Life Before Life: Children's Memories of Previous Lives

The author takes painstaking precautions to make his investigation as scientific as possible. I think he does succeed in it. After reading his findings I found it hard not to believe in his conclusions. It is also very well documented. very thought provoking.

I have believed in reincarnation for some time now and have read several books about it. It was a little bit difficult to stay interested in this book at times because it is almost too analytical, but I stuck with it till the end and am very glad I did. It is extremely thought provoking and inciteful.

Continuing my study of reincarnation, I came upon Dr. Tucker's book which lays out case after case of young children recalling past life memories. Dr. Tucker took up the nearly life-long work of Dr. Ian Stevenson, both being associated with the University of Virginia Medical Center. Their credentials and association with UVMC provide gravitas, in my mind, above the works of some other authors.For children who seem to have these memories of past lives, there is a window of opportunity for exploration. They usually begin expressing these when they gain the ability of speech (about age two-three) and may continue on to about age seven, at which time they have begun to forget for various reasons. Eastern civilizations firmly believe in reincarnation and encourage their children to freely talk and share their experiences. Western cultures, for the most part, eschew these beliefs and, by discouraging discussion, could certainly cause children to quickly disavow any outreach on the subject.Although most of the cases reported on in the book are from Eastern countries, there are some in the United States and Europe which are also fascinating. I enjoyed each, and while there will probably never be absolute proof, these children's stories are compelling.Very oddly, although I had never had any personal experience or awareness of any children speaking of such things, this changed less than two days after I finished the book. Having lunch with friends, one told us of baffling comments made that same week by her five year old grandson. He was with his father when he saw a man he insisted he knew and told his father the man's name...followed by the "fact" that he (the boy) "had met the man in California before his last mommy died." I came very close to not attending this lunch because of work, but I felt strongly that I should take the time and go. Obviously, I was happy I did...but, how strange is this? I can't explain any of it.

The Good: Birthmark stories, cases which cannot be explained by natural explanations, Dr. Turner is not a quack and is part of academia and has inherited Dr. Ian Stevenson's position. This is as close as a real life X-Files as we are going to get. I wish Dr. Turner well to continue research.The Bad: Wanted to love this and had high expectations going in, but ultimately the author's style is too dry and repetitive. The book feels like a college research assignment with redundant stories, summaries, and walkthroughs. That's not to say it's completely boring, but the good stories are few and far in-between the recaps, logical defenses, and mind-numbing conclusions. [I am actually writing in his style right now just to show you how boring this style is.]It feels like it was a book written to justify more funding or to appeal to professional critics and/or the author's colleagues. Know your audience and demographics; most people who buy this book already believe in reincarnation and don't need the baby step walkthroughs to show what's more likely. Meanwhile the professional skeptic will always cry confirmation bias, the lack of controlled experiments, and would never make the leap of faith to conclude reincarnation as the mechanism of the "memories".And what of those on the fence? Perhaps they may be persuaded by the cases, although they can never know if the kids had active imaginations or were led by adults.This doesn't apply to all cases, as Dr. Turner painstakingly walks us through each one at least twice.By the way, as he says in the book (but not really in interviews), the "2,500 cases" is misleading- there are only a few of those which are solid cases.

Having been introduced to the topic of past life research through the writings of Walter Semkiw, M.D. who first introduced me to the original research on the topic of past life recollections in young children conducted by Ian Stevenson, M.D. at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, I find this work by Jim Tucker, M.D. to be highly "consilientive" (see p. 195) in bringing together facts and theories from many perspectives to link and form a common foundation of knowledge and important questions on the topic of reincarnation. Dr. Tucker's research builds on the pioneering work of Dr. Stevenson (and others) from the 1960's and into the 21st century.Beyond the traditional boundaries and limitations of many religious doctrines, Dr. Tucker examines facts as they are found and presented. In Socratic fashion, Dr. Tucker asks important questions and provides answers to stimulate critical thinking and illuminate ideas. The book stays within the research boundaries of examining childhood recollections, whereas Dr. Semkiw's inquiries and presentations delve into speculative possible adult cases of past life connections (see [...]A book which provides a good, supporting, in-depth case study is  Soul Survivor: The Reincarnation of a World War II Fighter Pilot  by Bruce and Andrea Leininger with Ken Gross. Reading these books together brings the discussion beyond taboo into a present, scientifically studied research topic.I found the book most interesting in its logical, and well presented topical organization of facts correlated with scientific research in medicine, physics and cultural traditions.

Excellent book, written in a very professional way, with a scientific approach giving a lot of credibility to Jim Tucker’s work.It seems to me that this kind of study, along with other related research topics such as near-death experiences for example, is of utmost importance regarding the question of a possible afterlife following this earthly experience.With a bit of open-mindedness, reincarnation research may convince you that affirming with certainty that consciousness is nothing but a byproduct of electrochemical reactions in the brain is arrogant and precocious.Thank you Jim for your dedication and the rigour of your work.

Un eccellente saggio di Jim B.Tucker, psichiatra all'università della Virginia, Usa, che analizza alcuni casi di bambini/e che ricordano persone e fatti di vite passate che si rivelano esatti. Tucker esamina con rigore scientifico tutti gli argomenti pro e contro e giunge alla conclusione che la reincarnazione é possibile. Tucker ma anche il fisico Robert Lanza, Kübler Ross, Jeff Long, Van Lommel, Moody ad altri chiamano consciousness ( coscienza ) ciò che un credente chiama " anima " che deriva dal sanscrito e poi dal latino " vento ", " soffio ".

A fascinating and well written book summarising and relating extensive scientific studies into reincarnation/childhood memories of previous lives by the author and his research team. This is one of a few books on this and closely related subjects by this author and his colleagues. The evidence presented is utterly compelling. If reincarnation is not a genuine phenomenon, there is certainly something strange going on. After reading this book, it is hard not to be convinced that some people are either reincarnated or somehow capable of receiving verifiable life-memories that belonged to other people. Whatever the truth is, the evidence presented here in a balanced and calm manner really demands and explanation. Very readable.

Both the books on income tax met my needs. N the books on past life therapy were awesome.

If you have spent a great deal of time researching the possibilities of life before life (reincarnation), this may not be the book for you. If, however, you are a neophyte to this area or are seeking an excellent summation text that thoroughly reviews Stevenson's and other more recent studies, this is an excellent gem!The author, like Stevenson, does not give any definitive conclusions to whether or not reincarnation is a reality or a myth. He responsibly leaves this for the reader to determine. He does, however, examine any and all explanations for the 2500+ studied reports that come from various parts of the world and implicitly shows that reincarnation is the most plausible conclusion to reach in most cases. While there are portions of the individual studies that each of us will have a difficult time with, the data is there and while metaphysical issues do not appear to have concrete solutions in our lifetimes the foundations have been solidly laid.One of the most frequent comment by the skeptics as their 'proof' that reincarnation is a myth is "Because the subjects do not remember these previous experiences when they become adults, they must have simply been childhood fantasies!". This complaint is easily refuted by the fact that childhood amnesia (the failure of nearly all children to forget ALL events before the age of five), while unexplained, exists worldwide and, of course, would include any early memories of previous experiences.