When we received a copy of the first edition of this book, we were disappointed by the large number of errors found in the section on Hallucinogens. We were told that the second edition corrected the errors that we had pointed out. Unfortunately, after reviewing the second edition we have found that this section is still rife with errors and ... [ read more ]
The ‘Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Drugs’ series does a reasonable job of attempting to be non-judgemental about the recreational use of psychoactive substances. This volume, ‘Marijuana: Its Effects on Mind and Body’ takes an in-depth look at the use, abuse, pharmacology, and social impact of marijuana use. It leans considerably more towards a prohibitionist attitude than legalization, but presents a comprehensive ... [ read more ]
Zuni Fetishes is a very interesting look into the world of power objects. It’s a cross between a cultural study, a personal story, and practical guide, and despite myself, I found that I was drawn to the concept of fetish use as soon as I started flipping pages. It’s cleanly written and an easy read. Definitely recommended for those interested ... [ read more ]
The Little Book of Ketamine is a quick read that covers pretty much all the basics about the recreational use of ketamine. While it doesn’t go into a lot of detail about the current status of research or the pharmacology of ketamine, it does include safety and usage information, descriptions of some of the better known characters in the history ... [ read more ]
This is a good basic book on shamanism. It doesn’t have a lot of in-depth discussion, but does a fine job of covering the basics of shamanism, from traditions in various parts of the world and their common elements to the theories, purposes and fuctions of shamanism. One of its best features is a nice collection of color photos. This ... [ read more ]
Despite this book’s sensationalist title it has a reasonable tone and some good information. It’s section on the Myths of Drug Addiction does a good job of trying to answer the worst of the myths about drugs and crime, and the realities of addiction. Some of the information is rather out of date, but it’s an interesting look into past ... [ read more ]
We are extremely disappointed in the editor and publisher of this book. Sales of the most recent editions are being limited to police and “professional organizations” only. The book contains primarily charts of identification information for professionally produced pharmaceutical tablets and their imprints. Intentionally restricting access to to this type of information for widely available substances will do far more ... [ read more ]
While a bit out of date (1987) this book is a pretty good collection of information. It covers a wide variety of substances in encyclopedic style and presents an even-handed and non-judgemental account of the effects and dangers of street drugs. Despite the somewhat grandios claims on the back cover, it only provides a few short pages about each substance. ... [ read more ]
This book contains a lot of good information about drug testing. None of the information is exclusive…you can find most of it in many other places, but it does a pretty good job of compiling all the basics together in one text. [ read more ]
The Marriage of the Sun and Moon is an absorbing and fun meander through Weil’s thoughts about altered states of consciousness. Using the loose structure of discussing his yin/yang moon/sun theory of human awareness and his 1971 driving trip from the U.S. to South America, Weil discusses intentional vomiting, caffeine, eating mangoes, hot chile peppers, laughing, Uri Geller, solar eclipses, ... [ read more ]