Do you remember the first UFO sighting wave in 1947? No? How about 1950? 1952? 1957? 1965-67? 1973? Or maybe Mexico City in 1990-91?

If you have been around long enough, you should remember at least one. Without admitting my current age, I can admit to all of them, with the possible exception of 1947, and I have made up for that by checking out the information on microfilm (as well as the much earlier waves of 1897, 1909 and 1913).

There is quite a detailed section at the end of this book on the various saucer waves and attempts that have been made to link cyclic appearances to everything from wars in the Middle East to the near approach of the planet Mars. None of these have been entirely successful, as it has been largely a case of forcing the facts to fit a mold.

UFOs, whatever they may be, have their own agenda and time schedule and that does not necessarily conform to what humans think.

In fact, the reader will find a wealth of differing opinions in this book, as to the origin, nature and characteristics of these mysterious objects.

The information contained in this book likely will not go out of date in a hurry, as the mystery is with us still.

However, one must be careful about the accuracy of the information, so any mistakes are not perpetuated on a future generation. I did note one glaring error in the section on photographs of UFOs, as I have personal knowledge of the original events, which made front page headlines at the time. A photograph of a hamburger-shaped UFO is labelled as being photographed on July 3rd, 1947. The photo is authentic to be sure, but it was taken in October of 1967 by a prospector in the Highwood range who claimed he also saw something drop from it.

The photograph was favourably received by the otherwise contentious Condon Report in 1968, and was important enough that this error should have been caught before publication.

However, most of the other photographs seem to be accurately labelled including a very dramatic one of a domed disc, caught in the skies of British Columbia in 1981. The woman who took it impressed researchers as being honest and open, and it is still considered as one of the best UFO photographs ever taken in Canada.

Notwithstanding any minor errors of this sort that may creep into the best intentioned work, it is fascinating to see the photos, dates and positions of many of the famous figures in the UFO field.

These include W. Raymond Drake, Ann Druffel, Bruce Maccabee, Raymond E. Fowler, Stanton Friedman, and David M. Jacobs, among others.

Dr. Jacobs, who is the author of several books on the UFO phenomenon (Secret Life and The Threat) as well as being an Associate Professor of History at Temple University, takes possibly the gloomiest position in his statement.

He feels that after studying alien abductions since 1982, we are slowly being infiltrated by creatures who do not have our best interests in mind. He says:

“I find myself in the position of having spent my entire adult life studying a phenomenon that I have come to abhor. I desperately wish I could say otherwise.”

One question that is dealt with at length has puzzled people since the beginning of the UFO era – are they hostile or not? On the one hand you have the benign contactees of the 1950’s who promised a new world of brotherhood with the denizens of other worlds.

But on the other hand you have the terrifying abductions of the 1980’s and 1990’s with little grey creatures with huge black eyes conducting unwarranted medical and genetic experiments on hapless humans.

The truth may be that the phenomenon is reflective, we get the type of aliens we think we deserve. Thus the benign aliens of fifty years ago were a desperate attempt to believe there were intelligences out there smarter than we were, and we could still avoid a nuclear war.

Until we recognise the role of the observer in such matters, we will continue to wonder why there should be such a wide disparity.

This does not mean such experiences are not “real”. It simply means that we play a greater role than hitherto suspected.

In quantum physics, this is called a mixed state, and the question is unlikely to be resolved in our lifetime unless or until there is a massive tide towards one side or the other.

Thus despite Dr. Jacob’s foreboding, I don’t think the invasion is due any time soon.
There are many other topics covered – insectoids, the Kecksburg and Roswell crashes, mind control, religion, the MJ-12 documents, the Flatwoods encounter, Charles Fort, crop circles and cattle mutilations, to name a few.

One that is now rather amusing is the table by flying saucer prophets predicting the end of the world. As the last date mentioned is the year 2000, I assume we are now safe – for awhile.

Whether you agree with any of the conclusions in this book, I guarantee you will not be bored.

– Reviewed by W. Ritchie Benedict in New Dawn No. 96