The author started having profound dreams and out-of-body experiences
when he was young, and after a number of years, felt compelled to become
a guide (on the physical plane!) for other humans, to help with
understanding dreams, OBE's, and most importantly, what it means for
humans to be souls having physical experiences, what we are supposed to
learn from our temporary time in this world.

I have mixed feelings about "OtherWhere," but I want to say up front
that I absolutely recommend that people read it. The author writes mostly
with great clarity and insight, and through his personal experiences
and "visions" (though of course you can't "see" on the other side),
the reader can get a very good idea of a broad spectrum of both the
dream world, the after-death world, and where the two diverge. The author's
own learning of this last point is itself an interesting part of the book.
The author also writes most engagingly about the types of beings who inhabit
"OtherWhere" and aid souls, and what we can learn from their perspective.
There are also some haunting, fascinating descriptions of the "zones"/planes
we experience on the other side after death. The discussions of the Alternate
Is, Was, and Will Be worlds are a most interesting take on the "parallel
universes" idea!

The chapter entitled "The Evolution of Human Consciousness" is
really brilliant, a must read. The author has a very accessible
experience where he comes to understand how an individual can have
his own consciousness and yet be part of a larger consciousness by
becoming a blade of grass in a world of grass blades! He later
experiences the consciousness of a flower, then a bee, which itself
is remarkable, but what is outstanding is what he learns and how he
conveys his understandings to the reader. Also discussed very well
are types of creativity, and how integral creativity is to soul
development.

Mr. Leland also shows great care in defining to the reader how
he will present material that is difficult to put into words, with a
minimum of bias. He devises "translation tables" and discusses his
attempts to be as objective as possible very well. He insightfully
distinguishes between the possible distortions he might project onto
what he is "seeing" and the actual meaning or function. For example,
the author transcends his fear when he comes into contact with a being
who to many would look very frightening, but to the author he is simply
a "guide," because the being's function is to take the author to the
other side. Also, he calls dead people "Shades," an innocuous term, so

we will minimize our preconceptions, though it is important to note that
many times we see how belief systems do literally "shape" much of the
after-death sworld and the experiences of the departed.

But the confusion between what the author is experiencing, which
he writes correctly, many times, is based on his own biases which
create the energies he perceives, and what we are to understand from his
experiences, is the biggest problem with the book. In chapter 8 he explains

that he perceives "creatures" when he is repressing emotions in waking
life. So are we to believe that everything else are "clear perceptions,"
w/o biases? In chapter 9 again he isn't clear on what he is perceiving
and what it means, so the same question arises, at least to me.

As well the book only lives up to the "meaning of life" claim in
part. For most souls it certainly is very valuable to read the details
of how we come to understand, dispassionately, impersonally, at the soul
level, the lessons from our life's experiences, in "OtherWhere." Yet
personally I was looking for some deeper answers. I don't normally
concern myself with *my* own soul's evolution. I care about things like
why billions of seemingly decent people are born into wretched, hopeless
depravity, while others are born into relative wealth, sometimes with
no gratitude or mindfulness of others' suffering. On p. 261 (and
elsewhere) the author falls into what I would call the "absolutist" trap,
when he (his guide) writes, "Resistance to learning is the source of all
human suffering." I am generally averse to simplistic answers to explain
"all" anything. Another "meaning" question that is not covered at all
in "OtherWhere" is the question of evil.

Ironically, Mr. Leland does admit (astonishingly) that none of his
nonphysical guides knows about the lessons after "graduating" from the
soul's need to reincarnate! And one repeatedly gets the impression from
the book that few are ready to graduate, in contradistinction to the
"New Age" teaching that we are already perfected beings!

Let me repeat, there is much to recommend "OtherWhere" that I do
not have space to discuss. My criticisms of the book do not diminish my
recommending it. One final comment - if anyone reading this review has
not read "Journey of Souls" by Dr. Michael Newton (some prefer his
"Destiny of Souls"), I would advise him/her to read that book asap
if interested in the topics covered in "OtherWhere."