Books like Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind

Ever wondered if the truth really was out there?I always have. Growing up I always had an interest in UFO sightings, alien abductions and close encounters. My mom witnessed multiple UFO sightings throughout her life and so have I; most recently I saw one while driving back to her house in the New Mexican desert just a couple of years ago. Now if what I saw was actually extraterrestrial is up for debate, but it was definitely an unidentified object! So while I always had an interest in these topics, I didn't have a clue as to the literature out there. I wanted to learn more and to see for myself what evidence was out there. I started with this book.Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind details, and I mean DETAILS, the five day conference at MIT which explored topics in ufology and alien abduction. The conference featured presentations and discussions between professionals (scientists, psychiatrists, psychologists, etc) and abductees, who were really average people - teachers, government workers, farmers. The author of the book went into the conference as a skeptic (one might say an "Atheist" to abductions) and I think that benefited the book. He documented the conference very accurately (he recorded everything) and presented the information as it was. Every now and then you will read his opinion, which was worthwhile because you can see how his opinion evolves as the book carries on.In between the conference days and even post-conference, author C.D.B. Bryan conducts MANY interviews. While I learned a lot in these interviews, the book did suffer a little because I felt that he was giving TOO much text devoted to some of these abductees, whose experiences began to sound crazier and crazier (one abductee describes her floating onto a UFO to deliver an alien-human hybrid baby). So I knocked the book down one star because of the length at which these interviews went (something like 100 pages!).I still believe "the truth is out there" and this book has opened my eyes to the evidence that exists. The fact is, SOMETHING is happening to these people - all over the world - and whether it is a psychological phenomenon or little ETs visiting us is the question. If you want to explore this debate, then you have to read this book!I have many more questions now, though; luckily, this book gives good ideas as to where I should look next to explore this topic further. Most particularly I appreciated the theories explored in the book, such as that "aliens" are not from another galaxy but traveling from another dimension (the multiverse theory). The short version? Probably a must-read for anyone interested in an objective, broad discussion on alien abductions and close encounters. You'll read the evidence, the counterarguments, and the words of abductees themselves. Excellent starter book for those wanting to learn more!(Oh, I'll give a content warning for child abuse. There are discussions on child abuse among abductees, and some detailed descriptions of abuse in some of the interviews published.)