Books About Losing Your Religion

NONFICTIONFICTION

Nov 1

Explore this curated list of books about losing your religion and find your next read. From memoirs of people who left their religion, to fictional books about losing your religion, and even a book about the psychology of losing your religion, you’ll find recommendations for reading a book about losing your religion here.

Worthy: The Memoir of an Ex-Mormon Lesbian
by Chris Davis
IN A NUTSHELL. Memoir of an ex-mormon
SHORT & SIMPLE. Mormon wife and mother tells the story of losing her religion
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a queer memoir about losing your religion.
Chris Davis grew up devoutly Mormon, married, had two children, and was living the perfect Mormon life despite knowing that she was gay. She planned to remain closeted, raise her children, and then take her own life, but when one of her children came out, her plans changed.
nonfiction + biographies & memoirs
Amazing Conversions: Why Some Turn to Faith & Others Abandon Religion
by Bob Altemeyer and Bruce Hunsberger
IN A NUTSHELL. Psychological study of people who lost their religion or converted to a new religion
SHORT & SIMPLE. Read the stories of people who lost their religion or who converted to new religions against the odds, and learn about the personality traits that make someone more inclined to lose their religion
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a book about the psychology of losing your religion.
Amazing Conversions is a truly interesting reflection on the psychology of losing your religion and the personality traits that individuals who lose their religion, or convert to a new religion, are likely to have. Among other personal stories in this book about losing your religion, readers will find stories about Catholics who became atheists and atheists who turned to fundamentalist Christianity.
nonfiction + psychology
The Poisonwood Bible
by Barbara Kingsolver
IN A NUTSHELL. A family of Christian missionaries faces tragedy and loss of faith in 1950s Congo
SHORT & SIMPLE. Story of a U.S. missionary family in 1950s Congo and faith lost in the face of the realities of politics, race, and hardship
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a moving fictional book about losing your religion.
When the Price family moves from Georgia to the Congo in the 1950s to serve as Christian missionaries, the experience shakes the faith of the women in the family. This moving and beautifully written book about losing your religion is intermittently told from the perspectives of the mother of the family and her four daughters.
fiction
Why I Left the Amish: A Memoir
by Saloma Miller Furlong
IN A NUTSHELL. Ex-Amish woman tells her life story
SHORT & SIMPLE. A woman tells the story of her childhood in the Amish community, why she left, and the struggles along the way
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a memoir about losing your religion from the perspective of an ex-Amish woman.
Saloma Miller Furlong was raised in an Amish community in Ohio where she experienced a difficult childhood with a mentally ill Father. In this memoir, she recounts her doubts about the religion she grew up with, and her desire for freedom and education which eventually led her to leave the Amish community.
nonfiction + biographies & memoirs
The End of the Affair
by Graham Greene
IN A NUTSHELL. Classic novel about a romantic affair and loss of faith during World War II
SHORT & SIMPLE. In the final days of World War II, Maurice and Sarah engage in a highly emotional romantic affair and Maurice struggles to hold on to his religious beliefs.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a fictional romance about losing your religion.
Set in the final days of World War II, The End of the Affair, is protagonist Maurice Bendrix’s recounting of his romantic affair and his loss of faith. This classic novel is a beautifully written, emotional tale of love and the loss of faith.
fiction + romance + classics
Deconstructing Your Faith without Losing Yourself
by Angela J. Herrington
IN A NUTSHELL. Self-help for losing your religion
SHORT & SIMPLE. Guidebook from a life coach about how to go through the difficult process of losing your religion
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a self-help book about losing your religion.
This book about losing your religion, is a guidebook for people who are questioning their faith. Deconstructing Your Faith without Losing Yourself is not about a prescribed end point, but rather lays out a plan for examining your beliefs so that you can take your own path, wherever that may lead.
nonfiction + self-help
The Exvangelicals: Loving, Living, and Leaving the White Evangelical Church
by Sarah McCammon
IN A NUTSHELL. Story of how many adults raised as evangelicals are leaving the faith
SHORT & SIMPLE. Investigative journalism and memoir rolled into one, this is the story of white evangelicalism in America and its discontents
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a book about losing your religion focused on white evangelicalism in the United States.
The author, Sarah McCammon, is an NPR journalist and former evangelical Christian. In The Exvangelicals, she tells her own story and the story of others who grew up in the evangelical church but lost their faith as adults.
nonfiction + biographies & memoirs + history + government & politics
The Atheist Muslim: A Journey from Religion to Reason
by Ali A. Rizvi
IN A NUTSHELL. Physician and scientist loses his Muslim faith
SHORT & SIMPLE. Memoir of a Muslim physician’s loss of faith and journey towards atheism
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a book about losing your religion and becoming an atheist.
Rizvi is a scientist and physician who grew up Muslim, but who had growing doubts about his religion. This book describes his journey towards doubt and atheism. The Atheist Muslim is a book about loss of religion, a defense of atheism, and an argument in favor of a rational, cultural Islam without religion.
nonfiction + biographies & memoirs