The most recommended books about the afterlife

I have a long-standing interest in both Simulation Theory and a new theory championed by Robert Lanza, a foremost stem cell researcher, called Biocentrism. This theory has ample scientific evidence to support the idea that reality is a product of consciousness, not the other way around.

In this novel, Lanza reveals his theory in an entertaining and understandable way. The characters explore the tenets of the theory, especially the idea of life after death. If you want your mind to be blown, you should explore Biocentrism. This novel is an excellent introduction to this theory.

Just as Dante needed good guides on his epic journey through the afterlife, so contemporary readers typically need reliable companions on their own journeys into Dante’s poem. The best thing, I find, is to read Dante with, and alongside, his commentators. An ideal way to do this is through the invaluable online Dartmouth Dante Project and Dante Lab, which provide the entire texts of more than 75 of these commentaries in a customisable digital workspace. But if you want a book to hand, The Cambridge Companion to Dante’s ‘Commedia’ provides a really helpful overview of Dante’s masterpiece and its core narrative, linguistic, cultural, and doctrinal features, as well as useful introductions to the poem’s composition and reception. 

Like all of Neil Gaiman’s works, this comic book is haunting and meaningful. Laced with DC references, philosophy, and nightmares, we lose ourselves in its strange world, or should I say, worlds? We follow Tim, a 13-year-old on the brink of becoming one of the greatest magic wielders of all time. But magic comes at a cost, and perhaps he should know that, or at least that’s what the four unlikely guides of our hero believe. And here starts the trip into magic and its many worlds, including a great meeting with Death herself in the afterlife.

This must be my favourite personification of Death ever, managing to be both fun and kind. This is a great meaty adventure comic that really makes you travel and gives you an experience like no other. Don’t expect childishness here, and don’t put it in the hands of too young an audience as… show more.

As part of my metaphysical quest, I had several readings through a medium my sister-in-law recommended.

In the second reading, my late husband came through loud and clear, and I was given a recommendation to read Echoes of the Soul. When I read it, it was as if I remembered it, rather than reading it for the first time. I understand this book, too, was a soul signal I set before birth that kept me moving toward my destiny.

My wife and I had the opportunity several years later to attend a seminar Echo Bodine conducted in Atlanta, and Echo was as impressive in person as on the pages of Echoes of the Soul.

The news is full of stories about chilling developments in artificial intelligence.

And you don’t have to venture into the fantasy world of killer robots to be terrified. Already, “chatbots” are blurring the lines between human and machine intelligence.

It’s gotten to the point that you can’t trust what you see or read online—because it may have been created by some AI designed to cheat or scare you into doing something you really don’t want to do.

Ira Levin’s novel, published in 1970, shows us a world ruled by artificial intelligence. It’s dystopia in the truest sense—and it’s likely to frighten you, as it did me.

 Okay, technically, Malice is a futuristic young adult novel, but there's a fantastic mystery here with a strong female protagonist. I did mention these books would be genre-bending. In this one, a young girl knows part of the future--the part where one of her classmates releases a virus that kills two-thirds of the population. Now she's in a race against time to find out who he is before he kills everyone she knows.

This is an outlier book here, the “true” story about a man who led a rather messy life, was killed in an accident, and communicated with his sister from the other side. The core messages are uplifting: we never really die, and no matter the mistakes we make in our life here, we are always loved and on track with our soul’s journey and growth. 

This long-lost early book on near-death experiences was written around the same time as Raymond Moody’s classic Life After Life, but totally independent of any knowledge of that more famous work.

Hampe was a German philosopher, and while the book made a huge splash in Germany it’s practically unknown to the English-speaking world, even though an excellent translation was published in the 1970s (finally now reprinted).

Hampe is a deep thinker though has a very engaging style. Knowing that he had his own NDE makes the book poignant and moving to read. What I find most interesting about it is the very different approach he took compared to Moody.

Rather than looking at the phenomenon as a scientific puzzle and focusing on the possibility that NDEs are evidence for an afterlife, Hampe was interested in their metaphysical implications. 

This is a fun light book on Viking material culture, aimed at kids or adults who like pictures. (Me!) It's a delightful, breezy overview of exactly what it says on the box, and serves as a great entry point for readers who aren't sure what they need to know or where to start.

For insights into non-western afterlife theory, the Bardo Thodol offers a collection of texts covering aspects of death, reincarnation, and the ‘space’ in between. The work, which dates back to the 8th century, serves as a ‘guidebook’ on preparing the soul for its continuing journey, including advice on meditation, the six states of consciousness, death rituals, and the pursuit of karma. Over the centuries the Bardo Thodol has inspired numerous interpretations as well as literary works. Screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin, who spent time secluded in a Buddhist monastery, describes his film Jacob’s Ladder as a modern take on the ancient text. 

Written by a neurosurgeon who had absolutely no faith or belief in an afterlife, he made an about face after a life-threatening coma and a near-death experience.

This book is his own personal story and truly, it is both inspiring and life changing for the reader. His views on the purpose of life after this experience is so uplifting! 

This book, written by psychic medium Laura Lynn Jackson, was gifted to me shortly after the unexpected passing of my sister.

The book validated for me what I already believed: everything happens in the time it’s meant to and everything (and everyone) is connected. Jackson reports story after story about how souls in the afterlife remain connected to their loved ones on earth.

And, for those who are open to the possibility, signs (and messages) are provided when most needed.

I read a lot of science fiction, and though space operas and traditional hard sci-fi romps can be fun, I love encountering truly new and original ideas that give me pause, make me feel uncomfortable, and/or force me to question my understandings and beliefs.

I personally found the short stories in this book uneven—some just weren’t for me, or weren’t as compelling as others—but the number of original and fascinating stories without obvious comparison or kin that it contains is remarkable, and I found myself changing my mind about (or seriously questioning) a few long-held opinions after reading and mulling them over.

Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelley were both hospice nurses when they wrote this book in 1992 and their book, having sold over 500,000 copies, is still a guide for those who find themselves in the presence of the dying.

The authors act as interpreters for the living and help them understand the language the dying often use. As a hospice social worker, it was not uncommon for me to hear the dying speak of packed suitcases or imaginary taxis pulling up to their doors.

This book helped me to engage with that language and to enter the altered reality that the dying often experience. It encourages us to let go of the rational and invites us into the mystery of death and dying in ways that are life-changing. 

Dead Run is a no holds bar thrill ride of a zombie apocalypse novel.

The author creates a compelling world where humans try to survive the plaguers who are infected zombie cannibals, as well as each other.

Sulan, the main character wants to become a mercenary and studies the fighting arts in secret so she take a shot at the meat grinder, a contest that will let her become a mercenary and forge her own destiny.

I couldn't stop reading this book and couldn't wait until the next book came out to find out what would happen next.

I love to read books by Japanese authors. This one was special as the young boy Kenji boards this magical train with one of his friends, Minoru. This magical train takes him on a journey to the stars and Heaven, where he meets a lot of people. 

Reading this book made me wish I could go on a magical train to a journey to Heaven, where I could once again see my Dad and Uncle and my grandparents and have a marvelous journey. It made me happy to imagine that.

It was an emotional story-magical and mystical. Kenji returns home, and the professor tells him his father is coming home, and Kenji is happy. This is a book that kept me reading and dreaming.

Who doesn’t want to read about ancient Egyptian cannibalism? The title seems sensational, since no actual cannibalism is involved—at least as we might conceive of it in the world of the living—but Eyre employs the standard designation for the specific spell in the Pyramid Texts, the oldest major corpus of religious texts to survive from antiquity. A reader new to ancient Egypt might well read the translation of the Cannibal Hymn at the beginning of the book and be utterly confused. By the end of the book, however, the secrets of this 4300 year old text, including its relationship to butchery rituals and the mundane aspects of animal husbandry, are revealed.

I’ve had friends tell me that they don’t want to love another dog because they can’t bear it when the dog dies. It’s hard to lose a pet, no matter whether you are old or young. Dog Heaven allows us to imagine our old friends in an afterlife that’s fashioned just for them. God knows what dogs like—a place to run, dog treats in funny shapes, fluffy clouds as dog beds, and special homes where they are petted and reminded how good they are all day long. This hopeful picture book offers comfort as our Angel dogs “will be there when old friends show up. They will be there at the door.” 

I found Edgeland after hearing an interview with the authors. Their book sounded so incredibly creative that I had to pick up a copy. The story is about an orphan, Wren, banished from the House of Aron and left to live on the streets. Wren struggles to find safety and security while her friend, Alec, both age 12, has risen from apprentice to a high-ranking position within House Aron. The comparison of their lives are in stark contrast from Alec living with safety and security, to Wren seeking to find her place with the banished and forgotten. But the really interesting thing about Edgeland is the Drain.

It is a large, circular waterfall where the dead are sent in hopes of an afterlife. The story starts to accelerate at a fever pitch when Wren and Alec end up going over the edge of the Drain. They will uncover secrets about… show more.

This must be one of the strangest works I have read in a long while, and I admire it deeply. It surfs on the documentary graphic novel trend. It exists to teach people about the disastrous impact of intensive farming on the environment, and more particularly on dirt. Not a very attractive topic, despite how serious it is – but, and that’s where this comic is so innovative, it twists all this knowledge around a suspenseful battle royal orchestrated by Hades in the Underworld. Unlikely, isn’t it? I loved discovering the facts while cheering on my main characters, two lost 16 years old, who struggle to survive in the underground. While it is directed at teens, I would recommend it to the above 16 only, as there is gore (this book follows the Hunger Games pattern of only one survivor) and nudity.