Tab Article

Ratings: ★★★★☆ (4.0 / 5)
Genre: Paranormal, Parapsychology, ESP, Cold War History, Non-Fiction

Book Review:
In the annals of paranormal literature, few books have had the impact of Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder's Psychic Discoveries Behind the Iron Curtain. First published in 1970, this groundbreaking work was the first to lift the veil on a world that Western readers barely knew existed: the vast, state-funded network of psychic research laboratories in the Soviet Union and its Eastern Bloc allies.

At the height of the Cold War, while American scientists were largely ignoring or dismissing paranormal phenomena, the Russians were taking it very seriously. Ostrander and Schroeder, two American writers with a keen interest in the subject, traveled to Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, and the Soviet Union, where they gained access to researchers and laboratories that were off-limits to most Westerners. What they found was astonishing.

The book is a treasure trove of fascinating and often mind-boggling reports. They describe experiments in telepathy that suggested communication across vast distances. They witnessed demonstrations of telekinesis, or ''mind over matter,'' where subjects appeared to move objects with their thoughts. They learned of research into ''artificial reincarnation,'' a form of past-life regression induced through hypnosis. They encountered a machine, developed by Soviet researchers, that claimed to photograph the human ''aura,'' an energy field long described by mystics but now seemingly captured on film. They also discovered a new Soviet version of the dowsing rod and a revolutionary teaching method called ''suggestology'' developed in Bulgaria.

The book is written in a journalistic, accessible style, making it a compelling page-turner. It is filled with intriguing personalities, from famous psychics like Nina Kulagina to the dedicated scientists who risked their careers to study the unexplained. The authors present their findings with a sense of wonder and excitement, inviting the reader to share in their discoveries.

Psychic Discoveries Behind the Iron Curtain is not without its controversies. Skeptics have questioned the rigor of the research and the validity of the claims. Some of the findings have been debunked or explained away. But as a historical document, it remains invaluable. It reveals a little-known chapter of Cold War history and documents a time when the scientific establishment, both East and West, was forced to confront the possibility that the human mind possessed powers far beyond what was conventionally believed. For anyone interested in the paranormal, the history of science, or the hidden dimensions of the Cold War, this book is an essential and endlessly fascinating read.