Zen, etc.: a (very) selective recommended reading list

Some books – old and new, mostly basic – worth your time

My last post, which discussed Zen and what it offers to those seriously engaged in contemplative practice (what I mean by “mysticism”), elicited a request that I provide a list, with some annotations, of related books — books which I think might be especially useful, informative, and, in some cases, essential. I have attempted to do that very thing below. At the same time, I’m quick to acknowledge that, without a doubt, there are many oversights. Obviously, no list of this kind could ever be exhaustive, and any such endeavor inevitably reflects the peculiar tastes of the list-maker. My peculiar tastes are certainly on display below.