysis methodologies used in SLA has grown, so has the number of books describing and explaining these methodologies. In this review article, the author describes and evaluates the volume edited by Alison Mackey and Susan Gass (2012), which provides a comprehensive overview of a broad variety of different data collection and analysis methods used in SLA. She also evaluates selected chapters from the volume edited by Elma Blom and Sharon Unsworth (2010), which covers formal experimental methodologies for language acquisition in general; she evaluates only those chapters that have direct relevance for research in SLA. Finally, she briefly reviews the volumes by Zoltan Dornyei with Tatsuya Taguchi (2010, second edition) and by Kim McDonough and Pavel Trofimovich (2008), which take an in-depth look at two specific methodologies used in SLA research. All four books are evaluated with regard to their utility for courses on research methodology and design; features that make the books particularly useful for instructional purposes are pointed out. (Contains 1 note.)