The Goddess Letters

Important Books 


While The Goddess Letters is a work of fiction, and names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of my imagination or used fictitiously, the facts remain disturbingly real.  I relied heavily on a preponderance of non-fiction books to tell Selena’s and Rob’s story, and I'd like to share those books with you here.


Achterberg, Jeanne. Woman as Healer. Boston: Shambhala, 1991.

Adler, Margot. Drawing down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-worshippers, and Other Pagans in America. New York: Penguin Books, 2006.

Adovasio, J. M., Olga Soffer, and Jake Page. The Invisible Sex: Uncovering the True Roles of Women in Prehistory. New York: Smithsonian Books, 2007.

Anderson, Sherry Ruth., and Patricia Hopkins. The Feminine Face of God: The Unfolding of the Sacred in Women. New York: Bantam Books, 1992.

Baring, Anne, and Jules Cashford. The Myth of the Goddess: Evolution of an Image. London: Arkana, Penguin Books, 1993.

Bolen, Jean Shinoda. Urgent Message from Mother: Gather the Women, save the World. York Beach, Me.: Conari Press, 2005.

Bradley, Marion Zimmer. The Mists of Avalon. New York: Knopf, 1982.

Brizendine, Louann. The Female Brain. New York: Morgan Road Books, 2006.

Brown, Robert G. The Book of Lilith. [Raleigh, NC]: Lulu.com, 2006.

Campbell, Joseph, Bill D. Moyers, and Betty S. Flowers. The Power of Myth. New York: Anchor Books, 1991.

Campbell, Joseph. Creative Mythology. New York: Penguin Books, 1976.

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1968.

Campbell, Joseph. The Masks of God: Primitive Mythology. New York: Arkana, 1991.

Campbell, Joseph. Occidental Mythology. New York: Arkana, 1991.

Campbell, Joseph. Oriental Mythology. New York: Arkana, 1991.

Carnes, Robin, and Sally Craig. Sacred Circles: A Guide to Creating Your Own Women's Spirituality Group. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1998.

Castleden, Rodney. Minoans: Life in Bronze Age Crete. London: Routledge, 1990.

Chadwick, John. The Mycenaean World. Cambridge [Eng.: Cambridge University Press, 1976.

Christ, Carol P., and Judith Plaskow. Womanspirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992.

Covey, Alan. A Century of Women. Atlanta, GA: TBS Books, 1994.

Dahlberg, Frances. Woman the Gatherer. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1981.

Dever, William G. Did God Have a Wife?: Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub., 2005.

Doumas, Christos G. Thera: Pompeii of the Ancient Aegean. Thames and Hudson, 1983.

Duffy, Eamon. Saints & Sinners: A History of the Popes. New Haven, CT: Yale Nota Bene, 2006.

Ehrenreich, Barbara, and Deirdre English. For Her Own Good: 150 Years of the Experts' Advice to Women. New York: Anchor Books, 1989.

Eisler, Riane Tennenhaus. The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future. [San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco, 1988.

Ellerbe, Helen. The Dark Side of Christian History. San Rafael, CA.: Morningstar Books (P.O. Box 4032, San Rafael, CA. 94913-4032), 1995.

Ellis, Peter Berresford. The Celtic Empire: The First Millennium of Celtic History, C. 1000 BC-51 AD. Durham, NC: Carolina Academic Press, 1990.

Finkelstein, Israel, and Neil Asher Silberman. The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel. New York: Touchstone, 2002.

Franks, Lynne. The Seed Handbook: The Feminine Way to Create Business. London: Piatkus, 2005.

Freke, Timothy, and Peter Gandy. The Jesus Mysteries. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2000.

Gadon, Elinor W. The Once and Future Goddess. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1989.

Gimbutas, Marija, and Miriam Robbins Dexter. The Living Goddesses. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001.

Gimbutas, Marija. The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe, 6500-3500 BC, Myths and Cult Images. Berkeley: University of California, 1982.

Gimbutas, Marija. The Language of the Goddess: Unearthing the Hidden Symbols of Western Civilization. London: Thames & Hudson, 2001.

Goodall, Jane. The Chimpanzees of Gombe: Patterns of Behavior. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1986.

Graves, Robert. Greek Gods and Heroes. New York, NY: Del Laurel-Leaf, 1960.

Grenn-Scott, Deborah, and Cosi Fabian. Lilith's Fire: Reclaiming Our Sacred Lifeforce. [Parkland, Fla.]: Universal Publishers/uPublish.com, 2000.

Harris, Sam. The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2005.

Harris, Sam. Letter to a Christian Nation. New York: Knopf, 2006.

Hart, Hilary. The Unknown She: Eight Faces of an Emerging Consciousness. Inverness, CA: Golden Sufi Center, 2003.

Harvey, Andrew, and Anne Baring. The Divine Feminine: Exploring the Feminine Face of God throughout the World. Berkeley, CA: Conari Press, 1996.

Hawkes, Jacquetta. Dawn of the Gods. New York: Random House, 1968.

Henderson, Hazel, Jean Houston, Barbara Marx Hubbard, Barbara Delaney, and Mary Clare. Powell. The Power of Yin: Celebrating Female Consciousness. New York: Cosimo, 1977.

Hendricks, Obery M. The Politics of Jesus: Rediscovering the True Revolutionary Nature of the Teachings of Jesus and How They Have Been Corrupted. New York: Doubleday, 2006.

Hoffmann, Glynda-Lee. The Secret Dowry of Eve: Woman's Role in the Development of Consciousness. Rochester, VT: Park Street Press, 2003.

Holland, Barbara. They Went Whistling: Women Wayfarers, Warriors, Runaways, and Renegades. New York: Anchor Books, 2002.

Holland, Jack. Misogyny: The World's Oldest Prejudice. New York: Carroll & Graf, 2006.

Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments : New Revised Standard Version. Donelson, TN: Melton Book, 1990.

Hope, Robert Charles. The Legendary Lore of the Holy Wells of England: Including Rivers, Lakes, Fountains and Springs. Detroit: Singing Tree Press, 1968.

Judith, Anodea. Waking the Global Heart: Humanity's Rite of Passage from the Love of Power to the Power of Love. Santa Rosa, CA: Elite Books, 2006.

Keepin, William, Cynthia Brix, and Molly Dwyer. Divine Duality: The Power of Reconciliation between Women and Men. Prescott, AZ: Hohm Press, 2007.

King, Karen L. The Gospel of Mary of Magdala: Jesus and the First Woman Apostle. Santa Rosa, CA: Polebridge Press, 2003.

King, Karen L. Women and Goddess Traditions: In Antiquity and Today. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1997.

Kirkwood, Annie, Annie Kirkwood, and Byron Kirkwood. Mary's Message to the World. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1991.

Leedom, Tim C., and Maria Murdy. The Book Your Church Doesn't Want You to Read: Or Synagogue, Temple, Mosque ... New York: Cambridge House Press, 2007.

Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Feminist Consciousness: From the Middle Ages to Eighteen-seventy. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Patriarchy. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986.

Lesser, Elizabeth. The New American Spirituality: A Seeker's Guide. New York: Random House, 1999.

McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1999.

McErlane, Sharon. Our Love Is Our Power: Working With the Net of Light That Holds the Earth. Net of Light Pr, 2009.

Mehta-Jones, Shilpa. Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. New York: Crabtree Pub., 2005.

Mellersh, H. E. L. The Destruction of Knossos: The Rise and Fall of Minoan Crete. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1993.

Meyer, Marvin W. The Secret Teachings of Jesus: Four Gnostic Gospels. New York: Vintage Books, 1986.

Morgan, Elaine. The Descent of Woman. New York: Stein and Day, 1972.

Morgan, Robin. Sisterhood Is Forever: The Women's Anthology for a New Millennium. New York, NY: Washington Square Press, 2003.

Morgan, Robin. Sisterhood Is Global: The International Women's Movement Anthology. New York: Feminist Press, 1996.

Morgan, Robin. Sisterhood Is Powerful: An Anthology of Writings from the Women's Liberation Movement. New York: Vintage Books, 1970.

Murdock, Maureen. The Heroine's Journey. Boston, MA: Shambhala, 1990.

Myers, Dee Dee. Why Women Should Rule the World. New York: Harper, 2008.

Nardo, Don. Living in Ancient Greece. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 2004.

Nardo, Don. The Minoans. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2005.

Pagels, Elaine H. Adam, Eve, and the Serpent. New York: Vintage Books, 1989.

Pagels, Elaine H. The Gnostic Gospels. New York: Vintage Books, 1989.

Palmer, Martin, and Nigel Palmer. The Spiritual Traveler: England, Scotland, Wales : The Guide to Sacred Sites and Pilgrim Routes in Britain. New York: HiddenSpring, 2000.

Parry, Danaan, and Susan Hand. The Essene Book of Days: A Personal Journal, Calendar, Spiritual Guide Which Allows You to Dissolve the Barriers to Your Own Spiritual Awareness Gently as You Reconnect with the Rhythms of the Natural Order. Cooperstown, NY: Sunstone Publications, 1993.

Pearsall, Paul. The Heart's Code: Tapping the Wisdom and Power of Our Heart Energy. New York: Broadway Books, 1999.

Plato, and Allan David Bloom. The Republic of Plato. [New York]: Basic Books, 1991.

Rank, Otto, Raglan, and Alan Dundes. In Quest of the Hero. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1990.

Richardson, Hazel. Life in the Ancient Indus River Valley. New York: Crabtree Pub., 2005.

Schomp, Virginia. Ancient Mesopotamia: The Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians. New York: Franklin Watts, 2004.

Shlain, Leonard. The Alphabet versus the Goddess: The Conflict between Word and Image. New York, NY: Penguin/Arkana, 1999.

Shlain, Leonard. Sex, Time, and Power: How Women's Sexuality Shaped Human Evolution. New York: Penguin, 2003.

Sjöö, Monica, Barbara Mor, and Monica Sjöö. The Great Cosmic Mother: Rediscovering the Religion of the Earth. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1987.

"Socrates: A Life Examined [Hardcover]." Socrates: A Life Examined: Luis E. Navia: 9781591025016: Amazon.com: Books. Accessed September 02, 2012. http://www.amazon.com/Socrates-Examined-Luis-E-Navia/dp/159102501X.

Souden, David. Stonehenge: Mysteries of the Stones and Landscape. London: Collins & Brown in Association with English Heritage, 1997.

Stanton, Elizabeth Cady. The Woman's Bible: A Classic Feminist Perspective. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2002.

Starbird, Margaret. The Goddess in the Gospels: Reclaiming the Sacred Feminine. Santa Fe, NM: Bear & Pub., 1998.

Starhawk. The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Great Goddess. [San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco, 1999.

Stobie, Denise. Exploring King Arthur's Britain. London: Collins & Brown, 1999.

Stone, Merlin. When God Was a Woman. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1978.

Sykes, Bryan. The Seven Daughters of Eve. New York: Norton, 2002.

Thompson, Thomas L. The Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives: The Quest for the Historical Abraham. Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2002.

Thompson, Thomas L. The Messiah Myth: The Near Eastern Roots of Jesus and David. New York: Basic Books, 2005.

Thompson, Thomas L. The Mythic Past: Biblical Archaeology and the Myth of Israel. New York, NY: Basic Books, 1999.

Ward, Geoffrey C., Martha Saxton, Ann D. Gordon, and Ellen Carol DuBois. Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony : An Illustrated History. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1999.

Wilson, John Albert. The Culture of Ancient Egypt. [Chicago]: University of Chicago Press, 1956.