Novels •
Walden by
Henry David Thoreau, 1854. Promoted the idea of simple living and self-sufficiency, emphasizing the importance of being in touch with nature and rejecting materialism. The book's message of individualism, non-conformity, and living in harmony with nature inspired many members of the hippie movement to reject mainstream values and embrace a more sustainable, back-to-the-land lifestyle. • ''
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' by
Lewis Carroll, 1865. Novel which involves abandonment of logic and is an example of literary nonsense. Popularized by the 1967
Jefferson Airplane song "
White Rabbit" •
Demian by
Hermann Hesse, 1919. Explored themes of self-discovery, spirituality, and the rejection of societal norms and conventions. The book's journey of self-realization and its rejection of traditional values inspired a countercultural movement that emphasized individuality and spiritual growth, resonating with many members of the hippie generation. •
Siddhartha by
Herman Hesse, 1922. Explored the journey of self-discovery and spiritual enlightenment, inspiring a countercultural movement focused on rejecting materialism and embracing Eastern philosophy, mindfulness, and alternative lifestyles. •
Steppenwolf, by Hermann Hesse, 1927, another cult novel. •
Brave New World by
Aldous Huxley, 1932. •
1984 by
George Orwell, 1949. Thematically, it centres on the consequences of
totalitarianism,
mass surveillance, and
repressive regimentation of people and behaviours within society. •
Fahrenheit 451 by
Ray Bradbury, 1953. •
On the Road by
Jack Kerouac, 1957. Promoted a spirit of adventure, freedom, and non-conformity, as well as celebrating the Beat generation's rejection of mainstream values and embrace of jazz, drugs, and alternative lifestyles. The book's depiction of a cross-country journey and the search for meaning and purpose resonated with many members of the hippie generation and inspired a sense of wanderlust and liberation. •
The Dharma Bums by
Jack Kerouac, 1958. •
Naked Lunch by
William S. Burroughs, 1959. Pushed the boundaries of traditional literary norms and conventions, challenging societal norms and values, and exploring themes of counterculture, drug use, sexuality, and the nature of reality, inspiring a non-conformist and rebellious spirit among the hippie movement. •
Stranger in a Strange Land, by
Robert Heinlein, 1961. Cult science fiction novel which described a variant on the
free love philosophy •
Island,
Aldous Huxley, 1962 • ''
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'', a 1962 novel about individualism in a mental hospital written by
Ken Kesey, who was associated with both beatniks and hippies, including the
Merry Pranksters •
A Clockwork Orange by
Anthony Burgess, 1962. Explored themes of free will, morality, and the nature of good and evil, as well as commenting on the state of society and government control. The book's ultra-violent, futuristic setting and its depiction of youthful rebellion inspired a spirit of resistance and individualism among the hippie generation. •
Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me by
Richard Fariña, 1966. An autobiographical novel by
Richard Fariña about the early sixties and the transition from
beatniks to
hippies. Depicts a countercultural lifestyle that was filled with experimentation, non-conformity, and a rejection of societal norms, inspiring a sense of freedom and individuality among the hippie movement. The book also tackled themes of youth rebellion, education, and the search for meaning and purpose, resonating with many members of the hippie generation. •
Trout Fishing in America by
Richard Brautigan, 1967. A writer associated with hippies and the
San Francisco Renaissance •
In Watermelon Sugar, by
Richard Brautigan, 1968 •
Memoirs of a Beatnik, by
Diane di Prima, 1969, novelistic pseudo-memoir by a
Beat poet •
The Left Hand of Darkness by
Ursula K. Le Guin, 1969. Challenged traditional gender roles and norms, promoting gender fluidity and sexual liberation, and encouraging a new understanding of individuality and societal expectations. •
Another Roadside Attraction, by Tom Robbins, 1971. Cult novel from the period •
The Drifters by
James Michener, 1971 •
The Sweetmeat Saga: The Epic Story of the Sixties by G. F. Gravenson, 1971. Experimental novel set in 1966 about a rock duo who goes missing. • ''
Divine Right's Trip: A Novel of the Counterculture'', by
Gurney Norman, 1972, describing a Volkswagen bus road trip •
Ecotopia, by
Ernest Callenbach, 1975 •
Foundation is a series of science fiction novels written by
Isaac Asimov from 1951 to 1993.
Poetry •
Stanyan Street and other Sorrows: Poems, by
Rod McKuen, with
Stanyan Street referring to the street in
San Francisco which borders on
Haight-Ashbury, a hippie cultural center •
Howl and Other Poems, by Allen Ginsberg, 1956 •
Leaves of Grass by
Walt Whitman, 1855. • the "
Desiderata", a poem by
Max Ehrmann •
The Scripture of the Golden Eternity, by
Jack Kerouac, 1960 •
The Prophet, by
Kahlil Gibran, 1923 •
The Love Book, by
Lenore Kandel, 1966 •
Turtle Island, by
Gary Snyder, 1974.
Nonfiction •
The Function of the Orgasm by
Wilhelm Reich, 1927 creator of the
orgone hypothesis •
The Biosphere, by
Vladimir Vernadsky, 1927. Soviet scientist Vernadsky founded the
Gaia hypothesis and influenced the
Gaianism. •
The Doors of Perception by
Aldous Huxley, 1954. Encouraged the exploration of spirituality, consciousness, and psychoactive drug use, fostering a new perspective on the human mind and its potential. •
Eros and Civilization, by
Herbert Marcuse, 1955. •
The Art of Loving, by
Erich Fromm, 1956 •
The Phenomenon of Man, by
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, 1959 •
Morning of the Magicians, by
Louis Pauwels and
Jacques Bergier, 1960, about magic, occult, and the supernatural •
Growing Up Absurd, by
Paul Goodman, 1960 •
One-Dimensional Man, by
Herbert Marcuse, 1964. Marcuse strongly criticizes
consumerism and modern "
industrial society", which he claims is a form of
social control, it influenced many in the
New Left as it articulated their growing dissatisfaction with both capitalist societies and Soviet communist societies. •
The Psychedelic Experience: A Manual Based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead, by
Timothy Leary, 1964. A
syncretic work combining a
Tibetan Buddhist holy book with the
psychedelic experience, •
The Book – On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are, by
Alan Watts, 1966. •
The Medium is the Massage, by
Marshall McLuhan, 1967 •
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, by
Tom Wolfe, 1968, about
Ken Kesey and the
Merry Pranksters •
We Are the People Our Parents Warned Us Against: The Classic Account of the 1960s Counter-Culture in San Francisco by
Nicholas Von Hoffman, 1968 •
The Politics of Ecstasy, by
Timothy Leary, 1968. •
Revolution for the Hell of It, by
Abbie Hoffman, 1968. •
Woodstock Nation, by
yippie Abbie Hoffman, 1969. describing his experience at the
Woodstock festival •
Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth and
I Seem to Be a Verb, by
Buckminster Fuller, 1969 •
The Strawberry Statement by
James Simon Kunen, 1969 •
The Making of a Counter Culture, by
Theodore Roszak, 1969. •
Do It!: Scenarios of the Revolution, book from another
yippie activist
Jerry Rubin, 1970. •
The Greening of America, by
Charles A. Reich, 1970. •
Be Here Now by
Ram Dass, 1970, about his contacts with
Bhagavan Das,
Neem Karoli Baba, and
Baba Hari Dass. The book has an extensive bibliography of works important to spiritual seekers of the time •
Monday Night Class, by
Stephen Gaskin, founder of
The Farm, 1970 •
Go Ask Alice, anonymous (at the time) account of a teenage girl's descent into drug use. Later learned to be authored by
Beatrice Sparks, 1971 •
A Separate Reality, by
Carlos Castaneda, 1971, account of a likely fictitious encounter with a Native American
shaman •
The Velvet Monkey Wrench, by
John Muir, car maintenance guru of the 1960s, 1973 •
Cutting through Spiritual Materialism, by
Chogyam Trungpa, 1973 •
The Yellow Book: The Sayings of Baba Hari Dass 1973 •
The Hog Farm Family & Friends,
Wavy Gravy, 1974 •
Silence Speaks: Aphorisms From the Chalkboard of Baba Hari Dass, 1977 •
Teaching as a Subversive Activity, by
Neil Postman and
Charles Weingartner, 1979 •
Teach Your Own,
John Holt, 1981. ASIN: B00A8SIKBA •
Flashbacks, by
Timothy Leary, 1983. •
Food of the Gods, by
Terence McKenna, 1992. •
Drumming at the Edge of Magic: A Journey into the Spirit of Percussion, by
Mickey Hart, 1990. •
The McDonaldization of Society, by
George Ritzer, 1993. An excellent sociological analysis of how modern society is sacrificing quality and diversity for convenience and standardization. •
Chaos and Cyber Culture, by Timothy Leary, 1994. •
Gestalt Therapy Verbatim, by
Fritz Perls, •
Hippies from A to Z, by Skip Stone, 1999 •
Hippie, a memoir by counterculture figure and businessman
Barry Miles, 2000
Guides •
Rise Up Singing a book of songs relevant to the culture •
New Age Vegetarian Cookbook, by
Max Heindel •
Tassajara cooking, by
Edward Espe Brown, •
Where There Is No Doctor: A Village Health Care Handbook by
David Werner, 1970 •
Whole Earth Catalog, edited and published by
Stewart Brand •
Living on the Earth, by
Alicia Bay Laurel •
Foxfire Books series, from the magazine of the same name, popular with the 1970s
back-to-the-land movement •
Steal This Book, by
yippie Abbie Hoffman, 1971, a guide to living with little or no money, and to living outside the rules of establishment culture •
Our Bodies, Ourselves, by the Boston Women's Health Book Collective, 1973 •
Shelter, by
Lloyd Kahn and Bob Easton (eds.), 1973 •
The New Games Book, by the New Games Foundation, 1976 •
Total Orgasm, by
Jack Rosenberg, •
The Open Classroom, by
Herbert Kohl •
est: The Steersman Handbook, by
Leslie Stevens •
How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive, by
John Muir •
Ashtanga Yoga Primer,
Baba Hari Dass, ==Photography==