Customer Reviews

UFO Testament: Anatomy of an Abductee

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Ray Fowler seems like the type of man I'd feel very comfortable sitting down to dinner with; even more comfortable than even Whitley Strieber, of whom I am a huge fan. Ray has no pretensions or knee-jerk emotional reactions to things like Mr. Strieber, who has a checkered relationship with the media. Ray tells it like it is, DESPITE THE FACT that, unlike Mr. Strieber, he is ABSOLUTELY NO SUPPORT FROM HIS OWN FAMILY. They are fundamentalist Christians who feel their own husband/father is being attacked by "demons." His own daughter won't allow his grandchildren to visit them at his home. A pity, because he had previously agreed not to discuss his interests with them. The book is fascinating! It details Mr. Fowler's entiring career as a UFOlogist, beginning with his initial big break working for J. Allen Hynek. With great humor and humility, Fowler summarizes some of his greatest cases, including the Beverly, MA sightings in 1966, and of course his ground-breaking work with Betty Andreasson Luca. Best of all, he tells of how he came to terms with the unsettling realization that he himself was an abductee, going back to childhood! This is a good "beginner" book for the works of Ray Fowler, sort of a "Cliff Notes." Then you can go back and get the individual works, starting with "UFOs: Interplantary Visitors" and work your way up from there. You won't be dissapointed.

This is Ray Fowler at his most personal and fearless. A well written autobiography that is thoughtful and honest to a fault. Fowler's lifelong fascination and investigations into UFOs and then the abduction phenomena is understood by his own experiences, which, like most close encounter experiencers, were buried or in half-memories.

Included are case reports that were in his packed files that he hadn't shared until the writing of this book. Some of the encounters are so bizarre that I can understand why, at an earlier time (1960s/70s) he didn't know where to put them. Also included is his work and friendship with Dr. J. Allen Hynek.

Fowler, a committed Christian from a very early age, retired in the early 2000s from serious investigations because his wife and daughters believed the ufos/aliens to be demonic and somehow his fault (as if he was causing it/them to happen in their lives). His daughters wouldn't even let his grandchildren sleep over his house! And, his son (apparently a strict material rationalist), told him he needed to see a psychiatrist! So, this brave man has it coming at him from all corners it would seem. There's no support from his family but he doesn't seek it nor want it. He did respect his wife's wishes though and retired (he's well into his 70s though, so it's no surprise he'd want to take it easy from this subject of high strangeness).

This is a must read from the one of the best, if not the best UFO investigator and Abduction investigor who was doing this difficult work long before it became 'cool'.

Like the previous reviewer, I'd recommend reading this book first and then going back and reading Fowler's earlier works - starting with the strictly ufo reports and New England investigations on upwards into the Andreassen abduction saga and the Allagash abductions.