We understand that the word meditation means different things to different people. Some view it as a religious practice used “to engage in mental exercise (such as concentrating on one's breathing or repetition of a mantra) for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness.” Others view it as a tool “to achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state.”
Overview: Our Top Picks
Popular Meditation Books for Beginners
- Practicing Mindfulness: 75 Essential Meditations to Reduce Stress, Improve Mental Health, and Find Peace in the Everyday by Matthew Sockolov ($11.71)
- A Walk in the Wood: Meditations on Mindfulness with a Bear Named Pooh by Dr. Joseph Parent ($10.99)
- The 5-Minute Meditation Journal: Quick Guided Meditations for a Calmer, Happier You by Miranda Lee ($10.49)
Popular Meditation Books for Advanced Practitioners
- Total Meditation: Practices in Living the Awakened Life by Deepak Chopra ($14.68)
- Focused Mind, Powerful Mind: Release Your Mind's Greater Powers with Advanced Meditation Techniques by Nightingale-Learning Systems ($30.87)
Popular Meditation Books for the Workplace
- Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day by Jay Shetty ($13.00)
- Breathe to Succeed: Increase Workplace Productivity, Creativity, and Clarity Through the Power of Mindfulness by Sandy Abrams ($15.95)
- Buddha’s Office: The Ancient Art of Waking Up While Working Well by Dan Zigmond ($11.99)
Popular Meditation Books for Anxiety or Stress
Popular Meditation Books for Families and Children
- Breathe Like a Bear: 30 Mindful Moments for Kids to Feel Calm and Focused Anytime, Anywhere by Kira Willey ($12.89)
- Meditation for Kids: 40 Activities to Manage Emotions, Ease Anxiety, and Stay Focused by Tejal V. Patel ($10.10)
- Anxiety Relief Workbook for Kids: 40 Mindfulness, CBT, and ACT Activities to Find Peace from Anxiety and Worry by Dr. Agnes Selinger Ph.D. ($12.39)
Jump ahead to these sections:
- Popular Meditation Books for Beginners
- Popular Meditation Books for Advanced Practitioners
- Popular Meditation Books for the Workplace
- Popular Meditation Books for Anxiety or Stress
- Popular Meditation Books for Families and Children
For the purposes of this article, we are going to assume that the reader is interested in meditation for its health benefits. Here are some books that will help you achieve clarity and a sense of calmness. Feel free to look for other articles on Cake’s blog about books on spiritualism.
Popular Meditation Books for Beginners
We browsed through the virtual shelves of America’s largest bookstore to see what titles about meditation are most popular. We found that books on meditation can easily be broken into several categories, such as meditation books that focus on gratitude or others about meditating about death.
Even though we are a blog about death, we will try to include meditation books for various subjects. Here are some of the most popular titles.
1. Practicing Mindfulness: 75 Essential Meditations to Reduce Stress, Improve Mental Health, and Find Peace in the Everyday by Matthew Sockolov
We aren’t sure about the difference between practicing mindfulness and meditation. However, this book has 75, five-minute exercises that may help you reduce stress and maintain mental well-being.
The book’s author is the founder of One Mind Dharma. He says that the exercises found in his book will help others with distorted or wandering thoughts and mental blocks. The exercises are designed to last between five and fifteen minutes.
2. A Walk in the Wood: Meditations on Mindfulness with a Bear Named Pooh by Dr. Joseph Parent
You might glance at the cover of this book and assume that it is designed for children or parents. However, A Walk in the Wood: Meditations on Mindfulness with a Bear Named Pooh is for everyone. The author uses Pooh as an example of how to live – namely, being present and kind.
This mindfulness book encourages the reader to slow down, observe, and be present. The book also highlights the benefits of living in nature to practice mindfulness.
Parent’s book uses simple stories and clearly-stated goals to help readers achieve a calmer way of living.
3. The 5-Minute Meditation Journal: Quick Guided Meditations for a Calmer, Happier You by Miranda Lee
Perhaps you want a simpler, calmer life, but you don’t have time to achieve it. This journal promises to give you guided five-minute meditations that will allow you to make the practice a consistent habit.
This journal gives writing prompts that allow you to track your progress and reflect on each meditation session.
4. The Meditation Book: The Essential Meditation for Beginners to Find Peace, Reduce Stress, and Improve Mental Health by Blair Abee
According to the book’s synopsis, the goal of this book is to help readers master a quick meditation technique to get started. The result will be a sense of well-being and vibrancy and an improvement in decision-making skills.
Readers will understand the difference between the everyday three-dimensional world of ego/mind and the five-dimensional world of Spirit/Mind in order to achieve a higher consciousness.
5. Practical Meditation for Beginners: 10 Days to a Happier, Calmer You by Benjamin W. Decker
This title gives you the nitty-gritty of 10 different meditation techniques. It includes an example daily structure for building your meditation skill set. It also includes step-by-step instructions for each of the 10 techniques. Finally, the author encourages readers to reflect on the experience by recording the reactions of the experiences by using the writing prompts the author provides.
Popular Meditation Books for Advanced Practitioners
Maybe you aren’t new to meditation. Perhaps you adopted the practice because you were interested in meditations about grief. Maybe you began meditation to help with your anxiety or depression.
Here are some more advanced books about the practice of meditation and mindfulness.
6. Total Meditation: Practices in Living the Awakened Life by Deepak Chopra 
Readers of this book say that it’s not for a beginner. Instead, Total Meditation helps those who already meditate “wake up to new levels of awareness that will ultimately cultivate a clear vision, heal suffering in your mind and body, and help recover who you really are.”
Besides informing others about the benefits of meditation, the book also provides readers with dozens of awareness exercises and gives a year-long supply of meditations that focus on different areas of a person’s life.
7. Focused Mind, Powerful Mind: Release Your Mind's Greater Powers with Advanced Meditation Techniques by Nightingale-Learning Systems
The author of this book suggests that there are many benefits that can be achieved by following its practices, such as enhanced creativity, high-level problem solving, increased levels of happiness, improved mental focus and clarity, and better sleep.
Popular Meditation Books for the Workplace
Perhaps you are struggling with your professional life and you wish to use meditation to help you in the workplace. Here are some books that have been suggested for business leaders and other professionals.
8. Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day by Jay Shetty
Think Like a Monk was written by a man who practiced meditation in India for several years. According to the book’s synopsis, it “reveals how to overcome negative thoughts and habits and access the calm and purpose that lie within all of us.”
The book includes both advice and exercises that will help you “think like a monk.”
9. Breathe to Succeed: Increase Workplace Productivity, Creativity, and Clarity Through the Power of Mindfulness by Sandy Abrams
Perhaps you feel that improvements in technology have affected our ability to connect with others. Perhaps you feel the modern workplace leaves you with a distracted mind and a short attention span.
If you are suffering from negative energy or are addicted to social media, the author of this book says they can help by teaching you how to breathe. The breathing techniques taught in this book may help you access your optimal energy and manage your emotions. It may also help you become aware of negative thought patterns and behavior.
10. Buddha's Office: The Ancient Art of Waking Up While Working Well by Dan Zigmond
This book was written by the co-author of Buddha's Diet. This book, Buddha’s Office, will teach you the importance of caring for yourself and others and dealing with distractions. The author also promises that working in this new, enlightened way will be better for your health and sanity.
Popular Meditation Books for Anxiety or Stress
Perhaps you are looking for a way to handle your anxiety or stress without using medication. Here are some titles that promote meditation as a method for healing the mind.
11. Guided Meditations for Depression and Anxiety: Beginner Friendly Meditations to Help You Overcome Depression, Reduce Your Anxiety, Relieve Your Stress and Become More Mindful by Meditation Made Effortless
The author of this book hopes to help you regain control of your inner world through meditation. The author experienced relief from depression, anxiety, and stress by utilizing the practice.
12. Practicing Mindfulness: Easy Guide to Learn How to Be Peaceful and Relieve Stress, Anxiety and Depression, Reclaiming the Present Moment and Your Life, Meditations to Reduce Stress and Improve Mental Health
Mindfulness meditation involves body and mind awareness. This title focuses on muscle and body relaxation to manage stress and help you feel calmer and more relaxed.
This title is for someone who is affected by the tensions of daily life.
Popular Meditation Books for Families and Children
Do you wish to incorporate meditation and mindfulness into your parenting? Perhaps your child is anxious, or maybe you are simply wishing to introduce a technique for your child to utilize when encountering anxious moments in the future.
Here are some child-friendly meditation books to consider.
13. Breathe Like a Bear: 30 Mindful Moments for Kids to Feel Calm and Focused Anytime, Anywhere by Kira Willey
Breathe Like a Bear is a collection of mindfulness exercises designed to teach kids techniques for managing their bodies, breath, and emotions. It includes 30 short, simple breathing practices and movements that can be performed anytime and anywhere.
According to the book synopsis, the goal is to help kids achieve calmness, gain focus, and feel energized.
14. Meditation for Kids: 40 Activities to Manage Emotions, Ease Anxiety, and Stay Focused by Tejal V. Patel
Are you looking for techniques to calm down an upset child? Perhaps you are seeking solutions to help your child become a bit more focused. Consider some of the activities introduced in Meditation for Kids by Tajal V. Patel.
Exercises are simple, short, and child-friendly. They include “Stop-Sign Breath,” “Meditating on a Lily Pad,” “Happy Hummingbird,” and “Anger Washing Machine.”
15. Anxiety Relief Workbook for Kids: 40 Mindfulness, CBT, and ACT Activities to Find Peace from Anxiety and Worry by Dr. Agnes Selinger PhD
This workbook was created by a clinical psychologist and includes exercises designed to help kids learn how to work through feelings of discomfort or worry. The instructions are kid-friendly and presented with playful language and colorful pictures.
Learn More About Stress and Anxiety Caused by Grief
You are probably already aware of how grief affects people differently. Grief has a different timeline for different people. It may cause you to feel overwhelming sorrow that leaves you incapacitated, or you may feel a sense of peace.
If anxiety and worry are a part of your grief journey, consider reaching out to a professional or reading one of these titles.