Book cover of Primary Perception: Biocommunication with Plants, Living Foods, and Human Cells

Book description

This is the only book by Cleve Backster himself, describing 36 years of research in biocommunication, observed electrical responses in plant life and other living organisms. All life forms have the capability of responding to one another, from plants and bacteria to foods and animal cells. Most amazing is his…


When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Primary Perception as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

After decades of experience as a lie-detecting expert for the CIA, Cleve Backster one evening put the electrodes of his polygraph on his house plant. To his great surprise, the emotional pattern of the plant corresponded with his own emotions. This book describes Backster’s subsequent experiments measuring changes in action potential of plants in response to human thought, for instance by the experimenter thinking about cutting the leaves of the plant. This is a book decades ahead of its time, as Backster’s results never were accepted by mainstream scientists. The book makes an inspirational read by outlining a research agenda…

If you love Primary Perception...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Want books like Primary Perception?

Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 10 books like Primary Perception.

Browse books like Primary Perception

Book cover of Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures
Book cover of Thinking, Fast and Slow
Book cover of How to Tame a Fox (and Build a Dog): Visionary Scientists and a Siberian Tale of Jump-Started Evolution

Share your top 3 reads of 2026!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

186

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like Primary Perception, you might also like...

Book cover of Creativity, Teaching, and Natural Inspiration

Creativity, Teaching, and Natural Inspiration by Mark Doherty,

I have woven numerous delightful and descriptive true life stories, many from my adventures as an outdoorsman and singer songwriter, into my life as a high school English teacher. I think you'll find this work both entertaining as well as informative, and I hope you enjoy the often lighthearted repartee…

Book cover of AcClaim

AcClaim by Jean Thesquare,

AcClaim is a dark, high-society romance about Beatrix Winslow-Hale, a successful romance author who believes desire can be negotiated and controlled—until enigmatic billionaire Dorian Wolker crosses the line between consensual surrender and violation. Publicly humiliated and emotionally shattered, Beatrix turns to Manon de Rochemaure, her fiercely loyal best friend and…

5 book lists we think you will like!