Dee's Updates en-US Sat, 08 Feb 2025 20:01:15 -0800 60 Dee's Updates 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg GiveawayRequest674509728 Sat, 08 Feb 2025 20:01:15 -0800 <![CDATA[<a href="/user/show/21919680-dee-eisel">Dee Eisel</a> entered a giveaway]]> /giveaway/show/403766-secrets-of-adulthood-simple-truths-for-our-complex-lives Secrets of Adulthood by Gretchen Rubin ]]> GiveawayRequest671798532 Sun, 02 Feb 2025 01:55:01 -0800 <![CDATA[<a href="/user/show/21919680-dee-eisel">Dee Eisel</a> entered a giveaway]]> /giveaway/show/405566-men-who-hate-women-from-incels-to-pickup-artists-the-truth-about-extrem Men Who Hate Women by Laura Bates ]]> Review2028980992 Sun, 02 Jul 2023 14:33:02 -0700 <![CDATA[Dee added 'The Real Men in Black: Evidence, Famous Cases & True Stories of These Mysterious Men & their Connection to UFO Phenomena']]> /review/show/2028980992 The Real Men in Black by Nick Redfern Dee gave 3 stars to The Real Men in Black: Evidence, Famous Cases & True Stories of These Mysterious Men & their Connection to UFO Phenomena (Paperback) by Nick Redfern
bookshelves: cryptids, new-age, supernatural
I decided to give Nick Redfern another chance. You may recall I didn't like his previous book, Three Men Seeking Monsters: Six Weeks in Pursuit of Werewolves, Lake Monsters, Giant Cats, Ghostly Devil Dogs & Ape-men, but after seeing him on various TV programs where he actually looked somewhat reasonable I wanted to give him a try. I'm happy to say that this book is better than the other. I'm sad to say it's not by much.

The thing I liked most is that Redfern, unlike many other people in the paranormal area, is perfectly happy to say "nope, this is not paranormal at all." He does have a whole chapter talking about where genuine FBI or military officers were mistaken for Men In Black (and if your only reference point is the movies, this may not be the book for you). I absolutely love the story of the researcher who went to the Grove Park Inn in Asheville to ghost hunt and was himself mistaken for a Man in Black because he was dressed nicely and had an EMF detector! This, I think, can account for 99% of the stories. If they say they're from the FBI or the military, they probably are, and if you're worried about it ask for their badge or ID numbers.

The stories of people being hypnotized by Men in Black don't surprise me. One of the first forms of hypnosis we learn about in hypnosis classes is the tendency of people to obey authority. Most early hypnosis induction relied almost exclusively on that fact, and it still works today. I'm also not surprised by people reporting odd smells and so on. I believe in UFOs far more than I believe in a dark force associated with them trying to hush people about them, and it doesn't surprise me that after an odd experience like a UFO suggestion would make people hypersensitive to unusual effects in the aftermath.

People are pattern finders. An odd light in the sky followed by questions is not so out of the question, and correlated but not caused migraines (which have odd odors associated with them - migraines aren't always painful!) can account for a lot.

It's not a well-written book. He has a reputation for pushing them out, and The Real Man In Black feels rushed. It needed at least another editorial pass. This is where I was disappointed. I wish that the publisher had asked for another draft. Three of five stars. ]]>