Customer Reviews

Searching the Abyss: A Beginners Guide to Cryptozoological Investigation

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What does ghost hunting and cryptozoological investigations have in common? The effortless answer is nothing, however, once you peel the skin away there are a lot of similarities. Preventing evidence tampering, evidence collection, creating case files, how to conduct interviews and taking meaningful notes to name a few. Mark Mihalko uses his extensive field research and militay training to give the reader simple but precise directions on the entire range of cryptozoological investigation. This book is a total training lesson for anyone and everyone in the field of cryptozoology and even for those of us that research other aspects of the paranormal.

When you first step inside of the book you will realize that it is well written and emphasis the importance of using science in your investigations. In my opinion, the best section in the book deals with forming a hypothesis. Every serious investigation must be constructed around forming a hypothesis, creating a theory and then setting out to disprove that theory. It is important to keep in mind a theory cannot be proven- only disproven.

1. What is the problem?
2. What facts or data relate to the problem?
3. Can a hypothesis be formed from the known knowledge?
4. Can a theory be formed from the hypothesis?

In the final part of the book Mark gives the readers a helpful A-Z glossary, a complete case file for review, a list of helpful web sites. One of the biggest hidden gems in the book a complete section with example forms; cryptip classification table, sighting report form and investigation permission form. Anyone who has ever had to create forms will understand the value of having access to these well thought out examples.

Is this a book for people heading out in search of bigfoot? Yes. This book is also for anyone headed out to do any field research. It is a must read and is destined to be one of the key 'How To' books in cryptozoological research.

Gene Lafferty
founder, www.bsphi.com

Having recently heard of the field "Cryptozoology" for the first time, I was unsure of what I would think of this book. Cryptozoology is an interesting topic and after reading Searching the Abyss, I was not only impressed, but also almost compelled to go out and start hunting for lost or new species of animals. The book was well composed and thought out, and obviously a lot of research went into it.

Mark uses a balanced blend of Myth and Fact to give this field of research a place in science. This book contains well-written and simply explained methods and techniques that anyone could use to become a Cryptozoologist and be confident that their findings and reports would be viable. It is explained in detail what is required in order to survive the skeptics and to keep ones evidence creditable. The approach used in this text was not to convince people that strange animals exist, but to encourage others to keep an open mind that some such life forms may exist, no one can go into this type of research a true believer, some skepticism is required to maintain objectiveness. After all, one cannot find the truth of something if they already believe it is there and refuse to weigh all the evidence discovered fairly.

If anyone was interested in going into this field of study, I would recommend this book as not just educational reading, but as a on-hand field guide during such investigations. It's easy reading, simple, and to the point without all of the fancy words that requires a master's degree to understand.