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Amazing Real-Life Coincidences
*A writer tells about the sinking of a giant ocean liner 14 years before the disaster really happens!
*A "lost" family cat manages to find its owners in their new house 1500 miles away!
*A king meets a man who is his exact double; same face, same first name, same day of birth. . .and same day of death!
Coincidences--What are they? Why do they happen? Are they accidents, luck or unseen forces at work? Find out about events that "just seem to happen"--the mysterious voices, sudden impulses, or prophetic dreams that sometimes make the difference between life and death.
*A "lost" family cat manages to find its owners in their new house 1500 miles away!
*A king meets a man who is his exact double; same face, same first name, same day of birth. . .and same day of death!
Coincidences--What are they? Why do they happen? Are they accidents, luck or unseen forces at work? Find out about events that "just seem to happen"--the mysterious voices, sudden impulses, or prophetic dreams that sometimes make the difference between life and death.
- GenresNonfictionOccult
134 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 2, 2014
Great quick read. I really love the subject matter, because apart from some phantom, guardian angel, prophecy, animal sensitivity and ESP stories, the subject matter doesn't fall cleanly into any usual supernatural bucket. You can't say ghosts, or demons, or reincarnation, or angels, or aliens, or alternate dimensions, this stuff is just strange. Here's an example: on December 5th of each of 1664, 1785, and 1860, a ship sank in the Menai Strait with one surviving passenger by the name of Hugh Williams - but a different Hugh Williams each time. Or the last Dodgers pitcher to wear the uniform number of 13; before he threw the ball to Bobby Thompson for the 'shot heard round the world', he said the ball just felt strange.
July 16, 2010
My copy of this book was DESTROYED by the time I finished middle school because of how often I ran off into a corner to devour its creepy stories.
January 19, 2017
I've read this probably 20 times since I got it as an elementary school'er. The funnest part was going back through it and trying to verify most of it through wikipedia and other sources. I'd say that 80% of it is made up of true stories. Its just frustrating to me that it doesn't include footnotes and resources. Hell, even Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz (which he himself fictionalized a couple of the stories found in this book) used references. All in all though, a fun book.
July 18, 2026
Amazing Real-Life Coincidences is definitely outdated at the time of my reading of it but honestly I don't know how the book would play out in this date and age.
Anyway the author never quite clearly defines what a coincidence is and it really does feel like it came to be a collective umbrella term for so many things including non-coincidence items like ESP, telekinesis and other such relatable subjects. Furthermore there was a look at predictive dreams and animal alliances and/or behaviors, which especially in the latter case isn't coincidence.
The stories were simple to follow along, the ideas presented rather simply and organized so that you can choose a particular chapter if it attracts more than others, especially since the book progresses away from its titular theme. Unfortunately since the book also is trying to prove a point, the author literally gives away the ending rather than allowing readers to come to the end on their own whether by their own gift of psychic intuition or the unfolding lf the story itself.
As mentioned the book does include some silly mistakes, which means readers should be wary not only of the events themselves but also the facts as they are presented. As a result I would suggest this book as a starter for those interested in this subject but also at the same time rather strongly suggest that you do your own research if something catches your eye.
Anyway the author never quite clearly defines what a coincidence is and it really does feel like it came to be a collective umbrella term for so many things including non-coincidence items like ESP, telekinesis and other such relatable subjects. Furthermore there was a look at predictive dreams and animal alliances and/or behaviors, which especially in the latter case isn't coincidence.
The stories were simple to follow along, the ideas presented rather simply and organized so that you can choose a particular chapter if it attracts more than others, especially since the book progresses away from its titular theme. Unfortunately since the book also is trying to prove a point, the author literally gives away the ending rather than allowing readers to come to the end on their own whether by their own gift of psychic intuition or the unfolding lf the story itself.
As mentioned the book does include some silly mistakes, which means readers should be wary not only of the events themselves but also the facts as they are presented. As a result I would suggest this book as a starter for those interested in this subject but also at the same time rather strongly suggest that you do your own research if something catches your eye.
June 14, 2026
I was thinking of reading a book on coincidences and a few days later saw this book at the bookstore. Strange things like this coincidence happen but I don't believe 100% in coincidences. Some coincidences like a few in this book aren't coincidences though it looks good on paper. For example the family who had a few members married on the same date in different years. These people knew the importance of this date and then chose it when they finally did get married. This book is filled with many repeated coincidences some strange and some easily dismissed. There are a few mistakes with the most obvious found in the history section about the many Titanic coincidences. The author gets the dates correct at the beginning but the rest of the chapter says the Titanic sank on the 10th not the 15th. It's easy to overlook these mistakes when you're enjoying the strange stories though you should be a bit skeptical of many of them.
June 11, 2011
Sortof like reading solved unsolved mysteries!
June 21, 2017
This was my favorite book when I was in middle school. Brings back a lot of memories.
September 4, 2022
I remember ordering this book as a 5th grader through the monthly Scholastic book catalog. This books made me curious as a 10 year old to learn about how people's lives can share striking similarities, not to mention, how strange and coincidental life can be. I think this book was also very influential at a young age in making me appreciate the kinds of insights and discussions that could be had by reading books.
January 31, 2023
3.5 stars, really. A wee little book I bought as an elementary school student over 30 years ago. The coincidences described ARE eerie--a fine example is a description of the correlations between JFK and Honest Abe that you can readily read about on the internets today. I think I may have read this cover to cover some time ago but didn't remember much so decided to read it through before giving it away to my library. Was worth the time I spent on it.
April 28, 2021
It was ok but it just wasn't that interesting to me.
October 27, 2008
This is a book I have read over and over for the past 10 or 12 years. It's weird, and pretty amazing.
November 16, 2010
book it's pretty tattered as I read it a dozen times, handed it down to my brother and he's read it a dozen more times than I ever did. We often retell the creepy stories in jest. It's fun.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews