What are the Black Book and White Book?

On entering the spirit-world, you find the obstructions to memory removed.

You are sometimes surprised to observe in old people the vivid recollection of the scenes and events of their early childhood―

In many others, there is a tendency, as life advances, to dwell with especial interest on the friends of their youth. 

The reason for this lies in the fact that the body is beginning to loosen its connection with the spirit previous to death. 

When the final severance comes, the whole past stands revealed like a panorama―

All that is bad is a constant source of self-reproach and consequent unhappiness to the individual, whilst that which is good affords him pleasure. 

This evidence of the past, which may be called the black book and the white book that you read of in scripture is thus laid open by death to the eyes of each one immediately on his entrance into the spirit-world. 

Thus, he is unhappy or happy, according as he has done well or ill in his life on earth. 

And not only is the past life laid bare to himself, but it is patent also to all his friends, for the spirit shows in his person the sort of life he has led in the past and he cannot change the appearance of the picture until he has obliterated the recollection of all that was evil by making restitution to those he has wronged and obtaining the forgiveness of those he has injured.

The picture is changed by such acts of compensation. 

When the feelings of others towards one are changed, his own memory of the past becomes dimmed because there is nothing left to remind him of it until, eventually, it fades away altogether. 

He has difficulty in recalling it.