Otherworld Journeys: Accounts of Near-Death Experiences in Medieval and Modern Times

Rating:
Summary: Excellent work, if by now somewhat dated
Review: Carol Zaleski's book is clearly one of the best books on NDEs, still quite relevant even though a bit dated. This is interesting reading not only for her balanced presentation of the pro and con viewpoints of leading researchers on NDEs, but also for her contrasting NDEs of the latter 20th century with NDEs experienced by Christians of medieval times.

Rating:
Summary: her study is a great contribution
Review: i am not saying WOW (except for her photo-she is one of the most beautiful girls in the world) you gotta read this book but, i have spend an appreciable amt of time reading it twice and it is unbiased research giving solid reasons to both accept and disbelieve. only time will tell.

Rating:
Summary: Fair and Fascinating study
Review: I imagine it would be difficult to write an unbiased book about near-death experiences, especially if you had a religious bone to pick. However, Carol Zaleski succeeds in writing a very scholarly, fair-minded book, and avoids the trap of attempting to envangelize the reader. Either you believe people have out-of-body experiences, or you don't and Zaleski doesn't attempt to convert you. What she does do (and this is what makes "Otherworld Journeys" so fascinating) is examine the influence of culture and religion on near-death experiences. A twentieth-century American will not report the same near-death experience as, say, a thirteenth-century Italian. Why that is true is for the reader to decide, in light of the evidence presented by this interesting and well-researched account.

I felt "Otherworld Journeys" was a definite keeper and well worth re-reading.

Rating:
Summary: Fair and Fascinating study
Review: I imagine it would be difficult to write an unbiased book about near-death experiences, especially if you had a religious bone to pick. However, Carol Zaleski succeeds in writing a very scholarly, fair-minded book, and avoids the trap of attempting to envangelize the reader. Either you believe people have out-of-body experiences, or you don't and Zaleski doesn't attempt to convert you. What she does do (and this is what makes "Otherworld Journeys" so fascinating) is examine the influence of culture and religion on near-death experiences. A twentieth-century American will not report the same near-death experience as, say, a thirteenth-century Italian. Why that is true is for the reader to decide, in light of the evidence presented by this interesting and well-researched account.

I felt "Otherworld Journeys" was a definite keeper and well worth re-reading.

Rating:
Summary: Scholary and dense but very informative
Review: Otherworld Journeys: Accounts of Near-Death Experiences in Medieval and Modern Times by Carol G. Zaleski, is a scholarly look at "near death experiences" from the middle ages to the current times. It is a tad bit dated, but is still a wonderful jumping off point into this exciting area of study. She does her research very well, and presents a very thorough survey from both literature sources as well as first hand accounts, summarizing the major similarities between the time periods as well as their distinct differences. At the end she recounts some of the numerous theories out there surrounding NDE research, and gives her summation of the work she has completed. This book has a very scholarly tone to it, a very interesting read, but could be hard for some people to truly appreciate.

Rating:
Summary: Scholary and dense but very informative
Review: Otherworld Journeys: Accounts of Near-Death Experiences in Medieval and Modern Times by Carol G. Zaleski, is a scholarly look at "near death experiences" from the middle ages to the current times. It is a tad bit dated, but is still a wonderful jumping off point into this exciting area of study. She does her research very well, and presents a very thorough survey from both literature sources as well as first hand accounts, summarizing the major similarities between the time periods as well as their distinct differences. At the end she recounts some of the numerous theories out there surrounding NDE research, and gives her summation of the work she has completed. This book has a very scholarly tone to it, a very interesting read, but could be hard for some people to truly appreciate.