Customer Reviews:
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 Amusing, though-provoking look at ghosts August 19, 2008
Some time ago, I read the book "Spook" by Mary Roach, which recounts a layperson's encounters with the world of the supernatural and the many colorful characters that come with it. Ultimately, I was very disappointed. Rather than do anything more than superficial research, Roach simply goes from one nutball "expert" to the next while making very lame jokes at their expense.
Full disclosure: I'm an open-minded rationalist. Paranormalists would probably label me a skeptic, but I'm quite open to the possibility of a world beyond our own if the evidence is there. Again: IF THE EVIDENCE IS THERE. It's one thing to not have a decent explanation for odd orb-like shapes that occasionally show up in photography; it's a quantum leap (of the religious kind) to think they represent spirits of dead people.
The biggest issue with paranormal studies is proof. Though there have been ghost story anecdotes over hundreds of years of human history, there continues to be an absolute lack of any tangible evidence to back it up. I think this takes researchers like Storr and Roach by surprise when they go to write a book of this nature - how could anyone be so involved in this kind of stuff when there's zero hard evidence? So Roach takes to making dumb jokes about the people she's involved with, which is basically shooting fish in a barrel.
What Storr understands (and what makes his book infinitely more readable than Roach's) is that he doesn't have to make the jokes for it to be funny. Though the book starts out very superficial - he hasn't done any research before getting in the car with a demonologist from Pennsylvania - the book gets a bit more weighty as we go along. While meeting victims of poltergeists, spending evenings at haunted inns, and talking with exorcists and druids, Storr keeps his criticisms subtle and maintains an almost wide-eyed naivete into the subject matter. And while Roach keeps a comfortable distance from the stuff she's researching, Storr dives right in with enthusiasm.
The most compelling chapter occurs at the end of the book, in which a bunch of ghost hunters learn of a child that is showing classic signs of possession. Without giving anything away, it's a very, very thought-provoking chapter on the dangers of baseless beliefs, and the horrors that can happen when they're forced on other people. It makes you rethink every single person Storr has met, and their (often unsettling) psychological reasons for being drawn to the paranormal in the first place.
This book is highly recommended. Storr's British humor shows through, and it's a very fun, amusing, enlightening, and thought-provoking look at the supernatural. Someone here complained that Storr deals with a lot of paranormal groups that are mostly unknown outside of the UK. To me, this is a positive - it really gives perspective to evaluate someone's beliefs without any knowledge of their "authority" on the subject.
 Will Storr tackles the Supernatural June 7, 2008
Will Storr Vs. The Supernatural is one of those books that beg to be read on a rainy day while drinking some hot tea or coffee. It's very easy to read, funny, and some times terrifying.
Highly Entertaining And Informative November 1, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I found this book to be very informative and at the same time very entertaining. Mr. Storr writes with both the critical mind of a skeptical journalist but, yet, he could not deny the reality of his experiences after going on a journalistic assignment to investigate the paranormal world by following around an expert Philadelphia Demonoligist.
His investigations take him into the world of EVP (Electronic voice phenomenon), trance mediumship, seances, divining rods, monsterology, and exorcism. Concerning the paranormal, Storr may have been a 'proud skeptic' (and, in my opinion, this is best way to approach the subject) but his experiences showed him that there is indeed 'more things in heaven and earth' then Storr had ever dreamed of in his skeptical philosophy.
Written with a great sense of humor, the critical eye for details of a journalist, the analytical insight of a clinical psychologist, the open mind of a philosopher and you have a thoroughly fascinating book that is informative on several levels at the same time. Highly recommended.
Honest book, fun reading August 9, 2007
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
The book's one disappointment was that Storr avoided spelling out his own conclusions from his investigations, leaving the readers wondering just what influence his experiences had on his initial scepticism.
Otherwise, Storr did a great job. He reported the fakery, self-deception, and general nonsense offered by many paranormal 'investigators,' the nonsense that has convinced some that all supernatural investigations are bunk. He also reported those real questions unbiased investigators have found. Like most of the honest investigators I've read, he found evidence of 'something' or inexplicable things, and found the evidence insufficient to support grand conclusions.
I enjoyed his account of his foray into the inexplicable. I found myself liking the people he liked and thought sincere, and getting a bad taste in my mouth from the obvious fakes. Overall, a good piece of light reading.
Will the Ghostbuster July 26, 2007
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is my first encounter with Will Storr, and I found him highly entertaining. Funny, and sometimes poignant, this book chronicles his search for the truth concerning the paranormal and those who sometimes encounter it, aswell as those who search for those experiences, including Will himself. Not suite sure what he believes to the bitter end, his story telling is very funny, yet seriously scary at times. Light poolside reading, compelling and amusing, I found myself relating to Will's musings about ghosts and at the same time wanting to help him! Read Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark as a sensible counterpoint to this one...Will should read it too!
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