Amazing Real-Life Coincidences

by Douglas Colligan

*A writer tells about the sinking of a giant ocean liner 14 years before the disaster really happens!

*A "lost" family cat manages to find its owners in their new house 1500 miles away!

*A king meets a man who is his exact double; same face, same first name, same day of birth. . .and same day of death!

Coincidences--What are they? Why do they happen? Are they accidents, luck or unseen forces at work? Find out about events that "just seem to happen"--the mysterious voices, sudden impulses, or prophetic dreams that sometimes make the difference between life and death.

Genres: Nonfiction, Occult

134 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1980

Reviews

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great quick read. I really love the subject matter, because apart from some phantom, guardian angel, prophecy, animal sensitivity and ESP stories, the subject matter doesn't fall cleanly into any usual supernatural bucket. You can't say ghosts, or demons, or reincarnation, or angels, or aliens, or alternate dimensions, this stuff is just strange. Here's an example: on December 5th of each of 1664, 1785, and 1860, a ship sank in the Menai Strait with one surviving passenger by the name of Hugh Williams - but a different Hugh Williams each time. Or the last Dodgers pitcher to wear the uniform number of 13; before he threw the ball to Bobby Thompson for the 'shot heard round the world', he said the ball just felt strange.

[Bree · Rating 3 out of 5]

My copy of this book was DESTROYED by the time I finished middle school because of how often I ran off into a corner to devour its creepy stories.

[Possum Willy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this probably 20 times since I got it as an elementary school'er. The funnest part was going back through it and trying to verify most of it through wikipedia and other sources. I'd say that 80% of it is made up of true stories. Its just frustrating to me that it doesn't include footnotes and resources. Hell, even Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz (which he himself fictionalized a couple of the stories found in this book) used references. All in all though, a fun book.

[Stefanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sortof like reading solved unsolved mysteries!

[Peyton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favorite book when I was in middle school. Brings back a lot of memories.

[Jaime Lopez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember ordering this book as a 5th grader through the monthly Scholastic book catalog. This books made me curious as a 10 year old to learn about how people's lives can share striking similarities, not to mention, how strange and coincidental life can be. I think this book was also very influential at a young age in making me appreciate the kinds of insights and discussions that could be had by reading books.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, really. A wee little book I bought as an elementary school student over 30 years ago. The coincidences described ARE eerie--a fine example is a description of the correlations between JFK and Honest Abe that you can readily read about on the internets today. I think I may have read this cover to cover some time ago but didn't remember much so decided to read it through before giving it away to my library. Was worth the time I spent on it.

[Donna Krebs · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok but it just wasn't that interesting to me.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book I have read over and over for the past 10 or 12 years. It's weird, and pretty amazing.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

book it's pretty tattered as I read it a dozen times, handed it down to my brother and he's read it a dozen more times than I ever did. We often retell the creepy stories in jest. It's fun.