Customer Reviews

Lucid Dreaming for Beginners: Simple Techniques for Creating Interactive Dreams (For Beginners (Llewellyn's))

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As the book title says, "for Beginners" but not for all of them, unfortunately...

This is a book that talks more about the attitude of practicing lucid dream (among many other things that have little of nothing to do with lucid dreams) and less about the actual practicing... What I'm saying is that, for example, the author dedicates a whole lot of pages to the dream diary. Good, isn't it? It would be if he talked more about how to use it instead of talking about the cover and if it has a nice color or has a collage with your favorite pictures or symbols... And how about pens and pencils? What's best? And pens with little incorporated light gadgets so that you don't have to turn on the room light to write your dreams? Is it really necessary to talk about this? I mean, the book is for "lucid dream" beginners, not "surviving the every day annoyances" beginners...

But the thing that upset me most was the constant inclusion of tarot cards references. What's with that? In one chapter the author actually describes some tarot cards that have to do with the moon and with dreams. He also references different card decks that, I guess, tarot enthusiasts use and the differences between them. I didn't bought the book to read about tarot...

Techniques for Beginners? I couldn't find any solid technique that I could follow to begin the quest into lucid dreams... I'm not actually a beginner, I've been practicing for a few months before even buying the book but not with a regular schedule. I bought this book precisely to try and find a schedule to practice. Waste of reading time...

The thing that I enjoyed about this book was actually the one I thought I would skip pass it. The dream interpretation. There are actually three techniques about that described in the book that are very nice to try.

(I know it's kind of bad to mention one book in a review of another but since I bought these two together I have to do it...)

I bought Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming by Stephen LaBerge at the same time I bought Lucid Dreaming for Beginners. EWLD has a much more scientific approach to lucid dreaming with actual techniques, studies and experiences that in fact are completely related to lucid dreaming.

If your more into the science, practical use and practice of lucid dreaming I would advise you to go for EWLD by LaBerge. It covers all the aspects from "What is lucid dreaming" to very good techniques to scientific studies about it and gives you the knowledge to understand how the brain works which in turn can help you increase the success in lucid dreaming.

If you really are the ABSOLUTE beginner I would advise you to read stuff from the Internet before buying this book. Besides the things I mentioned above it doesn't add any valuable information to the one you can collect by yourself in forums, sites and blogs.

I felt that Lucid Dreaming for Beginners was a very helpful book that opened up my dreamtime to all kinds of new possibilities. I have been documenting my dreams for many years because I thought they had some meaning, but I didn't know how to analyze them in a way that would help me when I am conscious. I learned to break down my dreams and use associations from real life to figure out what is bothering me or what I need to change in my life. I have to admit there are times when I don't know what is bothering me on a conscious level and analyzing my dreams helps me bring things to the surface.
Another positive thing about this book is that it helped me to get past concerns I had about lucid dreaming. I used to feel that dreams were important for learning and processing information and you shouldn't interfere with that process. I was glad to hear that most people will not lucid dream unless they want to and their subconscious allows it. In other words your body/mind will tell you when you should rest or when you can lucid dream.
The suggestions on how to start lucid dreaming are helpful too. I just made some minor adjustments in my daily routine and was able to lucid dream very quickly. I chose to do the impossible things first like flying, breathing underwater and magic and it was thrilling. I am still working on resetting the dream and using it for rehearsal, but I am sure that with Mark McElroy suggestions I am well on my way to lucid dreaming on a regular basis. I look forward to opening up endless possibilities through lucid dreaming.

superstition and tarot cards. The author uses no science nor actually gives you one technique. i urge you to go on dreamviews.com or lucidipedia. you will learn millions more.

I recently got interested in Lucid Dreaming after having a few whoppers of Lucid Dreams (sigh). I wanted to know how to trigger them, how to be sure you are in one (God forbid you think you are in one, do something totally inappropriate and find you are in reality), and to basically learn more about them. This book was great. I read it cover to cover and can now create my own Lucid Dreams, confirm I'm in one, can stay in them for much longer than before, and can time travel in them. Highly recommended book!

Disclaimer: This book has 262 pages and I am on page 166. I am a new lucid dreamer--just a few under my belt to date--and accordingly have read several books on this subject in recent weeks. I saw this one recommended at the Dream Views website, so I ordered it from Amazon and have been pleasantly rewarded. First of all, McElroy's tone is warm, clear, and highly readable. I pretty much couldn't put it down once I started reading it; today I have it with me at work so I can read between other tasks. It is also full of helpful, specific suggestions, many of which I know I will adopt. I'm planning now to finish the whole book (probably later today) and then go back and reread a couple of chapters to decide which of McElroy's many suggestions to incorporate first. So far, I have seen two references to tarot, one brief and one extremely brief, no more. It is inaccurate and unfair to say this book mentions tarot many times; it does not. I almost let that review scare me off; I'm glad I didn't. That same reviewer doesn't feel this book explains how to learn lucid dreaming. I believe it does. In fact, it has the exact same advice on lucid dream induction you'll see in any book, article, or website, only fleshed out with many details, and presented in an enthusiastic, sensible, upbeat manner. I recommend this book.