The Illustrated Secret History of the World

Mark Booth gives a comprehensive history of the world as told and passed down by secret societies and esoteric traditions. It is well-researched, beautifully illustrated, and a master class of creative non-fiction.

The author asks the reader to go on an imaginative exercise through the past. It is a history with real people and real ideas, but full of secrets and mystery. He has done an excellent job finding common structures and teachings among occult traditions, esoteric schools, secret societies, and religious cults. He literally asks us to pretend this is all real at the beginning of the book and ends with “imagination is key”. Just forget what you know and go along with it, it'll make it so much better.

I've read a few bad reviews from rationalist/scientist types who seem to have fumbled the epistemic status of the book. We get it, you don't believe in chakras and the Kabbalah. Trust me, you don't need to in order to adore this material, you only need an artist's mind. Or perhaps they are turned off by the authentic tone. He doesn't throw every crazy idea into this book, but rather expertly curates an authoritative secret history. It makes it feel like the Truth and it would have been annoying and clumsy if the author was constantly winking at the reader. This work feels like the spiritual successor to Maurice Bessy's A Pictorial History of Magic and the Supernatural.

This book is the perfect blend of research and creativity and we desperately need more work like this.