According to my friend Scribblekitty's research in comparative religion, this is one of the best books for learning about a wide range of different religions, and perhaps finding one for yourself. This particular book is valuable for its neutral viewpoint. Similar site, also with a neutral viewpoint: ReligiousTolerance.com. These aren't stand-alone resources, as you can imagine, but they're ideal for introductions. One person asked why I included such a general book in this booklist. I just wanted the book's inclusion to remind the reader that otherkin and therianthropes are a religiously-diverse lot, despite how many of the other books in this section are (Neo-)Pagan or New Age. Therianthropy, draconity, and otherkin-ness are not religions themselves; they're individual spiritual beliefs that a person may have. A therianthrope, a draconic person, or an otherkin may follow any religion that they personally wish to follow, whether it be Christianity, Taoism, Wicca, and/or anything else.

     New Age 101. This is a neatly organized book (sorted by chronology and by subject) with lots of full color photographs and illustrations contemporary to the subjects discussed. Its tone is astonishingly, delightfully neutral, describing both the positive, successful, genius aspects of each movement within the movement, while also telling about the debunkings, hoaxes, disasters, and dissolutions. (The latter things are what the movements themselves wouldn't be inclined to tell you, so that's part of the value of this book.) It provides enough background information about each subject for you to understand it a bit better than if you'd directly approached another book on that subject alone.

     It covers not only the sub-movements that I'd come to think of as being New Age, but also related movements, such as the Victorian precursors to the New Age, modern shamanism, developments in psychology, and hippie psychedelica. While it does cover the Goddess-centered spirituality, it does not include any other things about Paganism, Wicca, etc. That's because Drury's other books cover the histories of those groups. It's international, so it includes some movements which happened primarily in, say, England, California, or India. The book does not present new ideas of its own, it just describes what the ideas were of these other people, and how it worked out for them.

     If you're interested in anything occult (or psychedelic, psychological, or social) then read it. Doesn't matter if you're new to the occult, or if you consider yourself to be fairly experienced; you will learn something from this. There's plenty of connections that will interest Pagans as well, since a few Pagan concepts have overlap with the movements described in this book. I'm not sure how much reread value this book has, although it's ideal as a reference.

     Quality rating: A

     Peterson's book is my favorite on the subject of astral projection... for now; I haven't read enough books on this subject yet, more research later. The book dispels some fears. Not associated with a particular religion.

     Otherkin connection: Since a lot of otherkin and therianthropes believe that their otherness is due to having a spiritual "astral body" shaped like a different species, it's vital that you understand what your astral body actually is, how it works, and what it can do. Don't just say "my astral form is a dragon" without finding out as much as you can about what an "astral form" actually is.

     If you already believe in reincarnation and don't need extra convincing, this book is useful for gaining an understanding of the nuances of reincarnation, observations on how it usually seems to work, and how to learn from your memories to continue on your path of personal spiritual growth. I'll be doing more research later on books about reincarnation. Not associated with a particular religion.

     Otherkin connection: Many therians explain their therianthropy as being the result of a past life as a different species. But what do you do with that knowledge? What does it signify for this life? Linn talks about the effect of past lives upon current lives. She also talks about transmigration, where a human is reincarnated as an animal or vice-versa.

     Quality rating: A

     Re-released in a revised edition as Positive Magic: Ancient Metaphysical Techniques for Modern Lives. New Page Books, 2002.

     Weinstein's book covers a lot of different activities/ways that fall under the word magic (such as numerous kinds of divination, including Tarot) and tells you the basics of how and why they work, where to learn more if they interest you. For each subject, she gives a “Ten Foot Pole List,” which lists warning signs of practices/individuals which may be dangerous or deceptive, such as cults or scams. This will help you be street-smart so you can explore magic freely, without getting hooked into something regrettable. After reading dozens of introductory magic books, I've decided this is the most useful one; it's an excellent starting point for diverse subjects. I suggest it to everyone who is interested in learning about magic. Some of this book is Pagan, and also ranges into subjects not associated with a specific religion. The book's flaw is that you've got to take it with a grain of salt when it talks certain historical events, since it uses some sources that are no longer considered to be wholly accurate.

     Otherkin connections: It's understandable that dragons, werewolves, and elves are attracted to magic; after all, this culture says those are magical creatures. If you'd like to learn real magic, make sure you read as many books on it as you can. Don't just use one or two... a variety will give you a better-rounded understanding. However, magic books aren't the focus of this list, so I'm only listing an introductory one. It'll set you researching whichever aspects of magic interest you the most. For those readers who are already quite familiar with magic, you know where else to find the books you're looking for.

     Cunningham's careful research has given his books an admirable reputation among magic-users. Not associated with a particular religion.

     On the forums, I keep seeing otherkin and therianthropes asking about the spiritual properties of minerals. Minerals aren't especially associated with therianthropy, unless if you're hoping to enhance certain spiritual qualities, or learn about mythological associations of your theriotype with certain stones. (For example, in my research of stone mythology, I found out that ammonite fossils were believed by some ancient cultures to be the petrified third-eyes of dragons.)

     Tarot Reversals approaches Tarot from a stable, practical, modern viewpoint while also delving satisfactorily into the mystical. Each card is discussed at great length, both upright and reversed. It interprets each card in numerous ways, while still staying to the same non-confusing concept. Each card, as presented in this book, offers not only an interpretation of a situation, but also good practical healthy advice for dealing with that particular situation. More down-to-earth than Tarot Awareness.

     Tarot Awareness's descriptions for each card are lengthy, incorporating various flavors of mysticism. It discusses Chakras and the Kabbalah. Each Major Arcana card has a guided-meditation vision-quest associated with it. It's more esoteric than Tarot Reversals. It might be a bit too esoteric for some people, but it's the best for memorization, and for getting a feel for how all the cards fit together.

     Both these books help you gain a deeper understanding of the cards and gain guidance from their lessons. The advice tends to be upbeat rather than frightening, although they aren't "fluffy love-and-light" at all. In using them, you gradually develop your abilities to solve problems, get a feel for ethics, and learn more strategies for turning life's challenges into opportunities. The books and cards together make a practical tool. Good for novices and experts.

     Here's the more therianthropic bit. You may be interested in getting a Tarot deck (or a non-Tarot divination deck) that matches your kind or species. There are many specialty decks themed of dragons, fairies, felines, angels, various animals, unicorns, vampires, and shapeshifters.

     In some cases the decks are only gimmicks with pictures of that species on cards that are otherwise standard. In other cases, the interpretations and contexts in the accompanying books have been changed to suit the ways of that species, while still retaining the original message. If you'd like to get a better look at a particular Tarot deck before you buy it, Tarot.com allows you to view all the cards in certain decks.

Outside of our spiritualities, there are certain things that we commonly tend to be interested in, things which are connected to our spiritualities by a few degrees. For example, it seems inevitable that a therianthrope learning the ways of their animal side has care and respect for animals, so it ends up that many of us are concerned with animal rights and environmentalism.

     A lot of Starseeds and Walk-Ins feel that they're here on a mission to change the world. Usually they mean that in terms of a global spiritual transformation, but secular changes are great too. There are lots of books on specific ways to change the world-- activism about this or that particular subject-- but here are some generalized introductions to start you off on researching your favorite causes. From these selected books, you may end up deciding to support a cause that you've never even heard of before.

     Similar to The Better World Handbook, this is an introduction to various things that you can do, and it's up to you to decide which causes you most want to follow. Presentation: The interior text is formatted nicely. I don't recall encountering any typos. No interior illustrations, graphics, or photos. The text is divided up into headings, subheadings, etc to lend sufficient visual interest, and this makes it significantly easier to skim the book if necessary. The writing style is neither humorous nor bland.

     Subjects covered: The book is divided into eight parts, is further divided into 33 chapters by subject, and is further divided into 116 "actions." The parts are these: Building community. Raising the next generation. Computer activism. Protecting the environment. Food, hunger, and agriculture. Socially responsible banking and investing. The responsible consumer. Peace, Justice, and social change.

     Each "action" is fairly brief, only a couple pages, and tells you some background information about the subject, argues why something should be done, and tells you what you can do, and who to contact to learn more and actually do some things. There are plenty of things you can do other than donating money to organizations, such as volunteering or making changes in your lifestyle.

     Since this book was published in 1995, much of the information may no longer be of use: References to the Internet are obsolete, since this was before the World Wide Web. Changes may have happened to mailing addresses, phone numbers, and fax numbers of organizations to contact. You'll have to Google them and find out where they are now. Statistics aren't fully up to date, although ten-year-old statistics are probably satisfactory information.

     Suggestions: Since a lot of this book is disappointingly out of date, get it from the library rather than buying it. Don't feel bad, since the book itself says that getting library books is better than buying a book you're doubtful about, since it conserves resources. Then again, an updated edition of it recently came out. Read this book with a notepad at hand, to jot down things you found interesting: points, actions, and names of organizations to look up later. You can read this book in short breaks when you're fairly busy with other things, since its layout makes it very easy to find your spot again to resume reading, or to skim.

     Quality rating: A

     Similar to How To Make the World a Better Place, an introduction to various things you can do. Briefly covers a lot of alternative activities and lifestyle choices. Has good bibliography for extended info on whichever subject is of special interest to you. It's a good start for whatever you want to explore.

     Quality rating: A

     NEWKIRK, Ingrid. Save the Animals: 101 Easy Things You Can Do. New York: Warner Books, 1990.

     Speaking of activism, people who identify with animals need to make sure that their spiritual cousins keep living the way that they need to. Therianthropes, weres, shifters, furry lifestylers, this means you, especially if your theriotype is an endangered animal, such as a cheetah. Even if your theriotype is a common or domestic animal, you, as a human, have a voice and other abilities to help improve and maintain that animal's way of life, in nature (if wild) and among its tenant human beings (if domestic). To find out what you can do to help, read Save The Animals. Possible actions aren't just expensive things like donating to charities, but also things like avoiding speciesist terminology, and spreading awareness of how life is really like for animals: their intelligence and emotions, and their unpleasant situations.

     Good stuff: An excellent guide for vegans and/or animal rights activists of all kinds. It suggests many different kinds of plans. A serious topic presented with a much-needed sense of humor, particularly evident in the puns used in chapter titles. Supplies many contacts for relevant communities, etc. Well referenced. Its format is similar to "101 Things You Can Do To Save The Earth," and its suggestions really are easy and effective.

     Bad stuff: You probably won't agree with all opinions and strategies in this book (promotes overly obnoxious evangelical behavior, and says that all zoological gardens are wrong and inhumane) but most activism groups are like that anyway, there'll be parts you agree with and parts that you don't agree with. A bit dated now in terms of mailing addresses and such, but timeless in other respects.

     Communities on this subject on Livejournal: Were and Fur Animal Rights, and Herbivores: furry vegetarians.

     Quality rating: A

     Sometimes it's difficult to feel like the human species is, on the whole, a good thing. Most people feel that way once in a while, such as when looking at environmental destruction or examples of cruelty. When you believe that you're separate from humanity in some way, misanthropy can really cut in and make a big deal of itself. It's common for otherkin, therianthropes, and starseeds to go through a phase of resenting humankind. (Some do, some don't; if you haven't, don't feel obligated to do so.) Some staunchly claim that misanthropy isn't a phase for them. However, misanthropy damages your ability to enjoy being an otherkin (or therianthrope or starseed) in this world, because it makes you feel even more alienated and alone, and it blinds you to the good things about living here. It's not a perfect world, but it's not as bad as all that, either.

     Restore some faith in humanity by reading Ordinary Grace. This book argues the philosophy that humans (and other living things) are essentially good and are willing to help others, and that this happens much more commonly than we think. That doesn't just mean rich people donating money to charities, which this book mostly avoids talking about. There are many, many other ways to help people, some of which are quite ingenious. Brehony went around interviewing people who had acted altruistically, and their true stories are collected here. You may have heard of some of them in the news. Highly recommended.

     There's a Livejournal community for Otherkin and other people who are recovering from misanthropy and/or working to maintain a human-loving mindset: We Like Humans.

     Quality rating: A

     An empowering book of feminism, environmentalism, Jungian psychology, and mythology. The book is a collection of folktales (such as Bluebeard, the Ugly Duckling, and others) which it tells in full and then analyzes in great detail, so that you can finally understand the message of the stories, and how to apply their lessons to your life. It embraces even the parts of the cycles of life that our society tries not to speak about and considers a dark side, such as death and its necessity in nature. The book teaches how to get back in touch with your wild side, and in touch with nature. Throughout, she uses a metaphor describing people as being like wolves in the various things that both wolves and humans must do in life: grow up, hunt for food, learn what things are dangerous, find love, cope with loss, and care for family.

     Therianthropic response: In the aforementioned The Magic of Shapeshifting, Greene said this book is “...not about shifters [therianthropes], yet mystical. It is of interest to shifters, as it spends a lot of time discussing the inner wild woman, who is symbolized as part animal, especially part wolf. This is portrayed as similar to the way shifters view their own inner animal self. The mystical wisdom about the ‘inner wild self’ that is contained in this book holds many valuable teachings that also apply to the shifter's inner animal” (Greene 243). Despite any misgivings you may have for Greene's book, I re-read Women Who Run With The Wolves from that perspective, and it does look like a good tasty read for therianthropes. I hadn't looked at it that way before, and I may not have thought of it if Greene hadn't pointed it out. Women Who Run With The Wolves is not literally about therianthropy at all, no, but its symbolism and subject matter is near and dear to a therian's heart. Animal totemists may be similarly tickled.

     Overall quality: A

     Age rating: PG.

     Of interest to: women of all ages, feminists of any gender, pagans, fans of Starhawk, people who practice a Goddess-centered religion, people who see a parallel between their lives and the lives of wolves, therianthropes, and animal totemists.

     DACYCZYN, Amy. The Tightwad Gazette: Promoting Thrift as a Viable Alternative Lifestyle. Villard, 1992.

     Learn how to manage finances, do crafts, save money, and have fun while you're at it. Some of us are short on money and some aren't, but the author argues that frugality is an intelligent, shameless, and enjoyable activity for people of any income. Good for the environment, too. This is a more tangentally related secular interest than some, but I really enjoyed reading this and I don't want you guys to miss out on it.

     Overall quality: A

     HEMENWAY, Toby. Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture. Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2001.

     MOLLISON, Bill. Permaculture: A Designer's Manual. Tagari Publications, 1997.

     WHITEFIELD, Patrick. How to Make a Forest Garden. Rodale Institute, 1996.

     Another possible secular interest for otherkin, permaculture is the art and science of how landscaping and gardening can be designed to look and function like nature so that sustainable, self-maintaining ecosystems develop. Mollison's book is full of fascinating observations about the forms that emerge in nature, such as fractals, and examples of how changing the landscape can have far-ranging impacts. However, Mollison's book is quite a complex textbook and some of its projects are immense in scale, so it's not would be called light reading, and a lot of its information can be used only by professionals. Hemenway's book, on the other hand, is a permaculture handbook which any person can apply in their yard or garden, even if the area is small. Its advice is practical and much of it is fairly easy to apply, such as companion planting. (You can also just get it for the pretty color photographs.) I haven't had the chance to read Whitefield's book yet, but it's also a permaculture gardening book-- this one is modelled around the layers that happen in natural forests and how to emulate them in the way you plant your trees. Seems like it would thrill some elves.

     ALLEN, Judy, and Jeanne GRIFFITHS. The Book of the Dragon. Secaucus, N.J. : Chartwell Books, 1979.

     In my opinion, this is the best dragon reference book of all I've read! A must-read for everyone interested in dragons, and worth tracking down. It presents the old myths, the illustrations contemporary to the myths, and gives commentary that is as profound as any draconic person could come up with when trying to define such a nebulous concept as "dragon." Like most English-language dragon reference books, it focuses primarily on dragons of the west and middle-east, but it does this well, bringing up some things which I have not seen mentioned in other books, such as some linguistic notes, the chapter on alchemy, a few stories, and presentations of both sides of a controversy when usually only one side is told. It tends to set the record straight where other books got it wrong. Good bibliography.

     Rating: A

     This book focuses primarily on Western dragons, although it does well at approaching dragons as a world-myth, which is its actual goal. It touches on Asian, American, and ancient Middle Eastern dragons... even real-life "dragons" such as komodo dragons... it covers pretty much all of them, its main oversight being that it never mentions or depicts medieval Persian dragons. Sometimes its interpretations and paraphrasings are misleading. Example: leaving out the context of "the Dragon of Wantley," which this book presented as being just another myth which was told in all seriousness. Most other books tell that "the Dragon of Wantley" was meant in its time as a satire, the poetic equivalent of a political cartoon. The illustrations are all contemporary to the myths, so you get to see how the creatures were really supposed to look when the tales were first told, and a taste of the culture which produced them... Japanese woodcuts, Babylonian reliefs, and so on. Some illustrations which were originally black and white have been colorized. Of dragon reference books, it's still quite superior.

     Rating: A-

     Explores light and dark sides of European faery-creatures. (By the way, "faery" is a dictionary spelling of "fairy." The book explains the connotations of the spelling variations.) Historical quotes, stories, good art. Exhaustive. Anything by Froud (and his family) can be expected to be excellent faery stuff, since it's well-researched and closer to the real, original spirit of Faerie, rather than the cleaned-up Victorian concept where fairies are unvaryingly nice and grant wishes (as Sarah objected when she was bitten by a fairy in the movie "Labyrinth," which the Froud family worked on and in.) On the other hand, don't rely on Froud's works overmuch... don't use them as a sort of Faery bible. Anyhow, feel free to look at the rest of his books.

     Rating: A

     Giants, fairy-folk, angels, and so on. Shows how ideas developed over time, and speculates about how the myths began. Written for children, but good reading for all. However, the illustrations don't reflect how the creatures traditionally look.

     Rating: B

Coincidentally, these next two books both have the same cover illustration (of Perseus slaying a sea monster and rescuing the princess Andromeda) despite having very individual interiors.

     NIGG, Joseph. The Book of Fabulous Beasts: A Treasury of Writings from Ancient Times to the Present. New York : Oxford University Press, 1999.

     Here's a completely different approach to the monster encyclopedia genre. This book shows how each creature's legend developed over time. Good ol' Nigg uses primary-source excerpts from old bestiaries to show each stage in that development. Younger readers will enjoy other excellent books by Nigg, such as Wonder Beasts : Tales and Lore of the Phoenix, the Griffin, the Unicorn, and the Dragon, which also quotes primary sources.

     Rating: A

     There are many mythical-creature encyclopedias in the world, and this is the best of all of them. This book does indeed cover giants, monsters, and dragons; and it also covers a lot of gods, spirits, undead, goblins, fictional famous people, and so on. It covers ALL the mythologies of the world, concentrating on them equally; it's not European-centric. This book doesn't mix in movie monsters with the ancient ones (as some books do) although there are some fairly recent entities listed, such as Paul Bunyan. It only uses old illustrations contemporary to the legends; my only complaint is that the illustrations are few and far between. It has a perfect bibliography, so you always know where to look for more- this book is designed to start you off, tell you where to go for more if you want to. Every single entry tells you which books it came from. In addition to the main fully indexed alphabetical listing of all the monsters, the appendixes in the back list all the monsters by category, so you may look them up that way. It has category listings by country and area, and for type of monster, such as "beings that are horses or part horse," or "dragons- occidental." Etc.

     Borrow or buy: Borrow. (Quick library reference, not something to read straight through. It's also terribly expensive.)

     Rating: A

     JAMALE, Michel. Deerdancer: The Shapeshifter Archetype in Story and in Trance. New York : Arkana, 1995.

     A collection of worldwide were-animal myths, sorted by species. Also includes dragons, trees, and gods. It provides excellent interpretations for the symbols and messages in each of the stories, which I found satisfying and enlightening. More mythology books should have those! However, some of the author's personal accounts of real-life "experiences" seem flaky and improbable... in particular the weird anecdote about the yogi; the poor fellow was probably totally unaware that he was being accused of being a shapeshifter, or of psychically harassing people. The myths and their interpretations are so good, however, that I won't remove a star just for that.

     Rating: A

     Read it even if you're not an insect or arachnid person, it'll do you good! You'll never itch when you think of insects again, and you'll have a lot of hate and fear removed from your life. Has mythology, scientific facts, and anecdotes about insects, arachnids, and other tiny living things.

     Rating: A

     SAX, Boria. The Serpent and the Swan: The Animal Bride in Folklore and Literature. McDonald and Woodward Publishing Company, 1998.

     If you liked Women Who Run With The Wolves, you'll like some other books about feminism, nature, and shapeshifters, such as these two books. In Search of the Swan Maiden is an analysis of hereditary shapeshifters and feminism in mythology. The Serpent and the Swan is about gender, humanity, hereditary shapeshifters, animal rights, history, the natural world. However, these are textbooks, and the myths are excerpted in part rather than retold in full, so don't check them out expecting some light reading.