Books like The Quran: A Biography

01

No God but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam

Reza Aslan · Religion & Spirituality

No God but God is Reza Aslan's account of Islam from its pre-Islamic Arabian origins through the life of Muhammad, the early caliphates, the development of Islamic law and mysticism, and into the contemporary reform movements that Aslan argues are the religion's defining struggle.

Both dig into islamic history.

02

The Varieties of Religious Experience

William James · Religion & Spirituality

The Varieties of Religious Experience originated as the Gifford Lectures delivered at Edinburgh in 1901–1902 and immediately became one of the most celebrated works in the study of religion.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

03

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything

Christopher Hitchens · Religion & Spirituality

God Is Not Great is Christopher Hitchens' comprehensive polemic against religion, published in 2007 as part of the wave of "New Atheist" books that included Dawkins' The God Delusion, Harris' The End of Faith, and Dennett's Breaking the Spell.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

04

The Perennial Philosophy

Aldous Huxley · Religion & Spirituality

The Perennial Philosophy is Aldous Huxley's anthology and commentary on the mystical traditions of the world, arguing that behind the diversity of religious forms lies a single metaphysical core: the divine ground or ultimate reality is one; the human soul contains a spark of this reality; the purpose of human existence is to realize this identity; and the path to that realization requires ego-transcendence through contemplation, virtue, and love.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

05

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Yuval Noah Harari · History

Sapiens traces the full arc of human history from the emergence of Homo sapiens in Africa roughly 70,000 years ago to the present.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

06

A History of God

Karen Armstrong · Religion & Spirituality

A History of God is Karen Armstrong's account of how the idea of God has changed over four thousand years across Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, with excursions into Hinduism and Buddhism.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

07

A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose

Eckhart Tolle · Religion & Spirituality

A New Earth is Eckhart Tolle's follow-up to The Power of Now, applying the same framework of presence and ego-transcendence to a broader account of human dysfunction and its transformation.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

08

Autobiography of a Yogi

Paramahansa Yogananda · Religion & Spirituality

Autobiography of a Yogi, published in 1946, is Paramahansa Yogananda's account of his spiritual development in India and his subsequent mission to bring yogic teachings to the West.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

09

Dark Night of the Soul

John of the Cross · Religion & Spirituality

Dark Night of the Soul is a systematic commentary on a short poem John of the Cross wrote while imprisoned in Toledo in 1577.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

10

God in Search of Man: A Philosophy of Judaism

Abraham Joshua Heschel · Religion & Spirituality

God in Search of Man is Abraham Joshua Heschel's systematic philosophy of Judaism, published in 1955 as the companion to Man Is Not Alone.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

11

Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom

Joseph Goldstein · Religion & Spirituality

Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom is Joseph Goldstein's distillation of vipassana — the Theravada Buddhist practice of direct investigation into the nature of mind and experience.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.

12

New Seeds of Contemplation

Thomas Merton · Religion & Spirituality

New Seeds of Contemplation is Thomas Merton's revised and expanded version of Seeds of Contemplation, which he published in 1949 when he was still new to monastic life.

A kindred religion & spirituality read.