An encyclopedia of claims, frauds, and hoaxes of the occult and supernatural : James Randi's decidedly skeptical definitions of alternative realities

Amazon.com Review James Randi, professional magician and skeptic, has put together an encyclopedia with something for everyone. Yes, no matter who you are, unless you're a thoroughgoing atheist, Randi is bound to offend your beliefs at one point or another. As Arthur C. Clarke says in his introduction, the book "should be issued with a mental health warning, as many readers--if they are brave enough to face unwelcome facts--will find some of their cherished beliefs totally demolished." Randi is dryly sarcastic about hundreds of topics, including Catholic relics, speaking in tongues, Jehovah's Witnesses, yoga, the origins of Mormonism, dowsing, magnetic hills, UFOs, and every spiritualist of the past several centuries. A typical entry defines a nymph as: "in the real world, the immature form of the dragonfly and certain other insects, or a young woman with robust sexual interests. Take your choice." Comprehensive, exasperating and exasperated, witty, and unsparing, Randi's encyclopedia provides more debunking per page than any other resource. --Mary Ellen Curtin Review Truth is separated from fiction in this guide to skeptical definitions of alternative realities. The encyclopedia form charts both individuals and false systems of analysis and representation, and lends to both leisure browsing and light research. -- Midwest Book Review This book is an extensive encyclopedia that defines and describes the people, events, theories, history, and truths of the paranormal -- prepared by the world's leading skeptic, iconoclast, and debunker, James Randi. Is the earth regularly visited by extraterrestrials with a serious penchant for examining the genital areas of unwilling human subjects? Is "spoon-bending" done through psychic powers? Do the sick regain their health at the hands of faith healers? Are Satanists sacrificing our children in the woods? With a few hard, factual definitions to work with, you can be better equipped to answer these questions which the media, now more than ever, bombards us with on a daily basis. Dealing with subjects that border on both science and mythology, Randi's Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural is a wide-ranging compendium, with entries from A to Z of hundreds of topics, many of which are frequently the subject of news stories, television documentaries, and best-selling books on the paranormal. Some of the items are handled or scrutinized in depth, others are more concisely defined. Cross-references are indicated and a comprehensive index provides the reader with a valuable road map to the occult. Until now, the reading public has been poorly served by previous similar catalogs, which, having often been compiled by undiscriminating and rather naive authors, can fail to give a complete and accurate picture of the subjects they seek to define. In this scrupulously researched work, which has been in preparation for over ten years, Randi reveals, with humor and dispassionate insight, the actual facts behind the ever-accelerating flight from reason, a troubling journey that has seized our generation. Recognized internationally for his tireless and successful investigations of psychic, supernatural, and "magical" claims, Randi gently prods the imagination and reasoning powers of his readers. With an introduction by Arthur C. Clarke, An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes is a major work by one of America's most original and fearless thinkers. - Jacket flap In this remarkable encyclopedia, James Randi casts his cynical eye on the dubious genes of the occult and the supernatural. With 666 entries and hundreds of illustrations throughout, this book examines the shady world of manipulators, occultists, and shamanists in microscopic detail. Topics include Jeane Dixon's long string of failed predictions, the elaborate hoax surrounding the mystery of the Abominable Snowman, and much more