[.ca] Diary of an Abduction (ISBN 1571742018)

From Amazon.com:
The tension of Diary of an Abduction builds like a well-crafted suspense thriller. In the opening entries, which begin in September of 1986 and continue for 13 years, we meet author and scientist Angela Thompson Smith (Remote Perceptions), who learns of a phenomenon called alien abduction, which touches upon her professional fields of neuropsychology and the cognitive sciences. Even though the possibility of alien abductions was "beyond comprehension," the author was hooked--and thus began an exploration into the underworld of UFO conferences, abduction clubs, forced impregnation, and reports of alien babies. Ultimately, she comes to the realization that she is, in fact, living a double life that involves unexplained lapses in time, mysterious markings (circular bruises, single-spot scabs) that appear on her body upon waking, and vivid, recurring dreams of abductions. Memories begin to flood her mind, as Smith realizes her abductions began in childhood and are still happening. When Smith recounts the details of her dreams/abductions, she has an Agent Scully straightforwardness, even as she writes about having a device like a telephone jack (but smaller) implanted in her ear canal, or trying to help a seemingly human baby who is being improperly cared for by bungling aliens. Like any dream memory, the images are fleeting and disjointed. She'll remember the clear plastic seat that holds the baby, but she'll have no sense of the broader setting--her bedroom? A spaceship? A laboratory? What gives this diary authority is the ongoing investigative work of Smith as she researches information from numerous sources, including government officials (expect a fascinating UFO story about a former president), scientific journals, and abduction investigators. Read it like an X-File or read it like a scientific report. Either way, you won't be disappointed. --Tara West

I've read better.:
This book was rather disappointing, disjointed and attenuated. While I appreciate the author's use of alleged concrete information, there wasn't enough of it and since it was written in diary form it jumped from topic to topic and there was never any concrete evidence regarding anything. Nothing was proven, no climax ever occurred. It was all mere conjecture. Why she believes she was abducted by aliens just because she had a plethora of dreams about it and few "visions" is beyond me. I always have alien abduction dreams when I'm reading books about them. Surely if you focus your mind on a subject for a long enough time, you are going to have dreams about it. I just kept waiting for something in the book that was going to blow my mind and tell me something concrete. I believe books which examine abductions from a hypnotic standpoint to be a bit more believable anyway. At least you get an entire story of what might have transpired when the abduction occurred whether that's what really happened or not. The best books I have ever read on the alien abduction phenomenon are "Missing Time" and "The Gulf Breeze Sightings". THOSE were books! Whether they were true or not, they were at least entertaining and somewhat mind blowing. I expected this book to follow suit in elaborating upon information we already know or have been told about this phenomenon but it seemed just as arcane, if not more so, than anything else I've ever read or witnessed. All in all, a big disappointment. :(

Diary of an Abduction:
Diary of an Abduction is Angela Thompson Smith's fascinating account of her contacts with beings she has named the Visitors. Her first contact came during her teenage years, in the presence of her younger brother. As an adult, she described this event to other researchers and learned that she wasn't alone in her experience. The standard practice for abduction experiences includes thorough medical examinations followed by hypnosis. Conventional theory holds that abducted persons are "caused to suffer from an amnesia that hides their experiences from themselves and others." Hypnosis is necessary to uncover these hidden memories. Smith chose to not undergo hypnosis. She decided to search within for the hidden memories. She instructed her subconscious mind to reveal any abduction information to her in the form of dreams, with the intent of documenting the information. Concurrent with this, she networked with others and conducted extensive research into the phenomenon of alien contact, applying her training as a respected scientist. Beginning in 1988, she began recording her dreams and possible interpretation of each, all memories that surfaced, and the results of her investigations. As a result, she says that she's learned "the abduction scenario is real. Nonhuman entities have been interacting with us for thousands of years and they will continue to interact with us." Starting in 1990, she began a two-way interaction with the Visitors and learned that they find humans to be a fascinating species which they enjoy observing. Smith maintains however, that the Visitors have gone beyond observing, into interbreeding with humans. She also comments that the U.S. government regards itself as being at war with aliens, thus all the secrecy surrounding UFO's and abductions. "Offering the immediacy of freshly-lived experience, the precision of scientific reporting, and the high intrigue of top-notch mystery writing, Smith's real-life Diary of an Abduction is a riveting and provocative journey into the sky, into the soul, and beyond."

Poor fiction:
All these books on abduction are pulp fiction, masquerading as fact. If aliens did travel all the zillion miles necessary, for the thousands of years necessary, to reach our beloved planet, why would they keep it a secret? Would we, if we travelled to other galaxies? We would land with some fanfare and pazazz, not quietly sneak in and raid odd, disturbed, publicity-seeking Americans. Homer Simpson was abducted by aliens, but then he is only a cartoon!

Author's Review:
DIARY OF AN ABDUCTION - Author's Review Angela Thompson Smith Ph.D. It has been estimated that one person in fifty has experienced the anomalous events that are collectively known as alien abduction. The population of the United States stood at 276,219 thousand in 1999 and it has been estimated that approximately 2% of this population have experienced alien abduction. That's an awful lot of people. And that's just the United States. I found that there are very few resources in place for these individuals. Just where do they go for information and support? Certainly not to the media, nor to the government. If all of these individuals were suffering from some new disease, researchers would be clamoring for funding and other resources to study the problem. That was my reason for wanting to write this book. To present my own search for answers, to help others understand their experiences, and to point researchers in directions that might lead to some answers to this compelling topic. Much has been written about alien abduction but this book tells it from an unique perspective. As an experiencer and a research scientist I have been able to look at both sides of the question. As an experiencer I have developed successful methods to uncover information related to my own perceived abductions. As a research psychologist I have began my own investigation of the abduction topic and come up with some surprising answers. When I was writing this book, I sent the manuscript to a friend in Australia. He had planned to read a few chapters before going to sleep. Instead he was up all night and read the whole book. He said that he went and got his gun and put it under his pillow - just in case! Yes, it is a scary book. But it is also a practical book as it presents ways to understand and cope with the phenomenon. Let the understanding begin!