Best book (so far): This Being, That Becomes — Dhivan Thomas Jones (2011)
My review at amazon: Just finished reading the best book I’ve encountered on Buddhism — and I’ve read lots. It dives straight to the heart of Buddhism, addressing conditionality, which is central to practicing in a way that leads toward insight and away from behaviors that trip us up. It skips lightly over many of the teachings you may already be familiar with (e.g. the eightfold path) instead concentrating on tougher elements like the Three Marks of Existence and Dependent Arising, so it is perhaps not for the absolute beginner.
The book covers the Buddha’s teaching from both a more traditional angle, as well as being clear about a less rebirth-oriented take on putting it into practice, so you can get a clear understanding of the basics of both: how you can see it if you are inclined to believe in rebirth, or at least believe that the Buddha taught the truth of rebirth, and how you can see it if you are not a believer (whether disbelieving or agnostic on the subject).
Myself, I’m clearly agnostic about rebirth, and I read the Buddhas words in the oldest versions we have of them as him being agnostic as well, for very specific reasons. I find what the Buddha says works very well in application to modern life without the need for a belief in rebirth, so I’m very appreciative of Dhivan Thomas Jones’ take here.
Still, I’m an argumentative old curmudgeon, so there are still penciled-in comments on the margins of my copy, and a few things I’d have the author clarify at the start. He sometimes starts with Traditional explanations without being clear that there’s another way to see the teaching, but he gets around to it eventually. And I’ll stand my ground against the final chapter’s incorporation of Interdependence, but aside from that, he’s really on target.
The writing is clear, easy reading, giving every-day examples, and each chapter ends with things to ask ourselves that help focus on how the teachings apply to our own lives.
Just highly recommended.
Best Video: An Informative Dependent Origination Workshop — Sister Khema (2011)