The most recommended books about Atlantis

There have been many descriptions of Atlantis published before, but very few have been written by someone who has actually been there, via psychic time travel, or at least via a series of dreams inspired by Atlantean stone furniture in Bolivia.

Fortunately, Walter F. Laredo has left us just such a book, and if he sometimes plays coy (maybe it was all just a dream???), he wonderfully includes an appendix of technical schematics of Atlantean inventions (bionic eyes, “chemical laser” beams) alongside full-color paintings of Atlantean architecture and the occasional nude Atlantean woman.

Atlantis is another fabled island-nation, with a history that goes back much further in time than Utopia. The powerful island-nation is mentioned by Greek philosopher Plato as an antagonist to mighty Athens. There are a handful of theories about whether Atlantis ever existed (some claim Plato made it all up). If it did exist, what was the location before it sank below the waves?

Gavin Menzies takes up one of the real location theories in this fascinating book: that Atlantis was part of the advanced Minoan civilisation that extended from its Mediterranean base on Crete to locations much further afield. Since this all took place three millenniums ago, hard to prove anything, although Gavin Menzies tries his best with unearthed artifacts and DNA evidence to persuade the reader as to the veracity of his findings. Perhaps you should read this tale with a pinch of salt? It is about… show more.

The Compass Rose is certainly less well-known than many other Ursula K. Le Guin books, but I think it’s a fantastic example of a book that takes you to unexpected places. It’s a fascinating and varied collection, but my favorite piece by far is “The Author of the Acacia Seeds and Other Extracts from the Journal of the Association of Therolinguistics.” It starts out wonderfully nerdy and weird, with a scholar’s detailed reporting of the “writings” of an ant as written, using touch-gland exudation, on seeds in an anthill. From there it gets weirder, and more esoteric, until it lands in a place sweeping and unimaginable. It’s one of those stories that did something a story had never done to me before, and because of that, it holds a very special place in my heart.

Nia's lifelong dream is to become an avatar, one of the ruling mermaids of Atlantis. But when she is passed over for the opportunity, she must embark on a quest to prove herself. This journey takes her far beyond the sea and everything she knows to the world of dry land. Arthurian legends, mermaids, magic, Atlantis, a heroine’s journey – how can you go wrong?

Among the several fine essays here, Harald Reiche's "The Language of Archaic Astronomy: a Clue to the Atlantis Myth?" is a bonus treat. Reiche introduces the technological language of ancient mythology – the "tech talk of our ancestors" – and explains how "stories," recounted in the language of myth, track the "damage" to the heavens caused by the Precession of the Equinoxes. This easy-reading collection is a great aid for those with little inclination to study the heavens through light-polluted skies, or to plunge into the troublesome field of comparative mythology. 

Conventional Egyptologists still insist the mighty Sphinx in Egypt dates to around 4,500 BC. Well, those so-called experts really should start listening to the likes of Colin Wilson. In From Atlantis to the Sphinx, you’ll read how Boston University’s Robert Schoch has proven the Sphinx was damaged by floodwater, meaning it must be much older than it’s generally thought to be. Many believe the Sphinx actually dates from 10,500 BC! Read this book and you’ll probably agree.

I fell deeply in love with the bond between Rune and Brand because, at the very beginning, that's all they had: each other. It doesn't stay that way for long, as Rune is tricked into taking on a ward from another house at the start of the first novel. As challenging and unexpected as this first new family member is, Rune and Brand must adapt quickly because their little family only grows larger from there—and as an ongoing series, I hope it's not finished growing yet! While love, healing, and family are at the root of this series, it absolutely does not lack action, political intrigue, mystery, and magic; making it fast-paced and thrilling while also being genuine and heart-warming. One of my very favorite new series, I cannot recommend The Tarot Sequence enough!

The history of Ramptha by Ramptha himself, channeled through one of his descendant's bodies (author J Z Knight). Ramtha was a Lemurian warrior who fought the Atlanteans over 35,000 years ago.

I found this book after my Near Death Experience during which I was awakened to my memories of all my previous lives. While reading this book, my body shook uncontrollably with heightened vibrations, a sure sign that my soul recognized the history and I was part of it in a Past Life.

This book gives insight about the original world, of one of the times of humans and their fall, also about enlightenment and what it means. In this book I also discovered, and confirmed, who I used to be in that lifetime.

Though this is a pseudo archaeological work, Donnelly's theories remain the source of many of our modern-day ideas about Atlantis. Written in 1882, at a time when much of the world was still mysterious to Westerners, Donnelly proposed an argument that all cultures and peoples originated from Atlantis, which he claimed was destroyed during the Great Deluge described in the Book of Genesis. Today, in the 21st century, experts have debunked most of his theories. However, many of the questions he raised remain unanswered. Despite its many flaws, it’s an interesting glimpse into Western thought during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Although magic doesn’t feature as strongly in this as the other recommendations and in the subsequent books in the series, I recommend this it cleverly disguises magic within the world, it's not showy but still believable, something which makes you think. It's also a gripping tale that connects Atlantis with the stories around King Arthur.