CSI Paranormal: Investigating Strange Mysteries

by Joe Nickell

Nickell writes about his daytime job -- investigating strangeness as a full-time paranormal investigator. This book discusses methodologies on how to investigate these types of mysteries using science and critical thinking. Cases studies illustrating these methods follow every discussion.

152 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2012

About the author

Joe Nickell was an American skeptic and investigator of the paranormal.
Nickell was a senior research fellow for the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry and wrote regularly for their journal, Skeptical Inquirer. He was also an associate dean of the Center for Inquiry Institute. He was the author or editor of over 30 books.
Among his career highlights, Nickell helped expose the James Maybrick "Jack the Ripper Diary" as a hoax. In 2002, Nickell was one of a number of experts asked by scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. to evaluate the authenticity of the manuscript of Hannah Crafts' The Bondwoman's Narrative (1853–1860), possibly the first novel by an African-American woman. At the request of document dealer and historian Seth Keller, Nickell analyzed documentation in the dispute over the authorship of "The Night Before Christmas", ultimately supporting the Clement Clarke Moore claim.

Reviews

[MKF · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half is a short guide for investigating the paranormal using critical thinking, reasoning, and skepticism. The second half is a few of Nickell's cases where he shows how he used the skills from section one to come to his own conclusions. I will say his evidence case is a tiny bit outdated because today's paranormal investigators would use their cell phones for some of the items listed. In both sections we learn more about Nickell's life and his life as a professional paranormal investigator. This bio is found in almost all his other books so a bit repetitive after a while. Also like other reviews of mine where I complain about his obsession with the Shroud of Turin will also find it talked about it in here. Ignoring that though I would say that all paranormal investigators should read this boom before they go out chasing shadows.

[Kelly Shull · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Joe Nickell’s work, so I did enjoy this book. I was hoping it would be more of a “how to” specifically for skeptical ghost investigations. While it did have some of that, the majority of the book was recounting his past investigations in a variety of areas. Of course, there is value in reading how those cases were solved, but the book was just a little different than I expected. I will probably pick up some of his other books as well.

[AndPeggy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book with techniques on paranormal investigation. The author, a paranormal investigator with decades of experience and often featured on paranormal mystery television shows, provides techniques in the first part of the book, and then shows those techniques put to use by recounting paranormal mysteries he has investigated.