Alien Agenda by Jim Marrs
Everybody loves a good conspiracy theory. And there are tons of them out there. From “Who killed President Kennedy” to the “New World Order,” conspiracies (or the possibility of them) just fascinate human beings. We’re not satisfied with leaving something a mystery. We have to solve these mysteries. It’s just our curious nature. Psychologists would say that this is just our brain trying to make order out of chaos. Or maybe that’s what they want us to think!
All kidding aside, there are legitimate conspiracies in our world. There always have been, and there probably always will be. And whatever your favorite conspiracy theory is, I assure you, Alien Agenda by Jim Marrs is sure to open your eyes to some new (and lesser known, though equally fascinating and worrying) theories. At first glance, the book may appear to be just another UFO book. But inside is a wealth of information on many other “odd” things that happen in the world that are not reported on by the mass media (and of course, Marrs tackles the media conspiracy theory in the book’s Appendix).
Alien Agenda, as the title implies, mainly focuses on the conspiracy theory regarding extraterrestrials and their hidden intentions towards us. Marrs covers many topics in this book, including ancient and biblical astronauts, foo fighters and other World War II-era UFO’s, the Roswell crash, Project BlueBook, the Bentwaters/Rendlesham incident, Area 51, the “space brothers” of the 1960’s, alien abduction, crop circles, animal mutilations (it’s not just cattle), and remote viewing. Each of these topics is discussed in detail, and there are many lesser-known facts contained within Marrs’ accounts.
Perhaps the two greatest chapters in the book don’t even deal with UFO’s, directly. Chapter 1 deals with the moon, and if you thought you heard all the conspiracy theories about the moon, you ain’t heard nothin’ yet. Without ruining any surprises, Marrs cites credible evidence that shows that there may be more to the moon than we think. One example shows how the moon is far older than the earth, and perhaps even the solar system. The implications of this alone are staggering, alien involvement or not. There’s much more in this chapter, but like I said, I don’t want to give too much away. It’s easily the best chapter in the book, and the most fascinating.
Also of note is the Appendix, called “Take Me To Your Leader.” This chapter asks the question: If aliens did come to Earth, who would be the person to represent the planet? Who is our leader? Not a leader of a country, but for humanity? This chapter, though not as fleshed out as I would have liked it (it is, after all, an appendix), does give some good information on a lesser-known conspiracy, namely the attempted overthrow of the U.S. Presidency (and government) in 1934. It also discusses shadow governments, such as the Illuminati, the Trilateral Commission and the Council on Foreign Relations. Again, this chapter is a little thin on details, but there are plenty of books out there dealing with “New World Order” conspiracies.
The Good: One of the better UFO books I’ve read in a while, and as I’ve said, it’s much more than just a mere UFO book. A good chronological history is provided, touching on just about all of the most important UFO and UFO-related incidents in human history. Also, most of the seemingly “out-there” theories are all backed up by facts and sources, should you care to ever investigate them yourself.
The Bad: For a book of it’s scope, there really aren’t that many pictures in this book. The pictures are all in black & white, and I think there are some better pictures out there that could accompany this book. Especially since it’s a great book for the uninitiated. What better way to convince someone who’s sitting on the fence than with some very strong photographic evidence?
The Ugly: The only gripe I have with this book is the chapter entitled “A Metaphysical Exam.” This chapter deals with UFO’s and aliens as somewhat non-physical beings or objects, but rather energy, gods, even “wee folk.” The theories had to be presented, and Marrs should be commended for including this alternate perspective, but being the last true chapter of the book, it’s somewhat jarring in it’s placement.
The book, up until this point, makes an extremely strong case for the existence of UFO’s, evidence that the U.S. military has captured some of these UFO’s, and that some high-ranking government officials have actually met with, and formed treaties with, the occupants of said UFO’s. So to then introduce theories of UFO’s being hallucinations or energy or something not quite real just interrupts the flow of the book. The chapter is interesting in its own right, and I think it would have been better off if placed earlier in the book, perhaps in the chapter before the one dealing with “Ancient Astronauts.”
The Bottom Line: Talk of fairies and leprechauns aside, this is a great book, and one of the best books on extraterrestrials I’ve read in a long time. It’s a comprehensive history of the phenomenon, and very detailed, for the most part. A newcomer to the field could gain a wealth of knowledge from reading Alien Agenda, but armchair ufologists will learn a lot as well. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the topic.
Final Score: 90%
