Supernatural America

Book excerpt: This book is much more than an authoritative and compelling look at the cultural history of the supernatural over the last century in America—it also explains why we want to believe. The supernatural—psychic phenomena (telepathy, clairvoyance, or ESP), communicating with the dead, and the sighting and tracking of ghosts—has played an integral role in American culture across the last century. In fact, attention and interest in the supernatural has increased, despite our society's reliance upon and enthusiasm for science and technology. Even some top scholars, officials from the military and police, and public figures in places as high as the Oval Office have believed in at least some aspects of the supernatural. Supernatural America: A Cultural History is the first book to examine the cultural history of the supernatural in the United States, documenting how the expansion of science and technology coincided with a rise in supernatural/paranormal beliefs. From the flourishing of "spiritism" in the 1920s to the early 21st century, when the paranormal is bigger than ever, this entertaining and educational book explains the irresistible allure of the supernatural in America.