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5. ''Religion and the Decline of Magic'' by Keith Thomas – This book primarily deals with the epic battle between religion and magic from the medieval period until around the seventeenth century, and it does so in an endlessly fascinating way. When did magic, miracles, and superstition become concepts that could be differentiated between, and why did some become sinful and others acceptable? When did fortunetellers and “cunning men” become witches and demons?
6. ''Divided by Faith: Religious Conflict and the Practice of Toleration in Early-Modern Europe'' by Benjamin Kaplan – This work asks a very basic question: After the Protestant Reformation of ~1517 brought into question most of Europe’s (Catholic) religious beliefs, how did people of different/evolving faiths coexist? The answer is : not well.
7. ''Victorian Infidels'' by Edward Royle -- Royle’s work examines the beginning of secularism, outside the context of class and political boundaries. Before Royle, most British historians considered atheism/agnosticism to be products of working-class distrust of the State. This work changed all that, and it is perhaps one of the most important books on the beginnings of secularism ever published.
8. ''At the Origins of Modern Atheism'' by Michael Buckley – In this book, Buckley argues that atheism arose due to the religious establishment’s efforts to discredit itdisbelief. While Enlightenment philosophers argued against God’s existencefrom the standpoint of rationalism, Buckley offers that the attempt attempts by religious/anti-religious philosophers to counteract this philosophy ultimately led to disbeliefamong broader society.
9. ''A History of Atheism in Britain'' by David Berman – In this work, Berman agues that numerous religious forces sought to keep the very idea of atheism repressed – and out of the minds of the publicin Britain during the nineteenth century. Berman holds that because of the Church’s sway on society, the very concept of the denial of God would have been inconceivable prior to the Enlightenment, and the various philosophical texts that arose from it. Agree or disagree, he presents a good case.
10. ''The Selfish Gene'' by Richard Dawkins – While this book does not particularly deal with atheism or history, it is, perhaps, one of the most important treatises in evolutionary biology ever published, and is thus, a part of history itself.In 2017, Dawkins' book was voted as the "most inspiring science book of all time" by Britain's Royal Society of Science.<ref>The Royal Society (Ed.). (2017, July 19). The Selfish Gene tops Royal Society poll to reveal the nation's most inspiring science books. Retrieved October 28, 2017, from https://royalsociety.org/news/2017/07/science-book-prize-poll-results/</ref>
