This book is titled a complete book of ghosts but that is a misnomer. It is in fact an anthology from Roland’s other works all tied together under ghosts, haunted places and apparitions. As such, it isn’t an original work but takes various points of view to each of the nine chapters. There is an Introduction and Afterword, as well. There are more than a few noteworthy items in the book. Unfortunately, it is centered around Roland’s own idiosyncratic understanding of the paranormal which is that ghosts or ghostlike entities are in need of interpretation. For some reason Roland thinks they are mostly harmless to humans. Roland says that ghosts are really part of a larger cosmic process of reincarnation. This is described by Roland in the Introduction: “The astral body (also known as the etheric or dream body) is the matrix of energy which is effectively a blueprint for the physical form we assume on entering this material dimension at birth.” He believes in a Hindu/Buddhist conception of karma as the reason for ghostly apparitions. Ghosts, he says, are spirits migrating toward further detachment from the world of pain and sadness. It’s hard to believe someone would write this, let alone believe this. This is called dualism and by necessity a person must choose one over the other. Body or soul? In dualism, the there is an implicit prejudice of soul over body, so it is not a real choice. Christianity has no dualism, except where it has been warped by erroneous opinion. The body is not evil, and never is. Roland tries to say that ghosts are made of ether (the quintessence, not made of fire, air, earth, or water) which is the same as saying they are material beings that haven’t fully evaporated yet. Which is another way of saying they are figments of people’s imagination or projection from the subconscious of the person seeing the apparition. Overall the book is disappointing for this reason. There is a large section on haunted England which is true, as records are kept intact since before the Middle Ages (York, Edinburgh, Glastonbury). Roland says there was a Jewish cemetery where the part of the Dodger Stadium parking lot is today. This is incorrect but there was a cemetery nearby where Cathedral High School now stands. The stories of excavating coffin vaults happened there. He says there are Hopi legends of Lizard People living underground there as well. I’ve never heard of those stories, but they were supposed to be at the edge of LA’s Chinatown according to reporting in old tabloid newspapers. Jim Morrison named himself the Lizard King before he went away to Paris. One of the funnier scenes is the reported apparition of C. S. Lewis to Anglican Canon Phillips sitting in a chair with an encouraging message. Tombstone and Bisbee, Arizona are mentioned as sites of unusual folklore. Bisbee is a tiny mining town which still exists. Marilyn Monroe has fans coming to see her possibly appear in a mirror at The Roosevelt Hotel in LA. I’ve never seen the mirror myself but it’s a tourist attraction.
The whole book begins with the most authoritative ghost episode in history, the calling of the prophet Samuel from the dead. Without this reference any book about spirits is worthless. The danger of this type of divination by necromancy is forbidden by the 1st commandment but Roland says it is only a moral tale intended to show that the Witch of Endor sympathetically gave a cooked animal for Saul to eat afterwards. This book encourages people to be interested in ghosts and to envy people who claim to be mediums, clairvoyants, sensitives, or psychics. This is the wrong message to give anyone. Photos, Index, 443pps.