For the record, I´m no longer committed to the idea that Strieber is a hoax. He might have had genuine (and genuinely bad) spiritual experiences. This was written during my more skeptical period, back in 2010.
Am I the only reviewer who realizes that Whitley
Strieber is a hoax?
Originally, Strieber wrote fiction. When his horror stories weren't selling anymore, he suddenly published "Communion", a supposedly true story about how Strieber was abducted, tortured and reprogrammed by alien entities known as Greys. A clever way to restart his faltering career as an author, wouldn't you say? "Communion" became a bestseller, was translated to several foreign languages, and spawned a little cottage industry of sequels, prequels and newsletters. Even later, Strieber apparently wrote and published a number of new agey books, which I haven't read. Since he's a former member of the weird and cultish Gurdjieff Foundation, he was probably well fitted for that role as well.
Logically, Strieber should be a basket case at some mental asylum. Nobody who *really* experienced the events described in "Communion" could possibly have recovered his sanity and written a bestselling book about it! And yet, the man has been authoring novels (and earning hard money) ever since.
Strange indeed. Maybe he is the Chosen One?
"The Secret School" is a prequel to "Communion". Strieber claims that he was groomed by the aliens already as a nine-year old kid in Texas. They took him and other children to a place in the woods, showed them bizarre holographic visions, and taught them the mysteries of the universe. One of the aliens was named Sister of Mercy and once took the young Strieber to Mars, where he saw the famed face-on-Mars. He was also shown visions of how the Moon split from Earth, of the Permian extinction and of a distant world in a galaxy colliding with another.
Then, I stopped reading. I never finished "The Secret School", but apparently Strieber was induced to forget everything he had learned around the age of 14. Only as an adult did he remember the whole thing, and kindly conceded to write this little novella about it. He also offer us some prophecies about the future, none of which have come to pass (yet). Apparently, the United States will be turned into a "real republic", we will crack the riddle of fusion and anti-matter, and start mining operations on the Moon. It seems the Sister of Mercy was a bad prophet.
"The Secret School" sounds like a novel. It comes across as a strange blend of the movie "Stand By Me" and a ghost story. The plot, if you can call it that, is constantly interrupted by Strieber's annoying interpretations of the lessons given him by the aliens. Had Strieber developed the story, it could have become an interesting novel (I admit that he's a good writer).
Instead, we are pretty much stuck with...the Greys.
Originally, Strieber wrote fiction. When his horror stories weren't selling anymore, he suddenly published "Communion", a supposedly true story about how Strieber was abducted, tortured and reprogrammed by alien entities known as Greys. A clever way to restart his faltering career as an author, wouldn't you say? "Communion" became a bestseller, was translated to several foreign languages, and spawned a little cottage industry of sequels, prequels and newsletters. Even later, Strieber apparently wrote and published a number of new agey books, which I haven't read. Since he's a former member of the weird and cultish Gurdjieff Foundation, he was probably well fitted for that role as well.
Logically, Strieber should be a basket case at some mental asylum. Nobody who *really* experienced the events described in "Communion" could possibly have recovered his sanity and written a bestselling book about it! And yet, the man has been authoring novels (and earning hard money) ever since.
Strange indeed. Maybe he is the Chosen One?
"The Secret School" is a prequel to "Communion". Strieber claims that he was groomed by the aliens already as a nine-year old kid in Texas. They took him and other children to a place in the woods, showed them bizarre holographic visions, and taught them the mysteries of the universe. One of the aliens was named Sister of Mercy and once took the young Strieber to Mars, where he saw the famed face-on-Mars. He was also shown visions of how the Moon split from Earth, of the Permian extinction and of a distant world in a galaxy colliding with another.
Then, I stopped reading. I never finished "The Secret School", but apparently Strieber was induced to forget everything he had learned around the age of 14. Only as an adult did he remember the whole thing, and kindly conceded to write this little novella about it. He also offer us some prophecies about the future, none of which have come to pass (yet). Apparently, the United States will be turned into a "real republic", we will crack the riddle of fusion and anti-matter, and start mining operations on the Moon. It seems the Sister of Mercy was a bad prophet.
"The Secret School" sounds like a novel. It comes across as a strange blend of the movie "Stand By Me" and a ghost story. The plot, if you can call it that, is constantly interrupted by Strieber's annoying interpretations of the lessons given him by the aliens. Had Strieber developed the story, it could have become an interesting novel (I admit that he's a good writer).
Instead, we are pretty much stuck with...the Greys.
As you see even I have a more positive view of Strieber than I had when I discussed him with you back in 2008. http://kiremaj70.blogspot.com/2018/09/narkontakt.html
ReplyDeleteAs for my negative views in 2008 check what I wrote here 1 August. And of course I am now making a deep self-criticism for dismissing hin as a hoax...https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=5978248756669811485&postID=4119304289581385176
ReplyDeleteWow, I didn´t realize the Nibiru thread was so long... My ironic comments are hillarious to read years later!
DeleteMy wild guess is that Strieber did have spiritual experiences, and that these were triggered by too much weird meditation and dabbling in the occult. He was a member of a Gurdjieff group for a time, I think. Since he´s an author, I suppose it´s possible that he may have embellished things, but that´s a different proposition. BTw, Strieber stars himself (but only for five seconds!) in the Walt Disney film "Race to Witch Mountain". SWedish cabel channels occasionally show it.
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_to_Witch_Mountain