The following reviews are books are on spiritual topics that aren't necessarily tied to a Pagan tradition or deity-centric practice. The focus of these titles typically involve energy work, divination, astrology, crystals, and broader spiritual philosophy. Books are listed alphabetically by author's last name.
If you're trying to find a book containing information on metaphysical and spiritual topics and don't see it here, try the other Pagan Book Reviews pages.
Chakra Healing - A Beginner's Guide to Self-Healing Techniques that Balance the Chakras
Margarita Alcantara
Sold as a bargain book, the two appendices for crystals and yoga positions complete with clear images alone make this book worth its price. It's short, but filled with gems of information as related to Chakras and health. Whether you're looking for a practical introduction on what are and how to work with Chakras, or just need a quick reference book for associations, then I recommend this book.
I wasn't totally in love with the layout (the Chakra break-down section is basically a repeating template, which is annoying when reading from cover-to-cover). That said, I'd still recommend it.
The Only Tarot Book You'll Ever Need
Skye Alexander and Mary Shannon
If you are the super passionate and interested Tarot-lover type, the title certainly dishes out a bigger promise than the book delivers. That said, as an introductory or just bare-bones book on the subject, Alexander & Shannon have done wonderfully.
It's simple and easy to read, beautifully laid out, and definitely fits its description of being a modern guide. This is a much appreciated addition to this Tarot-lover's library, so even the experienced and already knowledgeable readers are likely to enjoy.
Just Imagine
Catherine Athans, Ph.D.
Short, sweet, and adorable, this mini-book quickly covers the topic of imagination and visualization. With a nice mix of science and metaphysical thought, this is a perfect little reminder to use your visualization skills during affirmations or spells (though certainly not the implied use by the author!).
For anyone working on their visualizations skills, Athans provides some different ideas that we may not be introduced to in Witchcraft-related books.
Psychic Dreamwalking: Explorations at the Edge of Self
Michelle Belanger
Although she sometimes touches on Vampirism and Paganism, Belanger's discussion of and exercises for the practice of dreamwalking are left open to anyone of any path. As long as you can dream (spoiler: everyone does whether they realize that they do or not), you can learn dreamwalking.
I'd have preferred a slightly different layout, particularly as a contextual person (Belanger begins with personal history, but leaves the history of dreaming and dream research as an afterthought in Appendix I).
And I still can't quite understand the need to claim lucid dreaming and astral travel as distinctly separate from dreamwalking when it seems to me those and other practices are clearly intertwined to the point that I would put them all under the category of dreamwalking. (Yes, I'm that person who stands alone in group discussions arguing that astral travel is an inward process, which Belanger's experience with astral traveling seems to support--an inward focus turning toward the dream realm only to end up on the astral.)
Semantics aside, though, Belanger does a great job breaking down the science of dreaming (with new discoveries in recent years, a second edition would totally be called for) and linking that knowledge to the practice of dreamwalking. There's plenty of information, guidance, and personal stories and anecdotes that work well as an introduction to the topic for those brand new to it.
Emotional Detox: 7 Steps to Release Toxicity and Energize Joy
Sherianna Boyle, MED, CAGS
You'll likely find this book in the Self-Help section rather than anywhere near the Metaphysical books, but I include it here because it contains information and strategies that have long been staples of all things Metaphysical. Boyle has crafted a method of helping us understand exactly what the opposite of "bottling up" our emotions are and helping to sooth and reconnect after emotional trauma(s) have left us beyond just frayed.
At first, I was a bit annoyed when Boyle revealed her big "trauma" event that led her to developing this method as her husband cheating on her. As someone who has endured more than her fair share of traumatic experiences, that sharp twinge of offense hitting me was instinctual and instant. In the grand scheme of possible events in one's life, a cheating spouse is hardly what I would categorize as a trauma experience, no matter how devastating the betrayal might feel in the moment.
That said, this is a book and a method specifically addressing one's emotional states and Boyle's experience--as she little-by-little reveals the details throughout the book--certainly mirrors the emotional states and the subsequent mental, physical, and spiritual tolls those of us who've endured other traumas are all too familiar with.
Even if you find you need different words than the ones Boyle chose (she calls it the CLEASE method, so the terms of each step correspond with a letter from "cleanse") to help you remember what each step is for and entails, I highly recommend giving this book a read and actively engaging in the steps she offers.
Societies today have us so focused on mental & physical health, and we're so focused on rational sides and have a million or so avenues of emotional avoidance (thank you, ever-rapidly-expanding technology), that many of us are missing the basic framework of understanding and addressing our emotional health. (People with "anger management issues" and who are "emotionally distant" aren't the only ones who need remedial lessons in this area!).
So if you are a human being with a pulse and still breathing, be sure to check this book out.
Divination for Beginners
Scott Cunningham
A good introduction to over 100 different forms of divination. I'm not entirely sure of the historic accuracy. This book doesn't go into detail so much as it merely gives enough information for the practitioner to decide whether they are interested or not.
Existential Kink: Unmask Your Shadow and Embrace Your Power
Carolyn Elliott, PhD
Not typically being one for kinks, I hesitated on reading this book, but was too intrigued by the promise of deeper Shadow-work to stay away. Thankfully, Dr. Elliott delivered! On the negative end, this book could easily have been half the size. There's a considerable amount of redundancy (I'm talking straight up copy and pasting entire pages from one chapter to another, and repeating the same quotes over and over and over... with very little changes). On the positive side, Dr. Elliott does a fantastic job of taking the work of the forefathers of psychoanalytic psychology and modernizing it so that we can better our lives today, quickly and efficiently.
Again, I'm not one for kink, so the EK practice itself is not entirely for me. But the basic premise behind it is certainly in alignment with my views and many of the exercises from Part II are fantastic for Shadow-work even without the kink approach explicitly applied. I'm also happy to report that this book has introduced me to the practice of the Tonglen Meditation which is a godsend as someone dealing with chronic pain conditions. Tonglen may well be the practice I need more than EK, but reading Existential Kink will be the book I credit for my getting there.
Everyday Tarot: Using the Cards to Make Better Life Decisions
Gail Fairfield
Easily among my favorite beginner guides for the Tarot. Makes it fair clearer what the purpose of Tarot is and how/when to use it for those purposes (a major stumbling point I've noticed among novice readers). Although I don't necessarily agree with the specific meanings assigned to individual cards, Fairfield does a fantastic job of explaining the Minor Arcana, breaking down by number in a way that's easy to understand and provides a better approach to applying the meanings to readings. There's also a better explanation of reversals than I've seen in other sources, which I find far more valid than the typically explained "reversals = opposite/negative of upright" that boggles my mind. Highly recommend for those interested in studying and/or practicing the Tarot.
Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person's Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists, Fascists, and Flock-Fleecing Frauds
John Fugelsang
This may seem a strange inclusion among these pages of Pagan book reviews. The target audience certainly isn't Witches, Pagans, and other modern magick practitioners. Neither are those of New Age, Metaphysical, and Esoteric persuasions. However, the target audience is anyone living or dealing with extreme right-wing Christian Fundamentalists; the ones who don't actually follow Christ's teachings. This book isn't for Christians; it's for everyone with any shred of sanity left in them.
As Fugelsang takes us through a breakdown of those extreme views, misinterpretations, and misapplications of the Bible, he reminds us of who Jesus actually was, what he actually taught, and the (clearly progressive) values and life practices to live by. Throughout the book, he uses humor to help power us through. Some moments go very deep, and the humor helps to bring us back to the present moment. Some of the things coming out of the far-right Christian Nationalists in the US will infuriate, and the humor reminds us to recognize the absurdity of it. Getting angry doesn't fix the problem. But standing up for what's right by using the same source material does.
We're reminded that the Old Testament is basically like the historical backstory that led up to Jesus. It's inclusion in the Bible serves little practical value, other than as reference material when someone gets mentioned in the New Testament. Jesus very clearly, again and again, stood fast to "out with old, in with the new". What got included in the Old Testament was literally the source material Jesus would quote to highlight that it was finally time to move on.
When touching on the New Testament material, I was (pleasantly!) surprised to learn that all the parts of the New Testament that drove me away from Christianity as a young teenager were entirely from Paul. Paul who was not an apostle, who was not a direct student of Jesus, and who wrote all the things he said to friends and local leaders of the day without any clue that his mostly-casual writings would get turned against humanity for all time. This was some crucial history of the construction of the Bible I feel really should have been a core segment of my CCD learning experience as a young Catholic.
From the perspective of a modern Witch and Pagan, I was profoundly touched by this renewed focus on the teachings of Jesus sans the hate-mongering and Paul-inspired word twisting. Many of the teachings of modern Pagan faiths, adjacent spiritual paths, and shared moments of personal gnosis mirror much of the words and teachings of Jesus. Reading Fugelsang's book inspired me to finally deep dive into some of the other non-Bible gospels (e.g. Thomas, Mary, Judas). It's not hard for the long-time, devout Wiccan, Witch, or modern Pagan to recognize words of truth and have educated guesses as to the missing pieces. (I also imagine Ancient Alien Theorists would be in agreement here, too.)
As we continue to the navigate the rise in power of Christian Nationalists in the US, I'll be coming back to this book again and again as part of the resistance to authoritarianism as we seek to restore healthy democratic principles.
Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil
Liz Greene
This is one of those books where it wasn't at all what I expected it to be, yet I'm still happy because it exceed the expectations I didn't know I should've had. The target audience for Greene's work is western astrologers. So to enjoy her books, you have to have at least more than just a passing interest in the study.
Context for the non-astrologers: Greene's Saturn is a Weiser Classics, originally published in 1976. Understanding this puts the entire volume into perspective. Astrology at that time hadn't fully incorporated psychology. The binary thinking that plagued the Pisces Age (think: good vs. evil) had formed biases within the minds of astrologers. The dominant thinking about planets, houses, and aspects fell into a good-bad void of misinterpretations.
Greene's work was vital for breaking the good vs. evil thinking running rampant among western astrologers. Most of the book is focused on breaking down how the placement of Saturn in a birth chart impacts that person's life. She starts with house placements. Notably, I agree with Robert Hand's forward statement on this matter: although Greene lists house and sign--ex: "Saturn in Libra and the seventh house"--the descriptions and explanations are significantly more accurate for a person with Saturn in the house placement rather than the sign.
If I wasn't already impressed with Greene's approach, her break down of aspects involving Saturn blew me away! Despite keeping these subsections focused solely on the meaning behind an aspect existing without breaking down the specific aspects left me feeling called out. In particular, the "Saturn in aspect to Venus", a feature of my own birth chart, could easily be used to draft my biography. I wasn't even alive when Greene wrote this and she was still spot on.
The book ends on a section dedicated to synastry--a special chart that is a combination of two people's charts. Given my experience exploring the aspects section, I pulled up a synastry chart for my son and I to test it out. I purposefully looked only at aspects (not the chart) so that I couldn't tell whose Saturn was aspecting whose planet. For each of our aspects, I read Greene's descriptions and could easily see the dynamics between my son and I. Using her descriptions, I tried to guess whose Saturn was aspecting the other planet. When I checked the chart after, I was 100% right in my predictions just based on Greene's explanations.
Even as just a (heavy) dabbler in astrology, I'm certain that Greene's books are integral to the learning of any serious astrology student.
The Meaning of Trees
Fred Hageneder
Beautiful book. Hageneder provides lovely photographs of various trees in addition to plenty of information. He goes over practical uses, cultural and mythological information, healing, and correspondences.
The pictures make identification easy, but the book itself isn't practical for carrying around on hikes. Definitely a valuable resources for those who study and are interested in building relationships with trees.
The Crystal Bible
Judy Hall
A wonderful reference for the use of crystals for use in healing, energy work, feng shui, etc. Not meant to be read cover-to-cover, Hall includes information on how and why crystals are used and various correspondence information.
The Crystal Bible Volume 2
Judy Hall
Another useful reference book on crystals. Not as dynamic as in the first as most of the crystals included are generally rare and more of interest to the dedicated collector. That said, Hall includes more information on crystal uses and correspondence worth reading.
Here & Hereafter: How Wisdom from the Departed Can Transform Your Life Now
Tyler Henry
There seems to be a trend in books from famous mediums where the medium shares the experience of being a medium and the stories of moments when spirits speak with them. Sometimes such books are just case studies. I'm not knocking these books because I know full well that there's a demand for them. Just look to the ongoing success of the "Chicken Soup" books as an example. People want to know what it's like to experience life differently than they do. They want to hear fascinating stories involving interactions between the living and the dead. And, sometimes, we just need to be reassured that "the end" isn't a capital "END". Period.
So when I saw this book from Henry that turns this genre of books on its head, I was excited. I'm familiar with Henry from some of the documentaries surrounding his work. Although I don't consider myself a major fan, I do consider Tyler Henry to clearly be a good human being and authentic in what he does as a medium. This book reinforces that viewpoint for me.
Throughout the book, Henry does discuss his personal stories and experiences with his work as a medium. But he goes so much further, turning the experiences and the messages received into practical application that everyone can implement. Each story, each recollection, is included purely to help illustrate the points being made and demonstrate how important it is to integrate these lessons into life while we're alive. The real gold of this book is the principles it highlights, which the chapter titles summarize: "Lead a Spirit-Filled Life", "Check Your Ego", "Integrate Your Intuition", "Align with Your Authenticity", "Navigate the Inevitability of Loss", and "Recognize the Signs". (The last one could've alternatively been "Separate Coincidences from Synchronicities".) This is a book I'll definitely revisit.
So even if you're not into books on mediums and stories of life beyond death, I still highly recommend this book for believers and non-believers alike.
The Tao of Pooh
Benjamin Hoff
An awesome introduction to Tao if you are even the least bit familiar with Winnie-the-Pooh characters. Hoff does an excellent job of explaining the basic principles of Tao by connecting to the classic Winnie-the-Pooh stories and providing examples in the form of conversations with the classic characters from those stories. If you're fan of classic Winnie-the-Pooh, Tao, or just looking for an introduction to the subject, I recommend reading this one, for sure.
Darkside Zodiac
Stella Hyde
Worth it for the humor alone! Most astrology books that focus on the sun signs tend to be all about the positive characteristics and habits. The Darkside is all about those bad habits, unattractive qualities, and annoying characteristics.
If you can't poke fun at yourself (especially if you aren't capable of brutally honest self-analysis) this book will aggravate you at best. But if you know how to laugh and are ready to hear the less-than-tactful way of describing the signs, you'll love this one!
Darkside Zodiac in Love
Stella Hyde
Disappointing considering how awesome the first book was. Mostly just a rehash of the information from Darkside Astology, there's very little new material to make it worth it if you already have the first.
Gift from the Sea (20th Anniversary Edition)
Anne Morrow Lindbergh
I picked this book up at a local event sale out of curiosity and hope for some hidden gems of wisdom wrapped in ocean metaphors. For a book written in 1955 by a housewife and mother of five children, I'm amazed how extraordinarily relevant this book still is today. Sure, the mending of skirt seams might not be at the top of our lists of distractions were this written today. But the struggle of finding balance in our lives that demands so much of our time, energy, and attention and the resulting overwhelm that has an effect opposite from the connections we so desire is totally relatable. I suspect Anne was writing a beautiful blend of the world as it was then with revelations for us today and beyond.
Channeling the Mothership
Jerry McDaniel
A short read, this wonderful book is filled with reminders that we are all connected (no matter how different and polarized we may seem to be) and pushes us to better ourselves by simply asking questions in various aspects of spirituality and human existence. Jerry has a great way with taking concepts that can be difficult to wrap our heads around or digest and bringing them down-to-earth, and his humor really brings the points home.
This book is for absolutely anyone, no matter your personal path in life. Whether you're a seasoned psychic or swear you don’t have an intuitive bone in your body, religious or not, easily persuaded or possess a heavy dose of skepticism, you'll find that Channeling the Mothership will challenge you to think outside your box. Because even if you're great at thinking outside “the” box, we all have boxes of our own.
For some, everything in this book will be new, but for those of us already familiar with the presented topics or have even asked (and answered) these very questions, you’ll find they're worth asking again, because nothing is static in our great Universe. And if you meet resistance along the way, don’t worry! Jerry touches on that, too. Well worth the money, time, and energy.
Earth Spirit Dreaming: Shamanic Ecotherapy Practices
Elizabeth E. Meacham, Ph.D.
I had mixed feelings about this one. Although the content is great and perfect for anyone interested in Earth-based spirituality with shamanic emphasis, I struggled with the formatting of the exercises. I'm accustomed to the text leading into an exercise, whereas Dr. Meacham has text, then an exercise under different formatting with a "Purpose" subsection that leads into the "Description" subsection that contained the exercise. At times, this created unnecessary redundancies, at others, just confusion. That said, I liked the content of the book and highly appreciated the science contained within. I may not count it among my favorites, but I do believe it's a good book for modern practitioners and anyone concerned about the Earth to read.
You're Not Going Crazy... You're Just Waking Up!
Michael Mirdad
An absolutely great book! It's short, but just what many of us need to hear. The book goes over "the five stages of the soul transformation process" and explains why we go through phases or periods of our lives in which we question our sanity as everything around us seems to be falling apart. Mirdad provides helpful tips to get you through each of the stages with loving reminders that everything is okay and there is nothing wrong with you.
The Dynamic Laws of Healing
Catherine Ponder
This book has nothing to do with Wicca or witchcraft. Ponder is a member of the Unity Faith (a Christian denomination). An excellent book about healing. Although it uses quotes and ideas from the Bible and explains things from a Christian point of view, it gives wonderful standpoints on practices of healing that can prove useful to any Wiccan or witch, or to anyone of any religious belief. (Only pet peeve is the last chapter about giving. While it is good to give, especially to those who have helped you and those in need, the chapter seems almost brainwashing.)
The Abundance Book
John Randolph Price
A small collection of his writings, Price provides a short but valuable book full of information to help us transform our view of money, prosperity, abundance, and our worthiness. This book is especially useful to those of us who walk paths that have taught us we should feel guilty for seeking personal abundance or that money corrupts. I recommend giving it a try to anyone who has ever doubted they deserved riches or felt bad for ever wishing for it.
The Wellness Book
John Randolph Price
I had trouble relating to this one. Although there are some interesting points to ponder, I disagree with the mind-over-matter teaching that illness can easily be overcome by changing our thoughts.
Yes, there are times when I get sick overworking myself because I have the ingrained belief that if I push my limits for too long, my body will do whatever necessary to ensure I get needed rest. That's a belief I choose to hold onto and I'm sure if I take Price's lessons from this book and let go of it, that I won't get sick when I push too hard.
That said, my real problem with this concept is that we live in a day and age when people are born with diseases, illnesses, disorders, vulnerabilities, etc. already ingrained before they have a chance to be conditioned with an illness consciousness. This book puts the individual at blame for all his/her poor health or lack of wellness.
Tell that to the autistic kid down the street, the girl with down syndrome, the boy diagnosed with cancer before he even learned to speak, or the child born with HIV. Go ahead and tell them their thinking is to blame. Because of this stance, I simply can't recommend this book.
On a side note, I did get a kick out of Price's explanation that one of his exercises wasn't magic. Any magickal practitioner would have recognized several exercises in this book as spells. Ignorance of magick? Or a dire "need" to mask the truth from his mainstream readers to sell more books?
Journey to the Afterlife: Comforting Messages & Lessons from Loved Ones in Spirit
Kristy Robinett
Robinett does a fantastic job of taking her case studies and organizing and sharing them in a way that reads like good story-telling. Using mainstream terms "Heaven" and "Hell" and other Christian-based terminology, she provides insight into the reality of these "places" where spirits may reside after death between incarnations. Throughout, the cases presented along with Robinett's insights, you find words of encouragement and hope. You'll also find reminders that we can choose to make those things within our control during our time on Earth as our personal Heaven or Hell.
Moon Tides, Soul Passages
Maria Kay Simms
This book is a wonderful introduction to lunar astrology. It is written so that even those with no prior knowledge of astrology can understand the material. The author presents and explains this form of astrology using Wiccan and Pagan theology and mythology to better understand the meanings behind and the importance of the different aspects of astrology.
The book comes with a software disc that has a program designed specifically for lunar astrology as presented by Simms. By using the software to map out your chart, you can apply what you are reading and learning through the book to your own chart and others'.
Past-Life Therapy In Action
Dick Sutphen & Lauren Leigh Taylor
I was hoping more for information on the techniques used in past life therapy, but a decent, quick read nonetheless. It features 28 case studies of past life regressions of varying degrees and how they brought insight to current life issues. The last case, recorded in detail, is astonishing and is a great example of how our higher selves may choose to provide difficult trials in this life for unresolved issues of our past lives.
Lucid Dreaming: Gateway to the Inner Self
Robert Waggoner
Somehow, I managed to keep this book on my shelf unread for years, having bought it when it was still relatively new. I enjoyed reading this book. Although--I must admit--I frequently found myself lulled to napping. Not because of boredom, but because of interest! Waggoner frequently brought up perspectives that somewhat challenged the knowledge gained from my psychology studies. I appreciated his approach to subconscious and unconscious and found myself eager to explore them for myself.
I did find myself annoyed a bit with Waggoner's inclusion of detailed stories about how his desires would manifest in his earlier lucid dreaming experiences. While I'm surely it's partly because I simply can't relate (you might; I'm an "oddball" in this area), it also came across as overdone. There were moments where the anecdote wasn't especially necessary or became repetitive given how detailed he'd already been in telling the story. Beyond that, though, I otherwise was all for digging into his approach to lucidity in dreams.
This book is filled with so much information, insight, and practical applications that there's something in here for everyone. So if you want an in-depth, practical book on the topic of lucid dreaming from an expert in the field with a legitimate science background, Waggoner's Lucid Dreaming is the one.
Communicating with the Archangel Gabriel for Inspiration & Reconciliation
Richard Webster
Although this book (and many others by this author) are clearly written to appeal to non-Pagans as well as regular magickal practitioners, still a good read for anyone interested in working with angels (and Archangel Gabriel in particular) who is new to it. Webster starts off with brief explanations of angels and Archangel Gabriel and providing background on the historical mentions of Archangel Gabriel.
He delicately explains the reasons for contacting and working with Archangel Gabriel and various techniques and forms of magick to do so. At times, the book seems to repeat quite a few points. In a larger volume, this would not be a big deal, but for a little book (less than 200 pages) the repetition almost feels like Webster was trying to stretch the material.
The New Chinese Astrology
Suzanne White
Easily my favorite go-to book on Chinese astrology. White provides information on this form of astrology and in-depth looks at each of the signs. She covers general information before breaking it down to the differences between males and females, the elemental aspects (ex: Fire Tigers vs. Wood Horses), and health considerations.
Each sign section ends with forecasts for years ahead with revised copies containing newer forecasts (the edition I have goes to 2020). At the end, White includes very simplified compatibility information specific to romantic relationships.
The only point of confusion is the sign the average American knows as the Rabbit is instead the Cat. However, White explains where the confusion arose and why she maintains use of the image of the cat over that of the rabbit.
Enhancing Your Mind, Body, Spirit Collection
Various (currently owned by DeAgostini)
I was first introduced to this collection as a teenager when I received a "sample" of random pages in the mail with the promise of so much more for reoccurring payments. Of course I was totally interested in more, but, sadly for their marketing strategy, I was already all-too-familiar with how these scams work (basically, you are going to spend upwards of several hundreds of dollars on binders and the pages by snail-mail over time when you could just buy a book or two with the same information for around $25-50 and have the info at your disposal immediately).
I was lucky to score the collection at a Pagan festival one year and was like "Yay!"
Only, I'd say it's still not worth the effort trying to hunt down. Now the collection I got my hands on was only two of the three binders worth, so it was missing a lot of pages. But it took less than that to realize this is just all watered down information.
The herbal section was probably the most informative. But a lot of pages are just general introduction with the more detailed pages rehashing the info from the intro pages.
If you're a proud hipster, then I highly recommend this to you for your money-wasting pleasure. Otherwise, just don't bother.
Go buy a book on the subjects you're interested in instead. And if you love the idea of something coming by snail-mail that you can look forward to, I suggest magazines.
© 2004-2025 by Evylyn Rose