Spiritual Autobiographies

Seven-Storey Mountain, Thomas Merton

Thomas Merton is a great writer with a very interesting life story. This book covers his childhood and questing youth, his friendships and interests, and his eventual conversion to Catholicism. It’s beautiful and offers insights into the first half of the twentieth century.

The Story of My Experiments With Truth, Gandhi

This book covers Gandhi’s entire life, from his early legal studies in England, to his life in South Africa, to his apotheosis in India. It explores politics, print culture, and his intensifying sense of his own religious identity.

A Confession, Leo Tolstoy

He was a writer with a tremendous amount of conventional success, but Tolstoy was an unconventional figure in many ways. This book explores his religious convictions and his distinctive approach to Christianity and living in community with others.

Confessions, St. Augustine

This book is not only a classic of the Christian faith, it’s a classic of the genre. Augustine narrates his life, his experiences, and his changing convictions. It also offers insights in the world of Rome.

Traveling Mercies, Anne Lamott

Many religious books seem to center on saints and people who are entirely unrelatable. Traveling Mercies is a contemporary Christian journey written in a way that reminds you of a conversation with a friend who has some hard-won wisdom.

Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda

This book changed the life of Gerry Lopez, the famous surfer. It’s an introduction to yoga and the yogi.

The Long Loneliness, Dorothy Day

This is an autobiography by one of the few American women considered a potential saint. Learn about her life story, her journey to belief, and the Catholic Worker movement.

Compiled by Elizabeth Stice