Customer Reviews

Mysterious Lights and Crop Circles

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mysterious Lights and Crop Circles by Linda Moulton Howe has it all. If you still believe that two little old Englishmen are responsible for the crop circles all over the world, or you are a seasoned "croppie", this book will give you much to feast upon. I challenge any producer of mainstream television programs such as 20/20, 60 Minutes or news programs, to read this, and not want to investigate the phenomena of the crop circles and the mysterious lights often associated with them more fully. Ms. Howe has surveyed the "cream of the crop" for this book; people who have credibility and experience in various fields of scientific inquiry. Having read most of what is out there on the topic as well as most magazines that in the past have devoted themselves to the crop circle mystery, I can say without hesitation that if you have even the slightest interest in crop circles, this is the book for you to read!

Very interesting subject, but pretty dull book. Too much irrelevant storytelling. Little or no original research, lots of 'some people say that...' Not very well structured (the last 100 pages seem to contain all sorts of stuff the author didn't know what to do with). Pretty expensive too, for a BW book made of (almost)... paper.

After I finished it, I felt this was no good value for my money. A disappointment.

On the other hand, for those who do not know anything about crop circles, the book may contain useful information. Still, I would rather recommend a book like "Vital Signs, A Complete Guide to the Crop Circle Mystery and Why it is NOT a Hoax" by Andy Thomas.

This is one of the best books around for introducing readers to the weird anomalies associated with crop formations. As a veteran circle-researcher, Linda Moulton Howe is well qualified to discuss the variety of nonordinary phenomena that have long been experienced in and around crop circles. While we don't yet understand what causes these anomalies, Howe's book goes a long way in showing us that they are real events that are repeatedly experienced by crop circle researchers. Science has yet to explain these encounters.
In my view, Howe could have written more about the human element in the creation of crop circles and the anomalies they exhibit. And what is the relationship between the balls of light and human beings? Are these objects intelligently guided or are they just spurious electrical discharges? We don't have the answers for questions but this book establishes that these questions deserve serious investigation.
(Simeon Hein is the author of Opening Minds: A Journey of Extraordninary Encounters, Crop Circles, and Resonance (Mount Baldy Press, (2002))

This is a very informative book on the crop circle phenomenon. I have not read any others so I have none to compare it to. However, the information and analysis presented in the book was enough to give me some ideas as to their origin, and recognize some commonality between the different types of circles.

It is liberally sprinkled with good illustrations and photographs(Albeit, some of them black and white...).

If you want to learn about crop circles and want a good balanced look at the phenomenon, this is a good starting place.

In this book, veteran UFO researcher Linda Moulton Howe turns her attention to the well-known crop circle phenomenon. In keeping with her UFO background, Howe focuses particular attention on the unusual light and aerial phenomena often associated with crop circle formation. There is also ample discussion of the chemical and biological effects of the crop circle energies on the affected biomass.

Profusely illustrated with dozens of black and white and color photos, the book explores the subject from the perspectives of modern science, mythology, symbolism, and the history of religion. (One caveat - if it is aerial color photos of spectacular crop circle formations that you are looking for, this book is not the best choice. There are only a few photos of the type beloved of calendar makers, and most of the photos are included either as "evidence" to make a scientific point or simply as snapshots of crop circle researchers and/or the quaint environment of Southwest England.)

This leads me to one of the things that I most liked about the book - the sense of adventure as Howe meets crop circle researchers from around the world as they converge on England in the summer of 1999. Thus we follow Howe to pubs for "bull" sessions about crop circles, and to nocturnal vigils atop misty hillsides. (And, if I may indulge a rather sexist comment, Howe is arguably the cutest researcher roaming the fields of England in pursuit of the riddle of the crop circles.)

An interesting addendum is a series of scale drawings or "surveys" of the major 1999 formations, as prepared by German researcher Andreas Mueller. Another useful addendum is a list of the names, addresses (both postal and e-mail), and websites of prominent crop circle researchers and organizations.

This book loses one star only because - despite her efforts to approach the phenomena from a scientific viewpoint - Howe is just a little bit too New Agey at times, a little too eager to jump to conclusions with insufficient evidence. But this is a minor fault, and others may reasonably disagree with my opinion on this. On the whole, I recommend this book as an enjoyable, first-hand account of fieldwork in pursuit of a modern mystery.

L.M. Howe dismisses the 'Doug & Dave' story in a few sentences and then rolls up her sleeves and gets to work.

Every time I read one of her books I know that I am in for another irreversible paradigm melt-down. This is a book not to be missed! Serious and thoughtful.

Buy it now and read it a few times until it all starts to sink in.

More medium than well-done.

If you skip all the non-relevant story-telling ("I had to climb over the barbed wire with my shorts on...") the book shrinks by more than a factor of two.

The "sort-of-scientific" character of the book is refreshing, however, it seems like Linda does not really understand everything she talks about, and that is too bad. Her phrasing is often quite confusing and sometimes even disturbing (just like the other reviewer I also have a degree in physics).

Moreover, many of the 'anomalous lights', however, look more like ordinary lens flares to me. Too much wild speculation here!

Nevertheless, the book gives a good overview of this fascinating phenomenon, the events and people that surround it, and the atmosphere in the south of the UK.

This book is a complete look at the mysterious circles form in grain fields. It goes into great detail on how these unusual design are formed in the fields. The author goes into detail and diagrams on how the crops are folded over to create the design. She uses plenty of pictures in black and white and color to show how these large formations are formed.

I was interested in how they stayed overnight in certain fields in England were many of these circles are found. It seems they are formed at night as in the morning they are astonished to find more geometric formations. It seems there are mysterious lights in some of their photographs that were not visible to the naked eye. They seem to insinuate that these lights may be caused by some laser in a grid pattern to form the circles.

I found this book a very intersting read.

More medium than well-done.

If you skip all the non-relevant story-telling ("I had to climb over the barbed wire with my shorts on...") the book shrinks by more than a factor of two.

The "sort-of-scientific" character of the book is refreshing, however, it seems like Linda does not really understand everything she talks about, and that is too bad. Her phrasing is often quite confusing and sometimes even disturbing (just like the other reviewer I also have a degree in physics).

Moreover, many of the 'anomalous lights' look more like ordinary lens flares to me. Too much wild speculation here!

Nevertheless, the book gives a good overview of this fascinating phenomenon, the events and people that surround it, and the atmosphere in the south of the UK.

Don't miss this book. She is the pre-eminent thinker and researcher in her field. This is the time to pay attention.

I have the greatest respect and admiration for her work.