A Beginner's Bibliography
Abduction: Human Encounters with Aliens by John Mack
John Mack was head of Harvard’s psychiatry department from 1977 until his death in 2004. He was secretly (and infamously) taken to task by a Harvard committee for his investigation into the abduction phenomenon. ‘Abduction’ serves as a primer for the reader looking to consider the complexity and emotional trauma of the abductee experience. Mack ultimately survived the Harvard investigation and became convinced that many abductees were not suffering from a psychological ailment/delusion but were, in his opinion, telling the truth about a real event in their lives.
Mack, J. E. (1994). Abduction: Human encounters with aliens. Scribner’s.
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The Airship Files Compiled by Thomas E. Bullard
In 1896 and 1897 a curious thing happened over the skies of over half of the United States: “airships” were seen several years before manmade flight had been achieved. While some accounts described “ships” that resembled zeppelins still in the invention and design phase, other reports are nearly identical to modern UFO sightings, with mention of fast-moving lights and strange-looking craft. This unpublished file of thousands of newspaper clippings compiled by folklorist Thomas Bullard is the definitive primary source on the topic, as well as a compendium of other early UFO sightings from the first half of the 20th century. Not easily tracked down, the Archives of the Unexplained will periodically have copies available on their online shop.
Bullard, T.E. (1982). The airship files. Unpublished manuscript.
Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience: The True Story of the World's First Documented Alien Abduction by Stanton T. Friedman & Kathleen Marden
The abduction case of Betty and Barney Hill is the first (documented) and still most famous of its kind, and ‘Captured’ is considered its most authoritative telling. A trained physicist, Friedman is regarded a giant in the UFO field, due to his application of a more scientific approach. As Betty Hill’s niece, Marden was able to gain unparalleled access to the subjects, including the tapes of their hypnotic regression sessions. Though many other worthwhile studies have been published, this is the best starting place for those curious about the Hill’s experience.
Friedman, S. T., Marden, K. (2021). Captured!: The Betty and Barney Hill UFO experience: The true story of the world’s first documented alien abduction. New Page Books.
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Communion by Whitley Streiber
Along with figures like John Mack, Stanton Friedman, Jacques Vallée, and J. Allen Hynek, bestselling sci-fi/horror author Whitley Streiber is viewed as one of the leading thinkers in Ufology. Unlike the others, however, his entrée into the field is far more personal: Streiber alleges that starting in the mid-1980s he experienced a series of abductions by “gray aliens.” Though at times ridiculed in popular culture, Communion is considered the classic first-person abduction account. Ever since its publication, thousands of abductees have written to Streiber, sharing their own abduction experiences. Many of these correspondences are now a part of the Archives of the Impossible at Rice University, where they serve as a valuable historical record of the abduction narrative in 20th century life.
Strieber, W. (1988). Communion: A true story. Avon.
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Encounters: Experiences with Nonhuman Intelligences by Diana Walsh Pasulka
As a professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, Diana Walsh Pasulka first approached the topic of UFOs through the lens of Catholic mystical experiences recorded in the Vatican archives. In her second book on the topic, she documents her interviews with experiencers who claim to have access to nonhuman intelligences. Some may be curious to discover that many of Pasulka’s subjects occupy high positions in AI, tech, government, and academia. These individuals often claim their encounters have been transformative and inspire some of their most successful work. Along with Rice University professor Jeffrey Kripal, Pasulka has brought the discussion of UFOs back to universities.
Pasulka, D. W. (2023). Encounters: Experiences with nonhuman intelligences. St. Martin’s Essentials.
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Encounters with Star People: Untold Stories of American Indians by Ardy Sixkiller Clarke
What becomes apparent when studying the UFO phenomenon from a first-hand perspective is
the universality of the experience. Many Native American traditions tell of their encounters with “Star People” not as gods but as helpers or benefactors in their tribal development. For this fascinating collection of tales, Clarke, a professor at Montana State University, traveled the United States, interviewing members of various tribes about their modern experiences with “Star People” or aliens. With her own Cherokee/Choctaw roots, and as co-founder of the Native Nations Education Foundation, Clarke brings the long-acknowledged but rarely heard voice of indigenous peoples into the UFO field. She followed up this collection with three subsequent books – one of which expands her research to indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica.
Clarke, A.S. (2012). Encounters with star people: Untold stories of American Indians. Anomalist Books.
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The Roswell Legacy: The Untold Story of the First Military Officer at the 1947 Crash Site by Jesse & Linda Marcel
Ever since headlines in New Mexico newspapers came to national attention, the alleged UFO crash at Roswell, NM has occupied a special place in the American imagination. Over the years the “true story” has become convoluted by retractions and retellings from the government, media, and witnesses alike. This book written by the son and wife of Jesse Marcel Sr., a military officer directly involved in the incident, has been called the best source on the event by former director of Washington State’s Mutual UFO Network (MUFON), James Clarkson. The Roswell Legacy goes inside the traumatic and lasting effects this event had not only on Jesse Marcel Sr. but on his entire family.
Marcel, J., Marcel, Linda. (2009). The Roswell legacy: The untold story of the first military officer at the 1947 crash site. Career Press, Inc.
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UFOs and the Extraterrestrial Contact Movement: A Bibliography by George M. Eberhart
By day George M. Eberhart was a Senior Editor for American Libraries, the magazine of the American Library Association, as well as author of many library-related books and articles. But by night and for many years now he has quietly assembled some of the best bibliographies for the study of UFOs, paranormal, and anomalous experiences – not to mention his own two books on cryptids. This astounding two-volume bibliography meticulously documents sources that cover the full spectrum of UFO-related studies – from works by skeptics, to various case studies, historical reports, theories and so on. The second volume deals primarily with the contactee movement – those individuals and groups who allege to have contact, both physical and psychic, with alien entities or civilizations. Though quite expensive to own, these volumes can often be acquired through interlibrary loans.
Eberhart, G. M. (1986). UFOs and the extraterrestrial contact movement: A bibliography. Scarecrow Press.
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UFOs and Nukes: Extraordinary Encounters at Nuclear Weapons Sites by Robert L. Hastings
Some of the most troubling witness accounts of UFOs have come from military officials and enlisted soldiers at nuclear weapons sites. Hastings is acknowledged as one of the authoritative researchers on this matter with UFOs and Nukes serving as his magnum opus. In it he goes far beyond well-known cases to incidents not previously talked about. Together with firsthand accounts from military personnel, the book provides evidence of the effects UFO encounters have had on instrumentation and weapons at military installations. For those researchers looking for a hard-nosed take on the topic and why it necessarily involves the world’s militaries, this may be the place to start.
Hastings, R. L. (2017). UFOs & nukes: Extraordinary encounters at nuclear weapons sites (Second edition.). Robert Hastings.
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UFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go on the Record by Leslie Kean
In 2017 Kean, along with journalists Ralph Blumenthal and Helene Cooper, wrote an article in The New York Times that revealed the US government’s funding of a secret program that investigated UFOs – or UAPs as the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) rebranded them. Years before, Kean published what has become one of the best sources on firsthand accounts from government, military, and aviation insiders. Though this was by no means the first book to include statements from military and professional witnesses, it is perhaps the best resource for finding a collection of their accounts.
Kean, L. (2011). UFOs: Generals, pilots, and government officials go on the record. Crown. Permalink:
https://search.library.albany.edu/permalink/01SUNY_ALB/qlq07b/alma991025032099704801
Wonders in the Sky: Unexplained Aerial Objects from Antiquity to Modern Times by Jacques Vallée & Chris Aubeck
The inspiration for the French scientist played by Francois Truffaut in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Vallée is one of the most iconic figures in Ufology. Together with Aubeck, who has helped compile the largest collection of pre-1947 UFO cases in the world, Vallée writes of various “UFO” accounts that stretch back to antiquity. In a study that is already subject to kaleidoscopic interpretation, the topic of pre-20th century UFO accounts must be viewed critically – especially in the context of a variety of cultural, linguistic, and historical factors easily lost to time. Nevertheless, there are many accounts that compel fascination in the field of historical UFOs, of which ‘Wonders’ serves as a handy guide.
Vallee, J., Aubeck, C. (2010). Wonders in the sky: Unexplained aerial objects from antiquity to modern times and their impact on human culture, history, and beliefs. Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin. Permalink:
https://search.library.albany.edu/permalink/01SUNY_ALB/qlq07b/alma991020157769704801