The best near-death experience stories in book form are Howard Storm’s My Descent into Death, Betty Eadie’s Embraced by the Light and Don Piper’s 90 Minutes in Heaven for the classic first-person journeys, and Natalie Sudman’s Application of Impossible Things for a story that stays with you.
Below are 14 books in which people tell what they lived through in their own words, grouped into the classic journeys, the experiencers who became teachers, and the books that help you make sense of it all. If you want the research and the foundations instead, see our companion list of the best near-death experience books.
Key Takeaways
- Start with a story, not a study. These 14 books are memoirs and first-person accounts. For the research, use our companion list of near-death experience books.
- For a classic journey, try Howard Storm, Betty Eadie or Don Piper. Each tells what happened in plain words, and each came back changed.
- For a surprising voice, try Natalie Sudman or Tricia Barker. One is a veteran who left her body in a blast; the other began as an agnostic.
- Not every account is peaceful. Storm’s book includes a frightening phase, and we say so, because honesty helps.
- Hear the people behind the books. Seven of these authors have sat down with us on the Next Level Soul Podcast. Their interviews are linked below.
What Are Near-Death Experience Stories?
A near-death experience, or NDE, is a vivid experience reported by people who came close to death or were clinically dead and returned. People often describe leaving the body, meeting a loving light, seeing loved ones who have died, reviewing their lives and feeling a deep peace.
Near-death experience stories are those accounts told in the first person. Some are short and plain, and some are full memoirs about the years before and after. If you want the full picture first, start with our guide to near-death experiences, or browse our collection of near-death experience stories from our own interviews, including the Divine Encounters series.
Near-Death Experience Story Books at a Glance
| Book | Best for | Type | Voice |
|---|---|---|---|
| My Descent into Death (Storm) | An honest account with fear and light | Classic journey | Professor turned minister |
| Embraced by the Light (Eadie) | A tender, faith-filled story | Classic journey | Mother of seven |
| 90 Minutes in Heaven (Piper) | Faith and recovery | Classic journey | Pastor |
| Flight to Heaven (Black) | A survival story | Classic journey | Pilot |
| Waking Up in Heaven (McVea) | Hope after pain | Classic journey | Experiencer |
| Journey Through the Light and Back (Benedict) | Life review and healing | Classic journey | Experiencer |
| Application of Impossible Things (Sudman) | A calm, curious narrator | Teacher’s story | Veteran |
| Angels in the OR (Barker) | Starting from doubt | Teacher’s story | Former agnostic |
| Farther Shores (Kason) | What happens afterward | Teacher’s story | Physician |
| Beyond the Light (Atwater) | The bigger picture | Teacher’s story | Experiencer and researcher |
| The Map of Heaven (Alexander) | Widening the lens | Making sense | Neurosurgeon |
| 7 Lessons from Heaven (Neal) | Everyday lessons | Making sense | Spine surgeon |
| Heaven Is for Real (Burpo) | Families and faith | Making sense | Pastor and father |
| We Don’t Die (Champlain) | Grief and the fear of death | Making sense | Author |
How Do I Choose a Near-Death Experience Story?
Start with the kind of story you need tonight. If you want a plain, human account, pick Don Piper or Dale Black. If you want honesty about fear, pick Howard Storm. If you want to hear from someone who began with doubt, pick Tricia Barker or Sandra Champlain.
A few simple guides help:
- Grieving? Try We Don’t Die or Waking Up in Heaven, and go gently.
- Curious but cautious? Try Beyond the Light or The Map of Heaven.
- Short on time? 90 Minutes in Heaven moves quickly.
- Want to see how the research fits? Our companion list covers it.
If your questions are about what consciousness is, our guide to consciousness goes deeper. For reading across the whole spiritual path, see our list of the top spiritual books, and for what happens after, our guide to shared death experiences and deathbed visions.
Classic Journeys: Heaven, Light and the Return
These six books are the stories many readers meet first. Each is told by the person who lived it, and each is a quick, absorbing read.
1. My Descent into Death
Howard Storm, foreword by Anne Rice (Harmony, 2005)
Howard Storm was an art professor and a committed atheist when a medical emergency put him in a Paris hospital in 1985. He describes leaving his body, a frightening encounter in the dark, and a rescue by light that changed the direction of his life.
He later became a minister. It is one of the more candid accounts on this list, because it does not skip the hard part.
Best for: Readers who want an honest story that includes fear as well as light.
2. Embraced by the Light
Betty J. Eadie (Bantam, 2002 edition (first published 1992))
Betty Eadie, a mother of seven, says she died after surgery in 1973 and was enfolded in a loving light. She describes meeting a presence she calls Jesus and learning why she believes we choose our lives.
Embraced by the Light became a bestseller in the 1990s. It is written from deep personal faith, and some critics have questioned parts of it, so read it as her story rather than as doctrine.
Best for: Readers who want a tender, faith-filled account of unconditional love.
3. 90 Minutes in Heaven
Don Piper with Cecil Murphey (Revell, 2004 (2015 edition))
In 1989 Don Piper, a Baptist pastor, was struck head-on by a truck on a Texas bridge and pronounced dead at the scene. He says he spent about 90 minutes in heaven before he returned when someone prayed over his body.
The second half is about the years of pain and surgery that followed, which makes it as much a book about recovery as about heaven.
Best for: Readers of Christian faith, and anyone facing a long recovery.
4. Flight to Heaven
Dale Black (Bethany House, 2010)
Dale Black is a pilot and the lone survivor of a plane crash. He tells what he says he experienced and then the long road back, in plain, direct writing.
It is published by a Christian press and reads like a story told by someone who wants you to feel the hope he found.
Best for: Readers who like a clear narrative with a lot of heart.
5. Waking Up in Heaven
Crystal McVea with Alex Tresniowski (Howard Books, 2013)
Crystal McVea says she died during a medical emergency and met God. Her book pairs that account with an honest look at the brokenness she carried before it.
The voice is warm and plain-spoken, written for readers who are looking for hope after pain.
Best for: Readers carrying pain who want a hopeful, plain-spoken story.
6. Journey Through the Light and Back
Mellen-Thomas Benedict (Purple Haze Press, 2009 edition)
Mellen-Thomas Benedict was told in 1982 that he had terminal cancer. He describes a near-death experience in which he says he moved through the light, reviewed his life and chose to return, and he later reported that the cancer was gone.
It is a short, intense read built around his life review and the lessons he says he took from the light.
Best for: Readers drawn to life review and healing stories.
Experiencers Who Became Teachers
For these four authors, the experience was the beginning of a second life as a writer, researcher or healer. They look at what came after the light.
7. Application of Impossible Things
Natalie Sudman (Ozark Mountain Publishing, 2012)
Natalie Sudman, a veteran, was in Iraq when a roadside bomb hit her convoy and left her gravely injured. She describes stepping out of her body in the moment of the blast, and then the long physical recovery.
Her tone is calm and curious, and she focuses on what the experience taught her about being a soul in a body.
Best for: Readers who want a thoughtful, unsentimental narrator.
8. Angels in the OR
Tricia Barker (Post Hill Press, 2023 edition)
Tricia Barker, an agnostic, says she met tall beings of light while in surgery after a crash. Angels in the OR follows what that meeting changed in her view of fear, love and healing.
Her book is built around what she says she learned and how she began to live it day to day.
Best for: Skeptics, and anyone who wants a story that starts from doubt.
9. Farther Shores
Yvonne Kason, MD (iUniverse, 2008 edition (first published 1994))
Dr. Yvonne Kason is a physician who survived a plane crash. She describes a force field of peace before it and a white light after, then explores how near-death, kundalini and mystical experiences can change a life.
Because she is a doctor as well as an experiencer, she writes about the whole path afterward, not only the moment itself.
Best for: Readers curious about what happens after the experience.
10. Beyond the Light
P.M.H. Atwater (Transpersonal Publishing, 2009 edition)
P.M.H. Atwater had three near-death episodes in 1977 and went on to spend decades studying thousands of accounts. Her book blends her own story with what she found.
She is known for pointing out how varied these experiences are, including frightening and unusual ones, which makes the book a useful balance to the tidy version of the story.
Best for: Readers who want the bigger picture without losing the personal voice.
Making Sense of It All
These four books step back from the moment itself and ask what it means, whether for a family, a doctor, a scientist or someone in grief.
11. The Map of Heaven
Eben Alexander, MD with Ptolemy Tompkins (Simon & Schuster, 2014)
Eben Alexander, the neurosurgeon behind Proof of Heaven, returns with Ptolemy Tompkins to ask what the many accounts of the afterlife have in common across science, religion and ordinary experience.
Think of it as a follow-up for readers who finished a story and want to widen the lens.
Best for: Readers who finished a memoir and want to zoom out.
12. 7 Lessons from Heaven
Mary C. Neal, MD (Convergent Books, 2017)
Mary Neal, an orthopedic spine surgeon, wrote To Heaven and Back about a kayaking accident. Here she turns to what she says dying taught her about living: joy, trust and meaning.
It is a gentle book of reflections organized around seven lessons.
Best for: Readers who want everyday guidance from an experiencer.
13. Heaven Is for Real
Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent (Thomas Nelson, 2010 (2014 edition))
Pastor Todd Burpo tells the story of his young son Colton, who described heaven after emergency surgery. It is told through a father’s eyes, which gives it a different feel from the first-person accounts on this list.
It is written from a Christian point of view and became a mainstream bestseller.
Best for: Parents, families and readers of Christian faith.
14. We Don’t Die
Sandra Champlain, foreword by Bernie Siegel (Morgan James Publishing, 2013)
Sandra Champlain began as a skeptic with a deep fear of dying. Through grief, mediumship and electronic voice phenomena (EVP), she moved from fear to evidence she found convincing, and she writes about what she found.
The tone is friendly and practical, a good companion for a hard season.
Best for: Readers dealing with grief or a fear of death.
An Honest View of Near-Death Experience Stories
Every book here is one person’s account. Nobody can verify what another person saw, and scientists have not settled what causes near-death experiences. Skeptics point to low oxygen, brain chemistry and the way the mind copes with fear. Many experiencers and some researchers see them as a sign that consciousness continues beyond the brain.
Several of these books are written from a particular faith, and a few, like Embraced by the Light, have drawn criticism. Use them as guides, not authorities. If something in a book does not feel true to you, set it down. Nothing here replaces medical or mental health care; if you are struggling, please reach out to a doctor or call or text 988 in the US.
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Hear It From the Guests
Prefer to listen? These Next Level Soul Podcast conversations feature authors from this list telling their stories in their own voices.
Betty Eadie on Her Near-Death Experience
Betty Eadie, a mother of seven, describes a loving dark, meeting Jesus and why she says we chose our lives. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
Dr. Yvonne Kason on a Plane Crash and What Came After
Dr. Kason says a force field of peace met her before a plane crash, then a white light. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
Natalie Sudman on Leaving Her Body in Iraq
Natalie Sudman says she left her body when a roadside bomb hit her convoy, and shares the message about love she brought back. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
P.M.H. Atwater on Dying Three Times
Atwater says she died three times, met a voice like the universe and spent decades researching it. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
Tricia Barker: An Agnostic’s Near-Death Experience
Tricia Barker, an agnostic, says she met eight-foot light beings during surgery after a crash, and shares what she learned about fear, love and light. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
A Neurosurgeon’s Near-Death Experience with Dr. Eben Alexander
The former Harvard neurosurgeon describes Gateway Valley, the Core and the boy who pulled him back. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
Sandra Champlain: From Fear of Dying to Evidence of Life After Death
Sandra Champlain went from a deep fear of dying to evidence of life after death through mediumship, EVP and grief. Watch the full episode and read the show notes.
Watch More on Next Level Soul TV
Next Level Soul TV is our own home for films, series and teachings on these questions. Here are six to start with.
Go Deeper with NLS Mastery: Beyond the Veil
A grounded exploration of what lies beyond death and how that understanding changes how we live. Julie Ryan teaches it in Beyond the Veil, part of NLS Mastery. Watch the course preview below.
Sources and Further Reading
Spirituality for the Rest of Us™
Movies, teachings and community on Next Level Soul TV.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best near-death experience stories to read first?
My Descent into Death, Embraced by the Light and 90 Minutes in Heaven are three widely read first-person accounts. Howard Storm’s book is the most candid about a frightening phase, Betty Eadie’s is the most tender, and Don Piper’s is the most down to earth.
What is a near-death experience?
It is a vivid experience reported by people who came close to death or were clinically dead and returned. Common features include leaving the body, a tunnel or light, meeting loved ones who have died, a life review and deep peace.
Are near-death experiences always peaceful?
Most reported accounts are positive, but some people describe frightening or distressing experiences. Howard Storm’s My Descent into Death is one of the best-known books that includes a hard phase before the light.
Which authors on this list has Next Level Soul interviewed?
We have interviewed Betty Eadie, Dr. Yvonne Kason, Natalie Sudman, P.M.H. Atwater, Tricia Barker, Dr. Eben Alexander and Sandra Champlain. You can watch each conversation from the cards on this page.
Can I trust near-death experience stories?
They are personal accounts, so they cannot be independently verified, and researchers still debate what causes them. Read them the way you would read any memoir: with an open heart and your own discernment.
Which of these books are told from a Christian perspective?
Embraced by the Light, 90 Minutes in Heaven, Flight to Heaven, Waking Up in Heaven and Heaven Is for Real draw strongly on Christian faith. Farther Shores, Application of Impossible Things, Beyond the Light and We Don’t Die are broader in outlook.
Which book is best if I am grieving?
We Don’t Die follows Sandra Champlain’s path from fear of death to comfort through grief and mediumship. Read slowly, take breaks when you need them, and reach out for support if the feelings are heavy.
How is this list different from your near-death experience books list?
This list is made of memoirs and first-person stories. Our companion list of the best near-death experience books covers the foundations and the research, including Raymond Moody, Jeffrey Long and Pim van Lommel.
Can children have near-death experiences?
Yes. Heaven Is for Real is a father’s account of his young son’s description of heaven after emergency surgery. Researchers have also studied children’s accounts, and they tend to be simple and vivid.
Do these books come as audiobooks?
Many of these titles have audiobook editions. Check each Amazon listing for the formats that are available.
Where can I find more near-death stories?
Our collection of near-death experience stories gathers every interview, and the Divine Encounters series on Next Level Soul TV features more first-person accounts.
