Book Review: Missing 411 by David Paulides

This is not the review of one book, but of three. There are three volumes of Missing 411; Eastern United States, Western United States, and North America and Beyond. The first two, I believe were released together and were planned as one book, but there was too much information, so it was split in two. The first two were released in 2011, and the third in 2012.

What you have here is both fascinating and deeply disturbing. These are cases of missing people, which span for over 100 years, that have all disappeared in or around National Parks. Now, at first, that may not sound so strange, plenty of people get lost, attacked by wild animals, etc. Sure. These, however, are not those cases. These cases are baffling and perplexing. These people, and a good number of them children, disappear in circumstances that should not have led to a disappearance. People, out of sight for mere moments, never found again. Experienced hunters and hikers who disappear without a trace, or, worse yet, whose bodies are found in inexplicable places. Those found alive, don't seem to be able explain where they have been, and those that can relate something, just add to the mystery. 

Make no mistake, David Paulides has fleshed out something that, until now, no one has noticed, no one has taken a serious look at, and if they have, they have not gone public with it. This is important work. And in these books, you will find no speculation, no attempt to wedge in any particular theory. David relates the facts from FOIA documents, newspapers, park records, Police reports, and occasionally those involved. 

There are patterns here, and they make no real sense, but yet, there they are. Some examples; children often disappear with their dogs, trained Bloodhounds can't or won't track the victims, bad weather hits the region where the person has disappeared shortly afterwards, there are clusters of people in certain areas, spread out through decades, berries are often a factor (people disappear while picking or near berries, or are found by berry bushes), often people are found without clothing (but not molested in any way), often victims are found near swamps, creeks, or boulder fields, and, people will often be found in an area that has been searched thoroughly just previous to their discovery. In the 100's of cases in these books, you will find these patterns happening again and again. As I said, they make no sense, but this is not hearsay or legends, these are documented cases, with the information being gathered from official sources.

David is a former law office with 20 years of experience. This work is exhaustive and detailed, and put together in a way that defies any simple answers. These books record disappearances that have happened. There is no doubt here, and no easy explanations. The reporting here is done with no bias, just a record of the facts and an attempt to find patterns to these strange events. It's creepy. It's chilling. It makes me think twice about wandering alone in the woods, especially in certain places. It is something that needs more attention. One strange disappearance can be overlooked or explained away. Not three thick books filled with similar disappearances. 

You need to read this. I am not sure what we know about our world today, can explain what is happening to the people in these books. Highly recommended and an essential volume of work.

You can find out more at: www.canammissing.com

Book Review: Nick Redfern's Monster Files

Monster Files: A Look Inside Government Secrets and Classified Documents on Bizarre Creatures and Extraordinary Animals

I have been a fan of Nick Redfern for quite some time now, and in this, his latest book, he does not disappoint. Nick's writing style reminds me of John Keel at times, in the best possible way. He does his research, and when he relays it to the reader, he does so in a fashion that is very engaging. Monster Files, with it's long but appropriate subtitle, is an interesting endeavor. Nick looks at cases where the government has been involved, in one way or another, with monsters. In some cases, the monsters are used as cover, whether it be a 'Yeti Hunter' who may have actually been a spy, or sea serpents meant to scare off the locals from secret research. He investigates strange Bigfoot sightings, and tries to discern if the government knows more than it seems. There are also Big Cats, Wolfmen, Chupacabras, and much, much more. Don't make the mistake of thinking this is just legend telling, Nick uses official documents, newspaper articles, and interviews the witnesses personally where possible. 

This is not just another book on Cryptozoology, but if you have studied the subject enough, you will find you know at least parts of some of the cases in this book. You may not know what Nick is able to expand on, however. He covers the experiments various governments did on animals, whether testing for ESP, or attempting to equip poor cats with spying devices. He relates the strange connection between Bigfoot and UFO's, and the rather terrifying creatures that have haunted our skies. He talks of our government creating vampires, and it is not at all what you think. Overall, this was a fantastic read. Nick is a phenomenal writer, and his material is always well researched and well written. This, of course, is no exception!