Lily Dale: The True Story Of The Town That Talks To The Dead (2004) - Plot & Excerpts
This was a fascinating book, but very different from what I expected. I read this book because of two recent reads that took place in the city of Lily Dale; one book mentioned this particular book as a good book to read for more background information on the town, and since I enjoyed the books, I was pleased to see that the library carried this book as well.I expected a textbook-ish read, a typical non-fiction book. But this book read more like a memoir, full of tales from the author's own summers in the town and how she came across the research that she included in the book.The whole idea behind this town is fascinating, that only tried and true mediums are allowed to work in the place, that people are lured there every summer hoping to contact departed souls or have their futures read, etc. From reading this book, it certainly sounds like the town is one of a kind and that its concept (and type of people) haven't changed much since its early days. The author spent a few summers there (and some months in the "off-season") to do her research and get to know the people there, and the stories she tells are great. Everything is told from the standpoint that some of the readings could be true and some weren't. The idea of if mediums truly do see the spirits they claim is never fully resolved in this book, but the author presents enough evidence that leaves you questioning the entire world that we live in. I loved that about this book, the encouragement to keep an open mind about everything! Too many times, non-fiction ends up painting a one-sided case, so it was refreshing to see that this was not the deal with this particular book.On the flip side, despite all the anecdotes the author provides, there are a few things I wish had been included in it. In my opinion, not nearly enough time was spent exploring the full history of this town. Famous people in history who visited Lily Dale or who believe in Spiritualism were mentioned and their stories touched upon, but their brief histories were over too soon and I would have liked a more thorough background for all of it. Also, I would have liked some footnotes or citations in certain spots, though she did provide a bibliography at the end. The book focused a lot on the town of Lily Dale today, which I totally ate up, but at the same time, I did hope for more background information than I received. Overall, definitely an interesting book. It gave me a lot of things to ponder over about the universe as a whole, and the author wrote beautifully. It made me want to visit the town and experience all this for myself and see the places and people that were described so vividly. I'd recommend this to anyone seeking to open their minds to what secrets the universe holds, but only if one keeps an open mind about things.
If ever there was a religion or belief system that I really wanted to believe was real, it’s Spiritualism. When your loved ones die, they stick around and help you out. If not your loved ones, then spiritual beings from another dimension or something can help you. They leave you presents and help you get parking spaces. In this book, the author travels to Lily Dale, New York, several times and gets to know the mediums and other residents who live and work there. She participates in the touristy activities--getting readings, going to group meetings--but she also goes behind the scenes and gets to know the characters in the town. She starts the book as a skeptic, and she basically ends as a skeptic too. But in between, she questions both her pre-conceived ideas and what she learns from the mediums.The author presents the characters as real people that you could imagine knowing, or maybe you do know. And you really want them to be right. They even admit to faking experiences some times to play to their paying crowd, and you still want them to be right. Because what happy and magical lives they lead! What confidence they have in themselves and their own lives! How wonderful life would be if this was all true! As I mentioned, the author stays a skeptic, but she comes away with more questions than answers. I found this refreshing. The mediums seem to live in a grey zone between the cold hard facts of reality and the magical world of "well, maybe." And it’s not hurting anyone--in fact, a case could be made for this kind of thinking improving a lot of lives, I think--so why not go for it? If you get a good parking spot, you acknowledge and appreciate it and thank some spiritual being for picking it out for you. And if you don’t get the good parking spot, you shrug and determine that your spiritual guide wanted you to walk farther that day for some reason that’s not yet clear to you. What’s the downside of this, especially in terms of mental and emotional health? Probably, there are some, and the author certainly struggles with the idea that people should just do what they want to do all the time, knowing that the universe will keep everything on track. But by the end of the book, even if you don’t believe, you’re left wanting to.
What do You think about Lily Dale: The True Story Of The Town That Talks To The Dead (2004)?
Found the book hard to get into at first. There are a lot of people to keep track of, and I'm guessing the author noticed this problem too -- a list of short bios are provided at the end of the book to aid with this.Eventually, I just plowed ahead, not worrying too much about who was who. That's when the book became truly great and a fun read.The highlight for me was the voice of Christine Wicker. She walks a fine line between skeptic, open minded explorer, and total convert. Hilarious passages abound, as do moving and touching ones. Wicker covers a lot of fascinating territory in spiritualism and interviews a lot of "true believers". I liked this book enough to track down 2 more books by her, to see what else she has to say.I also looked up Lily Dale and discovered it's a mere 6 hour drive from where I live. If an author gets me seriously contemplating a road trip to visit their subject matter, you know she has succeeded.
—Nikmaack
Lily Dale was written by Christine Wicker, religion reporter for the Dallas Morning News. She approached her literally outlandish subject with a natural skepticism and a hopeful receptiveness that did battle with one another from chapter to chapter.Spiritualism has attracted millions of adherents since it came into vogue during the mid-1800s. Lily Dale, a hamlet in upstate New York, was a haven- and some would say hunting ground- for self-professed mediums who supposedly connected the dead with the loved ones they left behind. Despite scathing press coverage and well-publicized debunkings by the likes of Harry Houdini, the Spiritualist movement has survived through the decades, and Lily Dale remains a popular destination for the curious and the grieving. It is a unique community that requires its property owners to be licensed mediums. Residency is welcome to the dead as well as the living.Wicker is candid about her experiences. While she curtly dismisses some beliefs and manifestations as dodgy nonsense, she readily admits that some readings and classes were unsettling in their accuracy or the phenomena they incurred. She doesn't pass an opinion on Spiritualism as a whole- it's the component practices that she investigates and evaluates. As a result, "Lily Dale" is neither a cry of "foul" nor a sunny-toned convert's tale. This is the way that investigative journalism should be done.
—Rose
Lily Dale, by Christine Wicker was an interesting book. The author, a journalist who focuses on religion, based this book on visits to the town of Lily Dale, a spiritualistic community in New York State. While it reads like fiction, this is a true account on her experiences in the town and the people she meets (some names changed).While originally just going to see what all the hype is about, Wicker has to concede by the end of the book that there is something special about Lily Dale. While some of her experiences she determined to be outright fanciful and full of hype, she does determine that some of it was real. She uses these instances to help her grow and while she may not believe it is "ghosts" that help her with her feelings, the people there are genuinely trying to help her.She focuses on several people and among these are a few that come to Lily Dale to help them with their grief. Pat Naulty is a professor whose son died during a Russian roulette game. Her trip to Lily Dale is to just get some rest and while there she does believe she makes contact with her son. Carol Lucas is a teacher who wants to contact her husband who is recently deceased. While she is a skeptic, she does find some comfort in the town. Marian Boswell while outwardly seems to have the perfect life, learns that not all is at it seems and with the help of her faith, learns to grow past her hardships.She also interviews some of the mediums and becomes friends with a couple. While they all seem to genuinely believe they commune with the dead, she is able to realistically show that they are normal people and believe they are doing normal things. And it feels natural.While I enjoyed the book I did find that the way it was written bothered me. While the writing itself was detailed and you could picture the scenes of the town, it was also very confusing. She mentions several people during the novel and they reappear here and there with no seeming order. This makes it difficult to keep track of who's who in the novel and you have to read several paragraphs into a story before you realize just who she's talking to. She does include a cast of characters at the end of the book but that doesn't help much while you're trying to read the book.This book also featured a couple pages of pictures. I found these fascinating and enjoyed seeing the older ones of the places and people of Lily Dale. There weren't many, but I think it added to the book and helped create the town a little better in the mind while reading it.Lily DaleCopyright 2003277 pages
—Melissa
