Anomalist Books

Now Available: Art, Life and UFOs by Budd Hopkins

Editor — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:05:37 +0000

This book is going to surprise a lot of people. First of all, it’s a original book (not a reprint) from a bestselling author, and it appears not from Simon & Schuster, not from Random House, but from Anomalist Books. Second of all, it is without a doubt the author’s most literary production to date. As a memoir, Art, Life and UFOs by Budd Hopkins not only provides the details of a very complex life, but it’s also the first treatment of Budd’s remarkable artistic career in book form. And it’s at the intersection of these two topics, art and life, that readers are allowed insights into his UFO work that we have never been privy to before. This memoir not only puts into perspective his 30 years of UFO research, but it also reveals, for the first time, the details of an important, previously unpublished case that helped Budd recognize “missing time” as an aspect of UFO abductions, as well as his curious personal ties to some of the people involved in the very first UFO report he ever investigated. Whether you are interested in UFOs, modern art, or Budd Hopkins himself, you are certain to find Art, Life and UFOs quite a candid and compelling read. (”Look Inside” the book at Amazon.)

A Masterful Evaluation of the Spirit Realm

Editor — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 18:39:00 +0000

No matter how hard we try to resolve the problem, Amazon can’t seem to get the editorial reviews straightened out for Brad Steiger’s new book, Beyond Shadow World, so we thought we would take this opportunity to post a couple of new reviews that the book has received since we reprinted it last month. Nick Redfern, over at UFO Mystic, had this to say: “Beyond Shadow World is more than just a collection of ghostly tales to be digested at the witching hour.. it’s a deep and thoughtful look at the whole controversy of the afterlife - but it also reveals much more…thought-provoking and informative…a must read.” And over at The Gralien Report, Micah A. Hanks wrote: “A masterful evaluation of the spirit realm by one of the most respected experts in spirit phenomenon today… From the exorcism of a small boy’s spirit left behind after a tragic murder, to the dangers of out-of-body projections and even the methodology behind contacting our “spirit teachers,” the entire experience of Beyond Shadow World involves the reader as an educational experience…Brad Steiger has, again, illustrated for us the dark side, but this time with such an element of light, hope and discovery that our ultimate knowledge of the Shadow World can finally be faced without fear, regret, or repression.”

Look Inside

Editor — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:14:41 +0000

Did you know that you can now see a sample of our books on Amazon US? The cover, back cover, table of contents, index, and more than a half-dozen sample pages are now viewable through Amazon’s “Search Inside” feature on each of our book pages. This feature is only available for our original titles, not our reprints unfortunately. Here is the list to date:
An Alien Who’s Who
Astrology Off the Beaten Track
Celestial Secrets
Darkness Walks
Encounters at Indian Head
Extreme Expeditions
Fátima Revisited
Heavenly Lights
In Alien Heat
Intermediate States
On the Trail of the Saucer Spies
Outbreak!
Strange Company
The Spirit of Dr. Bindelof
The President’s Vampire
The Universe Wants to Play
The Yowie
There’s Something in the Woods

Now Available: Outbreak!

Editor — Tue, 19 May 2009 19:44:18 +0000

Weighting in at nearly four pounds and 764 letter-size pages is a remarkable new reference work entitled Outbreak! The Encyclopedia of Extraordinary Social Behavior, written by Hilary Evans and Robert E. Bartholomew. Not only is history replete with examples of remarkable social behavior, from fads, crazes, and manias to collective delusions, scares, panics, and mass hysteria, but so is the present day. This massive collection of extraordinary social behaviors spans more than two millennia, and attempts to place many of the recounted episodes within their greater historical and cultural context. The authors have outdone themselves with an authoritative work that covers a broad range of topics: collective behavior, deviance, social and perceptual psychology, sociology, history, folklore, religious studies, political science, social anthropology, gender studies, critical thinking, and mental health. The pre-publication reviews call it “an extraordinary compilation,” “remarkable and surprising,” and “a thumping good read.” Don’t miss it!

Much Food for Thought

Editor — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:03:30 +0000

Peter Brookesmith has kindly reminded us that we neglected to blog about what may be the best review we have ever seen to come out of Fortean Times. It’s not a coincidence that Brooksmith happens to be one of the two editors (with the late Karl Pflock) of the book in question: Encounters at Indian Head: The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Abduction Revisited. The “Fortean Times Verdict” on the book summed it up as “Intelligent, wide-ranging and a must have for UFOlogists” with a score of a perfect “10.” Bob Rickard, who reviewed the book, concluded: “It’s an exemplary debriefing on how a story grew in the telling, influencing the content of many ‘abduction’ experiences to follow and, in turn, giving birth to the ‘missing time’ school of self-referenced and highly subjective (but very bankable in terms of media) ufology. The lack of consensus on what happened to the Hills reflects a healthy division of opinion in ufology.” Bill Chalker echoed those words in his own review of the book for Australia’s UFOlogist magazine. “Encounters at Indian Head is an excellent study of why the uncertainties of human testimony alone will guarantee that there will always be room for doubt, and that resolution of a case of that type will always be dependent on one’s approach.” Chalker, like Rickard, also recommended the book. So with Brookesmith, that makes three.

Now Available: Beyond Shadow World

Editor — Wed, 13 May 2009 14:40:42 +0000

The third volume of Brad Steiger’s groundbreaking Shadow World series is now back in print with a new 15-page preface. Originally published as Our Shared World of the Supernatural, Beyond Shadow World expands the roster of extra-dimensional beings that we share our universe with. In addition to the spirits of the dead, nature spirits, spirit parasites, and spirit mimics, he also explores the nature of the Light Beings, which include the benevolent entities known as angels, spirit guides, spirit teachers, and celestial visitors or “space brothers.” Though Steiger provides techniques for contact and behavior with them, he warns that such entities should never be either worshipped or summoned–as they may not be what they claim to be. And the reviews are already in: ”A fantastic compilation” (Fate) and “my highest recommendation” (Erskine Overnight).

Now Available: Darkness Walks

Editor — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 13:51:52 +0000

They lurk in obscurity. Looming human figures, blacker than darkness. Millions across the globe see them. The unfortunate feel their touch. And some awake in horror to their red, unblinking stare. In Darkness Walks: The Shadow People Among Us, Jason Offutt is able to shine some light on the world of the Shadow People thanks to the dozens of interviews he conducted with eyewitnesses. Offutt views these beings through the lens of science, religion, and metaphysics, and asks: Are they ghosts, demons, hallucinations, or something else entirely? Brad Steiger has this to say about the book in his foreword: “Jason Offutt’s excellent study of the phenomenon presents us with the most thorough and complete work yet written regarding the mysterious beings that we have come to call collectively, the Shadow People…Jason may not have any ultimate answers, but no one has done a better job of defining who or what these shades might be.”

A Formidable Research Enterprise

Editor — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:04:24 +0000

Hilary Evans devotes three pages to a review the Fátima Trilogy (Heavenly Lights, Celestial Secrets, and Fátima Revisited) in the January 2009 issue of the Journal of the Society for Psychical Research. About the third volume specifically, he writes: “a number of researchers and authorities are invited to present their takes on Fátima. With the exception of Michael Persinger’s masterly exposition of the geomagnetic forces that might have been involved, few of them set out to throw any light on the nitty-gritty of the encounter happenings. Rather, they seek to set those events in a wider context, and we are treated to a variety of perspective, ranging across religion (though not much of that), folklore, anthropology and more. Authors include David Jacobs, Stanley Krippner and Jacques Vallee, together with authorities– mainly academics–from many different disciplines. Their subjects range widely, from angels and alien abductors to altered states of consciousness, dream states and mind control, neuro-theology and the physics of ‘high strangeness.’ Some keep within the bounds of existing knowledge, other head out into the wide blue yonder with speculations as to what really happened to those three little children on that day in May which started out like any other, yet ended so fatefully.” Hilary then ends with a comment about the entire enterprise: “Taken together the trilogy represents a formidable research enterprise which casts a flood of light on one of the most enigmatic events of recent times. Whether or not we end by sharing the conclusions of the lead authors, their quest for the truth is a fascinating one, and one which leaves us in no doubt that the traditional account of what happened at Fatima is sadly inadequate.”

A Unique History

Editor — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 17:11:53 +0000

Kevin Randle reviews Keith Chester’s Strange Company: Military Encounters with UFOs in WWII in the Spring 2009 issue of the Journal of Scientific Exploration. “As I began reading Strange Company,” writes Randle, “I wondered whether we would be treated with a series of stories of indistinct lights, which, I confess, was my concept of the foo fighters of World War II…But we read of solid objects with sharply defined edges moving the foo fighters from the realm of ionized air and other natural phenomena into something that is solid and probably extraterrestrial….Chester gives us the documents created at the time by intelligence officers trained in interrogation techniques and whose job it was to understand all that the flight crews were telling them because lives hung in the balance…this book is a unique history of the Second World War…What Strange Company does quite well is move the modern era of the UFO from June 1947 when Kenneth Arnold’s report hit the newspaper to World War II. It is clear that these sightings, considered at the time to be classified information and therefore weren’t widely discussed, are the beginning of the modern [UFO] era.” Randle ends his review saying that by correcting the misconception that the foo fighters were some kind of enemy weapon, “Chester has performed a valuable service and should be commended for it.”

“A Remarkable Series of Books”

Editor — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 21:23:47 +0000

In the Spring 2009 issue of the Journal of Scientific Exploration, Chris Rutkowski revisits Jacques Vallee’s “remarkable series of books: Dimensions, Confrontations, and Revelations” and finds the experience “fascinating.” Vallee’s “different slant on what may be going on” is “antithetical to popular belief about UFOs,” notes Rutkowski. “Presented in a logical, coherent sequence (and with thematically attractive new covers), Vallee makes his case for his position that the UFO phenomenon is not extraterrestrial but terrestrial in nature, and not simply physical, but psychosocial in character.” In the final paragraphs of his review, Rutkowski summarizes Vallee’s accomplishments in the Alien Contact Trilogy: “Vallee does several important things toward the advancement of ufology. First he provides data to show that the UFO phenomenon is real and has been part of human history for millennia. Second, he emphasizes that it is an absurd phenomenon that does not seem to be conformable to simple scientific categorization. Third, he shows that current approaches by both debunkers and believers fail to address the complex nature of the phenomenon and do a great disservice to its witnesses. Fourth, he suggests a methodology that may be more useful in understanding the phenomenon. And fifth, he theorizes that a clandestine organization, military or otherwise, is obscuring the nature of the phenomenon to its own end.”