The Mothman Prophecies by John A. Keel
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Book Reviews of The Mothman Prophecies
Book Review: A product of the hallucinogen era
Summary: 4 Stars
Although I realize at the time it was written, politically correct descriptions of people were not the same as today, yet some of these things are too strong to be overlooked. The following descriptions are honestly found in the book:
negroids or colored person
describing a gay men as a sexual deviant
all small town cops have pot bellies
most contactees are poorly read (the West Virginian residents)
craggy foreign face
they were foreigners, you know, Japs or something
men in formal suits and ties were never seen in West Virginia before his arrival
dreary coal mining towns of Appalachia where he suggests the people are hillbillies
frail sparrowlike women I usually see in Appalachia
rapid fire language that sounded like Spanish
"cocoa" cola bottle
I give the book merits on the fierce and intense research Mr. Keel put into the book, and it is more entertaining than I thought it would be. However, other points that need to be identified are: He finds strange pieces of wood in people's phones, people who claim their phones are bugged, but he doesn't keep the strange object? He sits in his car and witness several UFO going overhead, with a film camera beside him, yet forgot to take any footage. A UFO comes within yards of him and some viewers and he shines a "spotlight" on them (so convenient he just happened to have one handy), the UFO takes off and the only thing he can say was "guess I blew it" when most people would be on their knees in astonishment. He claims to have kept these facts secret until the publishing of the book, so as to not create hoaxers. He waited to published the book after the bridge collapse?
If John Keel was selected to be a contactee as he claims. Then why did he get such laughable feedback from the aliens? Wouldn't the aliens be technologically advanced, much more than earthlings. Then how come they failed to know there are more than 9 planets in our solar system and other heavenly bodies in it as well. Why did the UFO's have "frosted glass" windows and bucket seats? Such a painstakingly tacky reminder of the period in which the book was written. A definite retro look. Why would the aliens refer to phonographic records? They could travel thru time but their most advanced technology was a record? The aliens photographed people and houses with huge cameras with huge lights on them, yet a mere 30 years later we have cameras the size of pencils. The part about the high starch diets touched a nerve as far as contactees craving starch, and when he explains the alien voices that sound like records being played too fast is because of the time contiuum they are challenged with was really well thought out..this book was written in the era of hallucinatory drugs and the acid craze..could explain a lot of the hallucinations. One person saw a "blob" floating over their house, yet no other description is added. And finally, the chapter about Princess Moon Owl is where the book starts to fall apart. But hold on, if you keep reading it is all worth it, when he gets to the bridge collapse, which is brilliantly written.
All I am saying is Mr. Keel admits that as a hobby he enjoys performing magic tricks and parlor games (aimed at deceiving people).
You think I am here to debunk him, but I am not. One of the events described in the book actaully happened to me and I had never known there were others who experienced it as well.
Book Review: Riveting, frightening, outlandish, confusing and thought-provoking
Summary: 4 Stars
I saw the film years ago and loved it. I've read most of the Mothman books, so I'm surprised that I always felt a strange mental block against reading this actual book for so long (Keel might have said this was the MIB putting a thought block in my head). I am an enormous lifelong fan of both horror/scifi and ufology, as well as cryptozoology. I give this book a highly favorable review for several reasons.
First off, I completely agree with the reviewers who said the book is disjointed and has the feel of Keel having slapped together his notebooks. However, Keel has such an engaging prose and an ability to take an almost objective stand on this controversial stuff, that I never got confused. Part of Keel's art is that he thoroughly convinces the reader that he saw these things and furthermore believes most of the witnesses, yet just at the right points in the narrative, he interjects a comment to the effect that everyone has it all wrong, there are no UFOs (as people understand them) and much of it is really chicanery, enough so that the reader wonders what the truth is. Perhaps this tactic is appropriate: how can we know what is real and what is not? Keel certainly doesn't profess to, and he was apparently neck-deep in it.
To fans of the Richard Gere/Laura Linney movie, note that there are many differences. But you probably expected that. Everyone knows Hollywood has to intertwine a romance into everything (and they do it quite well in the film, in my opinion). But in the end I found that the spirit and the terror of the movie are all in the book as well. I will truthfully admit that for two nights in a row, I was unable to sleep with the light off in my safe, suburban home with everyone around me. The climactic tumult revolving around the terrifying Mothman and the horrid sense of doom that Keel and other contactees felt during its reign in Point Pleasant, WV prevented me from sleeping in the dark. If you love suspense and foreboding, inexplicable horror, this book ought to be a gem for you. I could not get out of my head the account of a teenage girl who saw a grinning man standing over her bed in the middle of the night!
The second half is very much a delving into Keel's personal world of madness. After establishing the connection between UFOs, Mothman and mysterious Men in Black, Keel's world unravels. Suffice it to say that he feels he is being pursued and harangued relentlessly by the Men in Black. Paranoia? Draw your own conclusions.
On a personal note, I was astounded and overwhelmed with excitement to see how much my native Long Island, NY figured into this book. I always assumed it would take place only in WV, but Keel actually lives in Manhattan and takes frequent trips out not just to the Island, but to my hometown of Huntington, where local legend Sweet Hollow Road and Mt. Misery figures prominently into the web of confusion spun by the ETs. Having been to that site many, many times and experienced the powerful fear in the air there, this book was sealed in my psyche as a great Fortean read.
Enjoy "The Mothman Prophecies". Don't blame me if you have to sleep with a nightlight on and the curtains drawn.
Book Review: POST MODERN NEW BELIEF SYSTEMS
Summary: 4 Stars
Keel's tome regarding the Mothman has nothing to do with the film (ok, I'm nitpicking)...more to the point, it involves itself not only with the events in West Virginia, but, also with events on Long Island and other locales.
THIS IS NOT A NARRATIVE.
At least, not in the normal sense. It's a story of one man's journey from skeptic to the other side....by the end of the book, Keel is not necessarily a stone believer, but he is a stone paranoid, which amounts to the same thing. He goes into the book carrying one belief system and walks out of it with quite another.
This, I feel, is the actual appeal of the book. We get to witness not the transformation of a character, but the transformation of the author, which makes this not only a fascinating study, but a dangerous book indeed.
And why is it dangerous? Because a researcher changed his mind? No, it is dangerous because the researcher had CREDENTIALS beforehand...he's a scholar. If Gore Vidal (the historian) told you that in his research for "Lincoln" he discovered that Lincoln liked to savage rabbits with his bare hands...would you believe me?
Of course not...but the problem here is that there is no historical record to go on, that if we are to believe, we believe on the basis of our judgment of a man's character.
That said, I believe he is telling the truth. I have read not only the book in question, but many other works by Keel, and I believe him to be sane. Naive, yes, often. But always he thinks about his topic. This educated man experienced something back in 1967. The question is : should we accept his account of events?
I personally say yes, but that is an answer rising from years of "ufo's exist..." upbringing, along with my religious convictions.
I leave it up to you.
The point is, this is a book that needs to be taken not with a grain of salt, but with a full salt lick in front of you. The facts presented are merely things to be looked at more carefully. Here's hoping you do just that. Highly recommended.
Book Review: "...and things that go bump in the night..."
Summary: 4 Stars
John Keel, like Jacques Vallee, is one of those UFO writers who obscures as much as he enlightens. Both men have a tendency to describe unquestionably physically real occurrences (smashed objects, landing traces, radiation effects), and then to try and dismiss them as some unfathomable "ultradimensional" phenomenon.Still, Keel was at Point Pleasant during the 1966-67 UFO flap, of which Mothman was a part, and one doesn't have to buy his specious analyses to appreciate his simple good factual reporting. The best part of this book isn't even the reports of Mothman, but of all the other bizarre related UFO occurrences that came with him. This is one of the best books available discussing Men In Black, though typically Keel attempts to fit them into part of the "ultradimensional" view instead of applying Occam's Razor and calling them for what they most appear to be: government goons.
In conjunction with the movie, Keel was part of an FX T.V. special returning to Point Pleasant for a followup, which is quite interesting if you ever get a chance to see it. The movie covers only about ten percent of Keel's UFO coverage in the book.
In a new afterword, Keel oddly attempts to dismiss much UFO phenomena even as he is blatantly discussing it throughout his text, and for some reason calls the famous 1989 Voronezh sightings a Cold War hoax without once citing any source - I am an author in this field, keep pretty up to date, and have never once heard Voronezh even accused of being any kind of hoax. One does wish Keel would be a little less loose slinging broad, generalized accusations.
Book Review: The movie and the book are not the same thing!
Summary: 4 Stars
I just had to clarify the fact that the movie is "based" on the events that are recorded in Keel's book. The book is by far and away better than the movie. First off the book takes place in 1967/68 not the present. Besides giving you a look into all the paranormal phenomenon floating around Point Pleasant at the time it also gives you a look into the attitude and fear the people of the small town were feeling at the time.There are stories of aliens, strange lights, men in black, mysterious phone calls and of course the mothman. The name is misleading as he does not resemble a moth at all (in fact the name came from a reporter making a reference to a Batman villian). But to anyone interested in cryptozoology he is a beast that is worth looking into.
True the book is a little egotistical as John Keel makes himself out to be a superhero at times but I genuinely enjoy his take on the situations. His writing style is a little choppy and sometimes jumps into other accounts of unexplained events but it is easy to get through.
As this is really the only book that centers on the Mothman and the events in Point Pleasant it is definately reccommended reading for paranormal fans. There is even a section on Indrid Cold (another being worth looking into for the interesting and sometimes ridiculous story).
Just please don't slight this chilling tale because of the terrible movie apparently made from the book's cliff notes.