Thank you!
Oh gosh, erm…this is gonna be tricky, since Egyptian Mythology is pretty complicated (though nowhere near as complicated as Greek and Roman). Most of the books I know off hand may be a little too “high brow” for amateur reading, but there is no harm in reading them anyway as even those with little to no knowledge will be able to understand. (Though I do warn you, some of the books are translated from German, and can be quite dry to read. Sometimes, unendingly dull. But that’s the way that guy writes unfortunately)
I’ll start basic, and work my way higher:
- The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt - Fun book, full of pictures and information about all the different deities, and contains a bibliography for further reading. I’ve had this book ever since I started, and even though it’s not deemed particularly academic (I certainly shouldn’t cite it in any academic work) it’s written by some of the best in the business. Perfect to start out with.
- The Egyptian Myths: A Guide to the Ancient Gods and Legends - This book I haven’t read yet, but it has been written by a former tutor of mine at Liverpool so I at least know it was written by an actual Egyptologist. All the reviews look good too, so I’d definitely say this was one to look at. And it has a Kindle version!
Now those are the “easy” ones. Here are some of the more complicated ones that you may or may not wish to try. Be warned, that these are not ones that romanticise the mythology. They theorise and discuss facts.:
(Look at all the pretty books I own…)
- The Search For God in Ancient Egypt - This one is very good, but also by Assmann, which means it’s very very dry. It can be a slog to read through it all, but well worth it for the insights it gives. Plus, giving it to UGs as reading material always makes them groan, because they know what’s coming.
- Egyptian Religion - Also very good, also very dry. As I mentioned previously, these are the higher end books, and don’t pretty up or romanticise the mythology like a lot of the “amateur” books do. These are straight facts, and you’re actually likely to learn a lot more about how the Egyptians felt about their own religion.
- Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt - A book about understanding the Egyptian value and viewpoint of their own religious experience. I can’t fully remember what’s in it, as it’s been a long time since I studied the religion in any particular depth, but I do know it’s a very good book.
- Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myths, and Personal Practice - This book has three distinct sections, one of which is Myths and mythology, written by 3 different Egyptologists. The sections vary on difficulty in reading (i.e. One is a delight to read, one is more taxing, but well worth it, and one will require you to read it 2 or more times before you have an epiphany) but the book is a good one, and one I remember using frequently during my UG.
ETA: There are also good books on the Book of the Dead too. I would advise against using Budge though. Educating yourself on the contents of this text is really quite a fun experience, and will probably help you to see that a lot of the “quotes” or “passages” that people post on this site that are attributed to it are, in fact, bogus.
I hope these are of some use to you, and I think I’ve covered all the good books on Egyptian religion that are out there to purchase.