My opinions of this book are echoed by others. As a scifi fan, I was hoping I'd love it. I didn't. ( )

A note about these newly posted non-link reviews.

This is another of those books that I would have been very unlikely to have picked up in a store, but when it was listed in the LibraryThing "Early Reviewers" program a month back, it looked plausible, and (obviously) "The Algorithm" that picks who gets which book deemed me to be a good enough match to be one of the "lucky" 4.2% (356 requests for 15 copies) to get one.

I had initially understood that Patricia Cori's The Starseed Dialogues: Soul Searching the Universe was another "2012" book (a subject that I have read a good deal on), and had hoped that perhaps "Starseed" had some relation to an old friend's group/center by the same name (it doesn't). I somehow missed the "channeled" aspect of this book, and (as regular readers know), I have never been particularly "open" to taking books of this sort charitably, let alone seriously.

However, there have been books of the genre which have surprised me, and this, at least, kept skittering around enough into areas that seemed to hold the promise of something worthwhile that it kept me from totally dismissing "The Sirian High Council" (which "speaks through" Ms. Cori in her alter ego of "Trydjya"). To be fair, much of the "skittering around" has to do with the format of this particular book, after producing a trilogy of books of this sort of material, Ms. Cori evidently had a large body of questions from her readers, clients, and participants in her various journeys, and this book is "dialogues" with the Sirians based on the questions asked by her fans. Most of the answers, unfortunately, seems like a puree of "the usual suspects", take a large dose of Zecharia Sitchin, throw in Jose Argüelles, bits and pieces of Graham Hancock, J.A. West, Robert Bauval, Charles Hapgood, James Redfield and dozens of others even less notable (heck, might as well toss in L. Ron Hubbard, as she's got critters in here that sound like Thetans, but without the jet planes), and blend until chunky, dispense as needed ... and that just explains the history and cosmology.

The "hardest to swallow" parts of this were the "ascension" concepts and the idea that beings get new DNA strands as they move up the vibrational ladder. Cori even teaches classes in "DNA Activation" which are "facilitated by Sirian light beings" (who I must assume have taken her advanced "DNA Facilitators Program").

Despite this sort of "woo-woo", the book does keep coming back to what, for it, seems an "even keel", the Sirians even throw a smack-down on a questioner who believed that she was "too evolved" to have to actually visit the sites being discussed, suggesting that she should "beware of the ego"! I did get a sense that, at heart, the book was very genuinely felt, and that it ultimately was an expression (no matter how over-the-edge) of sincere hope for the race. There were also a few aspects that I found surprising, as they dovetailed with materials that I've read (or worked with) in other contexts. The general concept of "vibration" (if decoupled from the whole DNA issue) is very similar to certain Shamanic teachings, and the way she described the "planetary system ascension" (of "Ra") evoked many of the implicit patterns of Richard C. Hoagland's materials on Hyperdimensional Physics, to the extent that I began to wonder if she actually had something there.

There was also a very deep streak of "paranoia" running though the book, manifesting in a total distrust for governments, corporations, and churches (especially Rome's). While a certain degree of watchfulness over these sorts of entities is good policy, this ran to the whole "secret world government" sort of thing where vast conspiracies managed to keep close control over thousands of participants without any substantive information ever getting out. Oh, and these groups were being run by alien-human hybrids from a "lost" planet which was in a strange orbit around both the Sirian system and the Sun (with a distance of 8.6 light years, that must make for one looooooong round-trip).

One thing you can say about The Starseed Dialogues is that it doesn't leave much out. Nearly every "new age" hot-button is pushed, and it's all (more or less) woven together into a one-size-fits-all explanatory whole. If your tastes run toward the "fruit and nuts" end of the spiritual spectrum, then this book's for you. For the rest of us, well, if Cori's fans stay busy writing her and her Sirian friends, then they're just that much less likely to freak us out by having discussions with the displays in the produce section when we're grocery shopping! Were you dying to get a copy, Amazon says this is due out February 17th, and will be $16.95 retail ($11.53 at their discounted price) and they're taking pre-orders now.


BTRIPP's review of Patricia Cori's "The Starseed Dialogues: Soul Searching the Universe" (800 words)

I have no experience with Patricia Cori’s writing or ideas, and I decided to pick up a copy of The Starseed Dialogues because 1) it was there and 2) I thought that the question & answer format would give me an easy and quick introduction to the basic ideas and thoughts behind Cori’s channeled teachings (which seem unusual and interesting). Sadly, I was wrong; without any such background, I got lost fairly quickly in the strange minutiae of unknown and unusual concepts and stayed lost. I won’t say more, because I simply didn't "get it." ( )

I tried on several occasions to pick up and read this book but I could not get into it. For me I think it was the authors writting style. I would like to see a little more discription on ceratain meanings. I am not saying that the book is bad because I will never probably pick it up again. But I'm sure for some people they may like this. ( )

The Starseed Dialogues covers a lot of ground. People who are not familiar with some of the concepts regarding Atlantis, channeling, and, specifically, the ascendance of the soul may well feel overwhelmed. This does not mean that you need to be an expert or even adept in regards to these subjects, but you will need to be able to handle the concepts presented. Particularly troublesome spots for some people will probably arise in the discussion of the evolution of our DNA from a double to a triple helix, the interstellar and multidimensional relationship between our solar system and others, and the extent of the conspiracy that dark forces undertake to keep the people of the earth ignorant.

The extent to which one is able to relate to the material will greatly affect what is taken away. Those who are skeptical of channeling, metaphysical claims, and conspiracy will likely characterize the dialogue as tripe and a waste of time. Those who are able to believe in the possibilities presented will undoubtedly walk away with something new to consider.

Personally, I found some of the concepts very interesting. The evolution of DNA, while admittedly difficult to entertain, involves an interesting theory regarding what scientists consider the "junk DNA" that apparently sits there, taking up space for no apparent reason. Also interesting are the claims of the information that will be forthcoming to pave the way for soul ascendance in 2012, especially that which relates ancient structures and the information they contain being revealed. Of course, some of the claims are coming to the fore, currently, but it is left to the individual as to whether or not the author is really accessing information given from enlightened beings from the Sirian High Council or is merely well enough researched in current events to sound authentic. There is much room for doubt, but I'm sure the author and her sources would contend that you only need to listen to your heart and attend to that which feels true to you. For those who would honestly entertain the concepts presented here, the effort is very much worth the time. ( )