TELEPHONE CALLS FROM THE DEAD: A REVISED LOOK AT THE PHENOMENON THIRTY YEARS ON

TELEPHONE CALLS FROM THE DEAD: A REVISED LOOK AT THE PHENOMENON THIRTY YEARS ON by Callum E. Cooper. Old Portsmouth: Tricorn Books, 2012. Pp. xiii + 193. £8.99 (paperback). ISBN: 978-0- 9567597-2-6.

In 1979, parapsychologists D. Scott Rogo and Raymond Bayless published Phone Calls from the Dead: The Results of a Two-Year Investigation into an Incredible Phenomenon which addressed "expe- riences which most parapsychologists have been ignoring for years" (p. 3); that is, anomalous telephone contacts (ATCs) which appear to come from the deceased. Rogo and Bayless asked "Could the telephone ... actually be used on occasion as a channel for psychic communication between the living and the dead?" (p. 3). They reported that "these phone calls actually do occur and are, indeed, probably more common than you might imagine" (p. 3).

Fast forward roughly 30 years and we find Callum Cooper discovering contemporary reports of anomalous telephone phenomena while "trolling the internet" (p. 6). Finding continuing reports of these phenomena inspired Cooper to track down Rogo's original archives at the California Institute of Integral Studies and begin his own investigation of ATC phenomena.

Cooper discusses the original findings published in 1979 while also providing commentary and including additional material about the back story of the Rogo and Bayless research as well as new anal- yses of the original cases. In addition, Cooper includes new analyses of previously unpublished cases collected by Rogo and Bayless. With the original Rogo and Bayless volume out of print and both authors deceased, the publication of Cooper's book makes their original material as well as additional information available to a new generation of researchers. Telephone Calls from the Dead serves as a modern collection of spontaneous case reporting.

Cooper seems well suited to address this topic. he holds a BSc (hons) in psychology from the university of Northampton, an MRes in psychology from Sheffield Hallam university, and is currently pursuing doctoral research in psychology and parapsychology at the University of Northampton. Prior to publication of the book, Cooper had published peer-reviewed articles on the topic.

The writing style of the book is non-technical and conversational....