Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THE Compendium of Strange Phenomena, October 1, 2002
I have many of these types of books in my collection, from small paperbacks to fancier hardcover Reader's Digest-type compendiums, from Rupert J. Gould's _Oddities_ to works by William Corliss and Brad Steiger - themselves no hack journalists of the unexplained - and none of them hold a candle to the sheer pragmatic necessity of this book. An avid cryptozoologist might note, for example, his deliberate separation of the North American Sasquatch, Orang Pendek, the Himalayan Yeti and various other Wildmen into separate entries, yet even still reserving space for more cautionary cryptid accounts such as "Momo" and casting a brief spotlight deservedly upon the issue of de Loys' monkey ("Mono Grande"). Although the sheer scope of the material demands that Clark is efficient with his prose and occasionally miss some things (why, for example, is Momo covered while the Boggy Creek sightings, which spawned several movies, are left out ?) you will be surprised how much substantive information is contained in these pages. The author is meticulous and footnotes extensively, always describing his material with a keen eye for journalistic accuracy and healthy dose of skepticism, all of which makes this a fantastic compendium, reference manual, and all-around eye-opening introduction to the "Borderlands."Im also happy to report this book seems to have spawned a vastly-expanded second edition. I would suggest hunting that down first before attempting to grab this one second-hand, but any way you can own it, it should be welcome in your library, rabid skeptic and would-be sasquatch hunter alike.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent book detailing everything a believer loves., July 11, 1998
By A Customer
This book is quite possibly the best documentary of unexplained phenomenon, I have ever read. Jerome Clark details every interesting unexplained piece of information possible from the Mountain Lights to the Jersey Devil. Being the X- File freak I am, nothing interests me more than paranormal activity. If you get a book about the unexplained, I strongly recommend this one.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Guide, March 9, 1998
"Unexplained" isn't for the credulous believer or the dogmatic disbeliever. It is, rather, for those individuals who have a genuine interest in truly fascinating mysteries and who want to use their intelligence, guided by their world view, to determine which, if any, of these strange phenomena are plausible. Clark's treatment of these extraordinary occurrences reflects a refreshingly objective mind-set, and he implicitly invites the reader to adopt a similar approach and perspective. I have referred to this book time and again since I purchased it several years ago. My only complaint is that Clark did not give enough space to subjects that I found particularly intriguing -- e.g., "The Dover Demon" -- and too much to those that have already been written about ad nauseum, such as the Loch Ness Monster. But that's a matter of personal taste. I highly recommend this book.
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