Books For Beginning Buddhism?

I am interested in beginning any tradition of Buddhism, and was wondering which books are good to open my mind up to this new world.

here's a website where you can get free books on Buddhism, you only have to pay for shipping handling.

http://www.inwardpath.org

A really good beg gunners book for Buddhism or Taoism is the Tao of pooh which explains Taoism through Winnie the pooh and has information on all three monks including Buddha

well I have a book called "Christianity and Buddhism" by Buddhadasa Bhikkhu and another, "An Introduction to Buddhism" by Ven. Dr. H. Saddhatissa. I found these both at a Buddhist Temple. The first book is the size of an average book with 123 pages and the second is a smaller size with only 63 pages. I'm not sure if you can buy these though. Try checking your local Buddhist temple.

"The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching" by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh offers a very good explanation of Buddhism. Anything by this author is good.

In spite of the title, "Buddhism for Dummies" is actually quite informative and should help you understand the various traditions as well as offer some information on practice forms.

A teacher friend of mine often recommends "It's Easier Than You Think" by Silvia Boorstein - which I agree is an excellent starting point.

If you are interested in Buddhism, I strongly encourage you to seek out a Buddhist center nearby for instruction. They will almost certainly be able to make book recommendations as well.

Here is a great site for locating a center near you:

http://www.buddhanet.info/wbd/