100 books like The Flip

By Jeffrey J. Kripal,

Here are 100 books that The Flip fans have personally recommended if you like The Flip. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Consciousness Beyond Life: The Science of the Near-Death Experience

Alan Pearce Author Of Coma and Near-Death Experience: The Beautiful, Disturbing, and Dangerous World of the Unconscious

From my list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a journalist, I'm driven to find stories that have not been covered before and to make clear the incomprehensible. I like people, and I like asking questions. I've covered wars and disasters, and on any given day, I could expect to see people at their very worst and at their very best. With my book about comas, I've met some of the finest people of my career, doctors, nurses, and other clinicians who are fighting the system, and coma survivors who are simply fighting to get through each and every day. This is the story I am now driven to tell.

Alan's book list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know

Alan Pearce Why did Alan love this book?

This book simply blew me away. I sat down to speed-read through it when researching my coma book and became instantly hooked and took my time.

Dr. van Lommel takes us on a journey of discovery into the mysterious world of consciousness and its multiple levels and turns current understanding on its head. I loved the way the author steered me with ease into the realms of neuroscience and quantum mechanics without leaving me scratching my head.

This is so much more than a book about consciousness. This is a fantastic read for anyone wanting to know who we really are.

By Pim van Lommel,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Consciousness Beyond Life as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Dr. Pim van Lommel, a renowned cardiologist, was so inspired by the stories his patients told of their Near Death Experiences (NDEs) that he became the first medical practitioner to risk his reputation with a full, systematic trial into the phenomenon. He interviewed 344 heart patients at his hospital who had all clinically died, some for five minutes or longer, before being resuscitated. Of these, 62 - or 18 per cent - reported some ongoing experience after the medical monitors had pronounced them to be dead. Van Lommel claims these are authentic experiences which cannot be reduced to the imagination,…


Book cover of DMT: The Spirit Molecule: A Doctor's Revolutionary Research into the Biology of Near-Death and Mystical Experiences

Alan Pearce Author Of Coma and Near-Death Experience: The Beautiful, Disturbing, and Dangerous World of the Unconscious

From my list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a journalist, I'm driven to find stories that have not been covered before and to make clear the incomprehensible. I like people, and I like asking questions. I've covered wars and disasters, and on any given day, I could expect to see people at their very worst and at their very best. With my book about comas, I've met some of the finest people of my career, doctors, nurses, and other clinicians who are fighting the system, and coma survivors who are simply fighting to get through each and every day. This is the story I am now driven to tell.

Alan's book list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know

Alan Pearce Why did Alan love this book?

Hold on tight! If we ever wanted proof of other dimensions and the reality of otherworldly entities, this is a must-read, assuming one accepts eyewitness accounts of realities way beyond the understanding of modern science. No space ships required just the ability to tap into other levels of consciousness, in this case with N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), the active ingredient in the Amazonian mystic brew ayahuasca.

Strassman's account of his groundbreaking trials left me stunned and wishing others would pick up where he left off. Forget Star Trek and Doctor Who; other realities are much closer to hand.

By Rick Strassman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked DMT as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From 1990 to 1995 Dr. Rick Strassman conducted U.S. Government-approved and funded clinical research at the University of New Mexico in which he injected sixty volunteers with DMT, one of the most powerful psychedelics known. His detailed account of those sessions is an extraordinarily riveting inquiry into the nature of the human mind and the therapeutic potential of psychedelics. DMT, a plant-derived chemical found in the psychedelic Amazon brew, ayahuasca, is also manufactured by the human brain. In Strassman's volunteers, it consistently produced near-death and mystical experiences. Many reported convincing encounters with intelligent nonhuman presences, aliens, angels, and spirits. Nearly…


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Book cover of Conscious Calm: Keys to Freedom from Stress and Worry

Alan Pearce Author Of Coma and Near-Death Experience: The Beautiful, Disturbing, and Dangerous World of the Unconscious

From my list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a journalist, I'm driven to find stories that have not been covered before and to make clear the incomprehensible. I like people, and I like asking questions. I've covered wars and disasters, and on any given day, I could expect to see people at their very worst and at their very best. With my book about comas, I've met some of the finest people of my career, doctors, nurses, and other clinicians who are fighting the system, and coma survivors who are simply fighting to get through each and every day. This is the story I am now driven to tell.

Alan's book list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know

Alan Pearce Why did Alan love this book?

I am so glad I found this book. Now, when my mind won't ever seem to shut up, I know where to find the off-switch.

It seems we all do it all of the time, and yet the incessant chatter inside our heads that runs on a loop throughout the day and goes largely unnoticed is actually making us ill. Laura calls this seriously annoying habit 'motor minding,' the root of so much self-generated stress and anxiety, a pure hallmark of the modern world.

Reading this was like a full-on revelation. Once we learn to shut out the noise, we really can attain higher levels of consciousness. This is what the gurus and mystics have seen seeking all along. 

By Laura Maciuika,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Conscious Calm as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Ready to transform stress and worry for good? When you are stressed and worried, looking for lasting stress relief can be overwhelming. There is so much information it's hard to know where to start and what to do. Conscious Calm makes it simple. This book focuses on the internal patterns of stress that often go unnoticed, and shows you how to undo those patterns so that lasting calm becomes possible. Conscious Calm reveals 9 Stress Secrets that can keep you stuck in stress, and 9 Conscious Calm Keys to experiencing stress relief and peace of mind. Integrating science and wisdom…


Book cover of Every Deep-Drawn Breath: A Critical Care Doctor on Healing, Recovery, and Transforming Medicine in the ICU

Alan Pearce Author Of Coma and Near-Death Experience: The Beautiful, Disturbing, and Dangerous World of the Unconscious

From my list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a journalist, I'm driven to find stories that have not been covered before and to make clear the incomprehensible. I like people, and I like asking questions. I've covered wars and disasters, and on any given day, I could expect to see people at their very worst and at their very best. With my book about comas, I've met some of the finest people of my career, doctors, nurses, and other clinicians who are fighting the system, and coma survivors who are simply fighting to get through each and every day. This is the story I am now driven to tell.

Alan's book list on consciousness that demonstrates there is more to life than we know

Alan Pearce Why did Alan love this book?

Okay, this one isn't about Consciousness, although it does form a key part of the story. But this is such a beautiful read, especially so for anyone touched by critical illness, that I couldn't not mention it in a list of inspirational books.

This isn't a medical book, as such. It's ultimately about us as people, about compassion and love. It's a journey of exploration and awakening from the stark realization that by employing a standard medical procedure, the young Dr. Ely was actually harming patients and likely killing others.

Compassion just pours off the pages. I'm left haunted by a number of the stories he tells of patients who were done such serious harm, with only the best of intentions, and of his quest to bring a new humanity to critical care medicine. Wonderfully uplifting.

By Wes Ely,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Every Deep-Drawn Breath as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Winner of a Christopher Award—now with a discussion guide

“Perhaps one lesson to draw from the pandemic, with help from books like this one, is that the ICU experience can be changed for the better” (The Washington Post) for both patients and their families. You will learn how in this timely, urgent, and compassionate work by a world-renowned critical care doctor.

In this rich blend of science, medical history, profoundly humane patient stories, and personal reflection, Dr. Wes Ely describes his mission to prevent ICU patients from being harmed by the technology that is keeping them alive. Readers will experience…


Book cover of Questioning Spirituality: Is It Irrational to Believe in God?

Lisa McCourt Author Of Free Your Joy: The Twelve Keys to Sustainable Happiness

From my list on igniting joy despite all the crap in your life.

Why am I passionate about this?

I wasn’t always a joyful person. But today I’m freaking sunshine, and full-out committed to being an effective member of the team that’s elevating the level of love and joy in the world! My positions on that team have included writing dozens of mega-selling books (my own, and as a ghostwriter), founding my online Joy School at LisaMcCourt.com, hosting my Do Joy! podcast, and collaborating on projects with many other popular teachers of consciousness and joyful living. My books have sold over 9 million copies, earned 7 publishing industry awards, and garnered over 9,000 glowing Amazon reviews. Joy is my jam. I know a joyful book when I read one! 

Lisa's book list on igniting joy despite all the crap in your life

Lisa McCourt Why did Lisa love this book?

My books and trainings are all about joy, but that doesn’t mean I don’t geek out on the science behind it all.

I’ve long admired Eldon Taylor’s approach to bridging the gap between spirituality and what is considered hardcore scientific understanding at this current stage of human evolution, and this book addresses a question that underlies all of the work I do.

If more people could release the widespread, ridiculous idea that spiritual concepts (understood and practiced by our far wiser ancestors thousands of years ago) are somehow not as “real” as the other arbitrary, culturally-accepted paradigms they subscribe to, we’d have a far more joyous, compassionate, successful society.

Eldon provides a fact-based bridge for readers to cross in this well-researched book! 

By Eldon Taylor,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Questioning Spirituality as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A pragmatic case for the rational viability of a spiritual belief in a higher power. [Taylor] makes a compelling case that the scientific worldview--one that sees humans as "meat machines"--is inconsistent with people's experiences of themselves and is not nearly as rationally superior as it is so often presented. This alone makes the author's compact consideration a worthwhile read. A philosophically astute challenge to the rational supremacy of science over its spiritual rivals. Kirkus Reviews


Book cover of One Minute Wisdom

Joan Budilovsky Author Of Sages of Young Ages

From my list on new moms to listen and laugh with their children.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve taught yoga and meditation for decades to children from ages 3 to 93. My Doctorate is in Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago. I love to experience personal development and child development has a very special place in my heart. I learn so much from them! It is particularly fun to watch children discover and explore life. Everything old is new again! Sages of Young Ages can open our eyes if we simply open our ears to each child’s unique spoken truths.

Joan's book list on new moms to listen and laugh with their children

Joan Budilovsky Why did Joan love this book?

I love the simplicity of the stories with the catchy one-word titles. Short and sweet. They need not be read in any specific order. Each story stands on its own and each has a depth of meaning so that every time I read it I see something new in the story. This book was a model for me in my writing of Sages of Young Ages.

By Anthony De Mello,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked One Minute Wisdom as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Through profound spiritual insights and his unique approach to the inner life, internationally acclaimed author Anthony de Mello points the way toward new levels of contemplation, happiness, love, wisdom, and enlightenment.

In more than two hundred parables and lessons about living life fully yet simply, de Mello gives examples filled with wisdom that cannot be conveyed in regular direct discourse. Rooted in the spirit of the Gospel and spanning the mystical traditions of East and West, this invigorating volume -- like all the author's previous books -- is intended to enliven our faith and free us from whatever imprisons our…


Book cover of Zen Therapy: Transcending the Sorrows of the Human Mind

Alvin Raja Hornstein Author Of Working With the Dying: Compassion, Shame, and the Illusion of Loss

From my list on how psychotherapy and meditation work together.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been a meditator for fifty years, learning from many teachers. I've been a psychotherapist for twenty years. The connections between meditation and psychotherapy are subtle and powerful. When I started my psychology studies, I went to my Zen teacher and asked for his guidance. I knew I couldn't survive the academic path without more depth in my meditation practice. There were two professors who captured my attention: one, the most psychoanalytic teacher at my school, and one, a student of the same Zen master who taught Leonard Cohen. They guided my research. If you're a psychotherapist, are in psychotherapy yourself, or are a meditator, you will love these books.

Alvin's book list on how psychotherapy and meditation work together

Alvin Raja Hornstein Why did Alvin love this book?

Brazier begins with his own experience of Zen training, and then continues on to a survey of Buddhist ideas and how each of them relates to the practice of psychotherapy. For example he takes the profound and mysterious concept of karma and then shows us how this is related to the process of helping a patient understand their repetitive psychological patterns. He addresses the topic that was central to my own path of merging psychotherapy and meditation: how loss and death are teachers. He explains the main lesson they teach: what is lost is our illusion of how the world is put together.

By David Brazier,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Zen Therapy as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Buddhism, from Abhidharma to Zen, offers a practical path to harmony of head and heart. For over 2,000 years Buddhists have been developing sophisticated psychologies to guide the work of achieving freedom from mental suffering. Now East and West are beginning to learn from each other.

In a readable and practical manner, this book challenges basic assumptions of Western psychology, demystifies Buddhist psychology and presents Zen as a therapy. Giving examples of its effectiveness in psychotherapeutic practice, the author shows how Zen derives from the Buddhist theory of the mind and throws new light upon the Buddhist theory of relations…


Book cover of Autobiography of a Yogi

Jonathan Ellerby Author Of The Seven Gateways of Spiritual Experience: Awakening to a Deeper Knowledge of Love, Life Balance, and God

From my list on spiritually-focused books to awaken your heart, mind, and soul.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love books! I wrote my first book as a science project at age 11. As a writer, books are my passion. Specifically, I have been interested in the nature of consciousness and healing since I was 12 years old. I started reading everything I could get my hands on at that time and continued voraciously until I completed my Ph.D. around the age of 30. Many themes in transformation and spirituality I read almost exhaustively – Indigenous studies, cross-cultural healing, the nature of mind, and the nature of the soul. I have always needed to keep books around me just to feel at home.

Jonathan's book list on spiritually-focused books to awaken your heart, mind, and soul

Jonathan Ellerby Why did Jonathan love this book?

This book opened my mind to the possibility of spiritual superpowers and the wealth of wisdom that lives in the ancient spiritual traditions of the world.

A little on the dense side, this amazing book blew my mind as I felt like I was transported in time to study at the feet of great masters. I was amazed by stories of miracles and incredible gifts of consciousness that had otherwise seemed only the stuff of movies and fiction.

The images were so compelling to me that I could not stop reading it. It felt like a course in deep metaphysics. And it was all a way of sharing the life story of a master teacher I truly admire and want to know everything about.

I have to say, on top of all this, it felt familiar, easy, and like a beautiful world to immerse in.

By Paramahansa Yogananda,

Why should I read it?

7 authors picked Autobiography of a Yogi as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Autobiography of a Yogi is at once a beautifully written account of an exceptional life and a profound introduction to the ancient science of Yoga and its time-honored tradition of meditation. Profoundly inspiring, it is at the same time vastly entertaining, warmly humorous and filled with extraordinary personages.

Self-Realization Fellowship's editions, and none others, include extensive material added by the author after the first edition was published, including a final chapter on the closing years of his life.

Selected as "One of the 100 Best Spiritual Books of the Twentieth Century", Autobiography of a Yogi has been translated into more…


Book cover of One-Liners: A Mini-Manual for a Spiritual Life Hardcover

Joan Budilovsky Author Of Sages of Young Ages

From my list on new moms to listen and laugh with their children.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve taught yoga and meditation for decades to children from ages 3 to 93. My Doctorate is in Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago. I love to experience personal development and child development has a very special place in my heart. I learn so much from them! It is particularly fun to watch children discover and explore life. Everything old is new again! Sages of Young Ages can open our eyes if we simply open our ears to each child’s unique spoken truths.

Joan's book list on new moms to listen and laugh with their children

Joan Budilovsky Why did Joan love this book?

"Don't take yourself so personally" says Ram Dass. His humor, his insights, his ability to capture great lessons and truths in one line. This book made me think and laugh at the same time = quite a feat! I so appreciate his fun look at life with his deep sense of spiritual understanding. Fantastic read.

By Ram Dass,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked One-Liners as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

One-Liners is a collection of over 200 penetrating and pithy spiritual instructions from spiritual guru Ram Dass, who describes it as a 'distillation' of the lectures he has given over the last couple of decades. His insightful quotes cover topics such as Love and Devotion, Suffering, Ageing, Planes of Consciousness, Death and Dying, Service and Compassion, Psychedelics, Social Awareness and Liberation.


Book cover of A Course in Miracles: Combined Volume

Tama J. Kieves Author Of This Time I Dance! Creating the Work You Love

From my list on to help you stay true to yourself and your calling.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am moved by the deepest potential in all of us. Having graduated from Harvard Law School and working as an unfilled attorney, I finally left everything to follow my true desire to write. So, I know how vital it is to have support for our inspiration instead of our fears. That’s why I’ve written 5 books to champion visionary minds, creative souls, freedom junkies, and more. And as a TEDx speaker and USA Today featured visionary career coach, I am always reading for my own growth and for my students. I recommend these books because they helped me to trust in greater possibilities. I hope they support your dreams. 

Tama's book list on to help you stay true to yourself and your calling

Tama J. Kieves Why did Tama love this book?

I recommend this book because this spiritual text helped me—more than any other—to see and choose from love instead of fear in my own life. When I left my prestigious law job, I had a storm of fears weaken my creative dreams. This book helped me to find and trust my own inner authority. It also helped me to feel more secure in life, no matter what was going on. At first, I found the language off-putting because it “sounded” religious at times. But this path is not about any religion, other than the love and infinite power in all of us. There are gazillions of spiritual books on the market, but this one is a powerhouse, a classic, and a gamechanger.    

By Dr. Helen Schucman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Course in Miracles as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This is the edition of "A Course in Miracles" ("the Course") that its two scribes, Drs. Helen Schucman and Bill Thetford, authorized for publication by the Foundation for Inner Peace in 1975. It is now available in translation in 27 languages and is widely used by students in thousands of Course study groups around the world.
"A Course in Miracles" is a unique spiritual self-study program—a course in mind-training—designed to undo the illusion that you are separate in any way from God or your fellow humans. At the level of the mind we are all united as one. When we…


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