Someone Else's Yesterday: The Confederate General and Connecticut Yankee: A past Life Revealed (Paperback)

~ (Author) "IT WAS A PEACEFUL QUIET DAY at the Bloody Lane, one of those beautiful days in May you would like to catch in a jar..." (more)
Key Phrases: sunken road, Civil War, General Gordon, John Gordon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Anyone who doubts life after death, or reincarnation, should read this book. I highly recommend it." -- Uri Geller, world famous psychic

"Learn how one of America's greatest battlefield heroes has returned to life as a warrior for peace." -- Walter Semkiw, M.D. M.P.H.

"New possibilities for validating the reincarnation hypothesis and for conducting further research. This book is a milestone." -- Jeffrey Mishlove, Ph.D., host of "Thinking Allowed," national public television series

Product Description

Someone Else's Yesterday is an amazing journey through the eyes of two people: one a Georgian, the other a Connecticut Yankee. Similarities between the two go far beyond coincidence. They think alike, look alike, and even share facial scars. Their lives are so intertwined that they appear to be one. Half of this equation, Jeffrey J. Keene, is a present-day Assistant Fire Chief in affluent Westport, Connecticut. The other half, John B. Gordon, Confederate General, Army of Northern Virginia, died January 9, 1904.

These elements came together at a Halloween party in 1992, leading to a 10-year odyssey including the battlefields of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Georgia as well as the library of the University of Georgia and the Library of Congress. Gathering information from official records, wartime reports and even love letters, Jeff Keene uncovered many parallels between his own life and that of General Gordon. Even the trip to the emergency room on his thirtieth birthday with facial pain had mimicked the wound General Gordon received at the battle of Antietam when he was thirty years of age.

Jeff Keene shares his insights into the workings of reincarnation along with his personal encounter with the nightmare of September 11th. Experience a city in mourning during the aftermath of the attack on the World Trade Center, from a touching eulogy delivered by Mayor Giuliani to the smoldering ruins at Ground Zero.

Share the struggles of the past and the hopes for tomorrow as Keene weaves a tapestry of mystery and history, of love and the horrors of war. Jeffrey Keene has no choice but to believe in reincarnation--he lived this remarkable story and every word is true.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Blue Dolphin Publishing, Inc (April 20, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1577331346
• ISBN-13: 978-1577331346
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #566,664 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely fascinating, past life recollection, July 1, 2004

By	Judith E. Pavluvcik (Dreaming of the beach in Hawaii, but living in the reality of the desert in Arizona!!) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Someone Else's Yesterday is a most fascinating past-life account of the author, Jeffrey J. Keene, and his past life recollections as John B. Gordon, a confederate general. I must start out by saying that I absolutely do not like reading anything to do with history, so I was very hesitant at first to begin this book. I am, though, very interested in past life material and gave it a go. I was very pleasantly surprised as I was unable to put the book down and finished it within 24 hours!!

Keene's fascination began as he had a very strange experience while visiting a battlefield at Antietam, coincidently, the very same battlefield on which General Gordon was wounded. Shortly thereafter, a chance meeting with a psychic at a party, led him to further delve into the Civil War past and his connection with General Gordon.

Not only are the pictures of both Keene and Gordon incredibly and uncannily striking, but the fact that they both share the same six placement of scars on their bodies just adds that much more credibility to the entire story. Keene presents such compelling evidence, that one comes away with wonderment. Even parallels with their writing styles is pretty incredible!

Dr. Brian Weiss, in his books on past lives, also stated as does Jeffrey Keene stated, that soul groups tend to reincarnate in groups, and that it is not uncommon to find members of the same family as well as close friends, together over multiple life times. Ironically, or maybe not - several of the men in Keene's department, also share incredible striking resemblances to other confederate men who were with General Gordon during the Civil War.

The author has done a thorough job researching General John B. Gordon, tracing his lineage as a boy growing up in Georgia, all the way through his death in 1904. Keene, not being content with the obvious, delved as deeply as possible into as much of General Gordon's entire life history as he was able. Visiting as many places and battlefields as he could, the parallels between both lives are pretty remarkable and the evidence seems so overwhelming. The historical writings were a fascinating read, much to my surprise!

I think that it is important to note here that Jeffrey Keene did not go searching for any of this to happen to him. Keene's skepticism of hypnotic regression was also not an option for him to explore in further pursuing his recalls. Instead it was through Keene's memories, which started to come through along with unexplained happenings and feelings, which prompted him to further investigate and explore it all on his own for himself. Even though Keene was skeptical at first, the more he investigated and researched General Gordon, that the parallels started to become clearer and clearer. The book is written with intelligence and sensitivity and it is Keene's insight that we much more than our bodies which allows him to delve with an open mind and with much insight into his past life research.

Not only is this a great book for civil war buffs, but also for those who are fascinated in past life recall. Keene now has also become a much sought after lecturer on the Civil war and his research is most extensive.

I found this book to be quite extraordinary from several different angles and it would be really hard for one to dismiss Keene's account at all. Letters are also included in the book from others who have been touched by the media documenting Jeffrey Keene and these others past life recall is fascinating and compelling. I do believe that skeptics would be pleasantly surprised as well. Looking at one's own life, including my own, where one has an affinity for a particular place, country, ethnic group or even for a "collection" of objects, or feeling that "one has been here before", are subtle clues reaching from beyond to remind us that we are much more than our present bodies. As our minds and thinking become more open, I do believe that we are better able to access portions of ourselves that were previously closed down. "We are all here for a purpose although we many not be aware of that it is. There could by many reasons; to learn lessons, pay back debts to other souls or to serve as an example for others. This list has no end. I believe I am performing one of my requirements at this very moment by writing this book."

This book is amazing and it is one of the best books on past life recall that I have ever read. One also cannot help to be drawn to the author, his experiences, his research, and his insight as well. Many questions can be raised in one's own life and probably will! "No one ever dies (at least not in the way many perceive death here on Earth), and Love lasts forever."

Incredible and amazing book in every which way!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very sincere, very convincing -- and well-written, too!, September 23, 2003

By	Rabbi Yonassan Gershom (Minnesota, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This is one of the more convincing cases for reincarnation that has come across my desk in a long time. I had already heard of Jeffrey Keene before the book came out, because he is featured in the 2002 documentary video, "In another Life: Reincarnation in America" (Gold Thread Video Productions). I was impressed with his story then, so it was a pleasure to finally be able to read the book (which came out after the video.)

Jeffrey Keene did not go searching for this experience. In fact, he was skeptical at first. He makes it clear that he did not undergo hypnotic regression (which he distrusts) but rather, the memories came to him in various spontaneous ways, beginning with a strange familiarity at the sight of a battlefield. As he describes his visits to battlefields, graveyards, and other sites, he provides the reader with well-researched historical detail. In my case, that's a good thing, since I am a not a Civil War buff and would not have made the past-life connections without the background info.

Most impressive is the uncanny physical resemblance between Keene in this life, and General Gordon in the past life. (Click on the cover photo here for an enlarged version to see for yourself.) Genetically, he is no relation to the General, but, as researchers lke Ian Stevenson have demonstrated, the soul often does re-create physical characteristics in the new body. Additional look-alike sets of photos are inside the book itself. Keene also includes some photos of firefighters he has worked with in this life, who bear a strong resemblance to Civil War figures he might have known in the past life. All in all, it's a well-written book and a very good read.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An interesting reincarnation case, November 4, 2005

By	Andrew Olivo Parodi (Oregon, United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Reincarnation was once something of a dogma for me, something I firmly believed in. I now view reincarnation as something more of a spiritual symbol, a reminder that we are all ultimately connected. At this level, it is a very beautiful concept, whether literally "true" or not. I am no longer so dogmatic as to whether reincarnation truly happens or not.

To that end, I must admit that SOMEONE ELSE'S YESTERDAY did not convince me that the author is literally the reincarnation of John B. Gordon, a Confederate General of the Army of Northern Virginia who died in 1904. However, for me, I believe this is beside the point. What is interesting to me is that the author would feel such a resonance with Mr. Gordon. What SOMEONE ELSE'S YESTERDAY convinced me of is that people from different times, from different regions, from different walks of life, can be intrigued by one another and care about one another. Again, I think this holds a beautiful message in and of itself. Isn't that what this world needs, for people to care about one another?

Perhaps I should give a little background on how I came to my current view. You see, from a very young age I had always felt a connection to Africa and African cultures. Eventually, this blossomed into a literal belief that I had been African in a past life. I soon became acquainted with Malidoma Some and Sobonfu Some, both spiritual teachers from Burkina Faso, Africa, from the Dagara tribe. (Books by both authors are available on Amazon. Malidoma's "Of Water and Spirit" has received a great deal of praise in spiritual circles.) Reincarnation is an accepted doctrine in their culture, and so it was a familiar subject for both Malidoma and Sobonfu, and they both aided me in coming to terms with my beliefs and what I should make of them with regard to the direction of my present life. (I believe Malidoma is thought to be the reincarnation of his great grandfather.) Malidoma told me that if I really felt I had been African in a past life, then I had to honor that belief, but I had to keep in mind what was valuable and important to me in this life. This was very meaningful for me because at the time I very deeply wanted to believe I had been African in a past life, as Africa meant so much to me.

But it was perhaps Kenneth Wapnick PhD, president of the Foundation for A Course In Miracles, who had the greatest impact on me with regard to my beliefs about reincarnation. Mr. Wapnick opened my mind to the fact that ultimately it doesn't matter whether I was literally African in a past life or not. What matters is what I make of those beliefs. At first, I was quite adamant to Mr. Wapnick that reincarnation was very true. Eventually, I came to accept it as a spiritual symbol of the connectedness of the human experience.

It's from this perspective that I view SOMEONE ELSE'S YESTERDAY. My own opinion is that it doesn't matter so much whether Jeffrey Keene is really the reincarnation of John B. Gordon. What matters is the Keene has found a symbol that is meaningful for him and connects him to a larger awareness of spirituality and the interconnectedness of all life. Mr. Keene's sense of interconnectedness comes through very well in this book, and it is very beautiful.

I believe any person interested in reincarnation, the New Age genre, or even a skeptical person simply wishing to learn about reincarnation beliefs, would find something of interest in SOMEONE ELSE'S YESTERDAY. In other words, even if you don't believe in reincarnation you may find SOMEONE ELSE'S YESTERDAY to be interesting.

Andrew Michael Parodi