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Rating: 
Summary: Intelligent, Thought Provoking and Informative
Review: As a contactee myself, I found the nature of the information assimilated by the abductees in Dr. Mack's book to be consistent with my own personal experience. Though each individual filters information through their own sphere of reference, Dr. Mack concludes that the experience of the abductees ultimately changes their world view, expands their environmental consciousness, and adjusts, positively, our basic egocentric view that we humans are the only species important enough to remain on our planet. I personally have found this expansion of consciousness into an empathy for all forms of life to be true and consider it to be the primary reason for contact. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone interested in contact, abduction or shamanic experience. The stories told by the abductees are as fascinating as they are unique to each individual. I felt a sense of anticipation with each page I turned, not wanting to stop reading until I had read the experiences of each abductee and wishing there were many more such accounts included before this exciting read ended.
Rating:
Summary: whew! I hope it's not true.
Review: Dr Mack has made the terror of the abduction experience a gripping, palpable reality with this book. It scarred the hell out of me! There were many nights after reading this book that I could not fall asleep without my wife's arms around me! For God's sake people, I'm 33 years old! If you enjoy psycho-horror; squinting in pitch darkness to see if there's something there; or wondering, as you're woken up from a deep sleep trembling from a nightmare, if you just heard footsteps outside your bedroom door, then this book should do the trick. I'm not easily rattled but the stories in this book leave you no place to hide, there's no safe place! Apparrently, these little gomers can nab you in broad daylight! Very scarry stuff... Don't let kids read this or you'll have a big mess on your hands.
Rating: 
Summary: The Politics of Ontology
Review: Dr. John Mack is a serious, careful and courageous research. Consider. If you were a Harvard Medical School professor with a Pulitzer prize and a sterling reputation would you endanger it for the sensationalism of "alien" abduction? Even if you were confronted with evidence of strange events, why put up with all the headaches? That Mack did proves him to be a true man of science, one who investigates phenomena instead of prejudging it as valid or not valid.Mack is not saying outright that alien abductions are "real." He is saying that something is happening that leaves a real and lasting effect on people. These events have certain characteristics in common. Mack is mapping the terrain features of a new psychological continent using the case histories of individuals who have come forward. These individuals are also taking serious risks. In truth the issue is not alien abduction per se, but what Mack calls the politics of ontology. Personally I have had more than my share of "interesting" events. Mack's book, though not overtly written for this purpose, is a guide by which those who quietly keep to themselves may evaluate how their experience compares with others. If you are interested in a serious exploration of this topic, this is the best book on the subject.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting descriptions, fuzzy analysis
Review: Harvard psychologist John Mack interviewed more than seventy people who believe that they were abducted by aliens. After using hypnosis and other techniques to draw out victims' memories, he concluded that they were not inventing their stories; they had suffered traumatic experiences, in many cases more than once. Mack also found that their stories were remarkably consistent. The cases he studied may be only the tip of an iceberg; a 1991 survey showed that at least several hundred thousand Americans have had abduction experiences. Mack argues that abductions force us to reconsider our perception of reality; "no familiar theory or explanation has come even close to accounting for the basic features of the abduction phenomenon." As abductions can not be understood within the framework of Western science, a new scientific paradigm may be necessary. Mack speculates that the aliens may be from other dimensions. At the end, he offers his personal opinion that "abductions have to do with the evolution of consciousness and the collapse of a worldview that has placed humankind at a kind of epicenter of intelligence in a cosmos perceived as largely lifeless and meaningless." Mack writes that "When we explore phenomena that exist at the margins of accepted reality, old words become imprecise or must be given new meanings." His own words suffer from that problem; many readers will find his analyses vague and fuzzy-minded, particularly when he writes about spirituality. Many of his speculations appear in both his introductory and concluding chapters, an annoying duplication. Readers may be struck by how closely the X-Files followed the abductees' descriptions of their experiences, including implants and the creation of alien-human hybrids. The warnings delivered to some abductees sound a bit like those in the 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still, or in the more recent film The Abyss, suggesting that abductees may have been influenced by their own cultural experiences. Nonetheless, something peculiar happened to these people.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting descriptions, fuzzy analysis
Review: Harvard psychologist John Mack interviewed more than seventy people who believe that they were abducted by aliens. After using hypnosis and other techniques to draw out victims' memories, he concluded that they were not inventing their stories; they had suffered traumatic experiences, in many cases more than once. Mack also found that their stories were remarkably consistent. The cases he studied may be only the tip of an iceberg; a 1991 survey showed that at least several hundred thousand Americans have had abduction experiences. Mack argues that abductions force us to reconsider our perception of reality; "no familiar theory or explanation has come even close to accounting for the basic features of the abduction phenomenon." As abductions can not be understood within the framework of Western science, a new scientific paradigm may be necessary. Mack speculates that the aliens may be from other dimensions. At the end, he offers his personal opinion that "abductions have to do with the evolution of consciousness and the collapse of a worldview that has placed humankind at a kind of epicenter of intelligence in a cosmos perceived as largely lifeless and meaningless." Mack writes that "When we explore phenomena that exist at the margins of accepted reality, old words become imprecise or must be given new meanings." His own words suffer from that problem; many readers will find his analyses vague and fuzzy-minded, particularly when he writes about spirituality. Many of his speculations appear in both his introductory and concluding chapters, an annoying duplication. Readers may be struck by how closely the X-Files followed the abductees' descriptions of their experiences, including implants and the creation of alien-human hybrids. The warnings delivered to some abductees sound a bit like those in the 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still, or in the more recent film The Abyss, suggesting that abductees may have been influenced by their own cultural experiences. Nonetheless, something peculiar happened to these people.
Rating: 
Summary: Where was the enthusiasm?
Review: It's all well and good for people to be researching this subject. As an 'abductee' (that word just doesn't do it justice), my first thought when I heard Mack had finished his book was "It's about damn time a major figure got into the field". But then I got really ticked-off when I heard about his past life regression and other new-age consciousness theories. I read the book and was appalled that someone of his collegiate stature would be lured-in by this contactee bull dung. Sure enough, months go by and his contactees start admitting they made the stuff up. OF COURSE THEY DID! Anyone who thinks the...'things' act with ethical benevolence is either lying or delusional. The truth is bitter and unpleasant. Want to know what kind of crud goes on? Read David Jacobs' "Secret Life". I'll personally vouch for it.
Rating:
Summary: It is a practical book on facts
Review: The author has his feet on the solid ground on what he wrote. Facts are exposed. Conclusions remain open. He has the caution not to believe literally on every aspect obtained by the investigation, subjective but very significant nevertheless alternative explanations are suggested, remaining to the reader the final opinion. The author is a professional senior psychiatrist teacher. The main method of revealing facts here in this book is back-regression by hypnosis, to the time of the events, with the professional know-how not to induce, but to open individuals forgotten experiences. What for me states the quality of this work, and book, is it was done always with the goal of making the life of the persons studied a better one, not just to extract them material for a book or project. The quest to reveal and to solve the inner live problems of the people involved, and then to inform there is something REAL in the alien abduction subject. The book may deep influence some people lives, if the reader get confronted with similarities with one self or close people cases; 5 star indeed.
Rating:
Summary: This is a pratical book
Review: The author has his feet on the solid ground on what he wrote. Facts are exposed. Conclusions remain open. There is caution not to believe literally on every aspect obtained by the author investigation, subjective but very significant nevertheless alternative explanations are suggested, remaining to the reader the final opinion. The author is a professional senior psychiatrist teacher, one of the methods of revealing the facts exposed here in this book is back regression by hypnosis to the events, with the professional know how not to induce, but to open subjects forgotten experiences, and what for me states the most quality of this work, and book, always with the goal of making the life of the subjects a better one, not just to extract them material for alien stuff. It is that quest to reveal and to solve the inner live problems of the people, and then to inform there is something REAL in the alien abduction subject. The book may alter some people lives, if the reader get confronted with similarities on other people cases and dramas. 5 star indeed.
Rating:
Summary: This is a pratical book
Review: The author has his feet on the solid ground on what he wrote. Facts are exposed. Conclusions remain open. There is caution not to believe literally on every aspect obtained by the author investigation, subjective but very significant nevertheless alternative explanations are suggested, remaining to the reader the final opinion. The author is a professional senior psychiatrist teacher, one of the methods of revealing the facts exposed here in this book is back regression by hypnosis to the events, with the professional know how not to induce, but to open subjects forgotten experiences, and what for me states the most quality of this work, and book, always with the goal of making the life of the subjects a better one, not just to extract them material for alien stuff. It is that quest to reveal and to solve the inner live problems of the people, and then to inform there is something REAL in the alien abduction subject. The book may alter some people lives, if the reader get confronted with similarities on other people cases and dramas. 5 star indeed.
Rating:
Summary: Path-breaking; raises fundemental questions
Review: You do not need to be convinced by Mack in order to admire his courage: as a Harvard Professor, to take a topic straight from the tabloids and treat it seriously deserves a four-star rating by itself. I am generally open to new ways of perceiving reality, and am willing to ponder the idea that "aliens" (or fellow -earth dwellers, differently dimensioned) are playing tricks with us. My main difficulty lies with using hypnosis as a tool to uncover hidden memories, which lies at the heart of Mack's approach. Hypnosis is just too easy to abuse. It may be the only tool we can think of, currently, to use in this quest, but it just has too many drawbacks to be taken as the sole tool for alien-style research. I think Mack, too, would agree with that. The 1990s, when this book came out, were a heady time for alien research. Many books on the subject were published, and TVs shows produced. Maybe it was the upcoming millennium, or just an increase in alien visits in the late 80s, but the field was hot. Now, it has cooled off a bit. One wonders when the next alien wave, or 'flap,' will hit. But hit it will, and when it does, many will go back to Mack's book for insight. This is recommended, along with Jaques Valle's books.
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