Author: Mark Rosney, Rob Bethell and Jebby Robinson
Publisher: Amberley Books
Price: USD 14.99
Isbn: 9781848682344

When people become interested in ghosts, UFOs, cryptozoology and other matters paranormal, they can be daunted by the problem of how to investigate. This often leads to results through which debunkers can drive a herd of elephants, and further marginalises fringe subjects. Painstaking scientific observation is not sexy, and ‘how to’ books frequently lack solid, useful information. A Beginner’s Guide bucks that trend, talking the reader clearly through the mechanics. The authors are active paranormal investigators whose experience informs their practice.Core concepts such as objectivity and problem-solving are flagged up, a polite way of saying “don’t go looking for what you want to find”! They even mention that most overlooked tool in the investigator’s kit-bag: a sense of humour!

There is much about the type of equipment required for various kinds of investigation and thorough descriptions of how to set up a variety of electronic recording equipment to catch those elusive spectres, ABCs or UFOs. Besides the ‘how to’ aspect, there are brief discussions of the history and type of each phenomenon discussed and examples of investigations of famous cases. It does exactly what it says on the tin and can’t be faulted for its no-nonsense approach to transient anomalous phenomena.

If more people bought and used this book, the face of para­normal research would look very different.

I can’t recommend it highly enough for the beginner or the more experienced researcher who needs a refresher course.