“The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading” by Ian Rowland
The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading: The Definitive Guide to How Cold Reading Is Used in the Psychic Industry
By Ian Rowland
2019
210 Pages
Nonfiction
—
Several years ago I went in search of a book that was very hard to find and expensive to boot. I couldn’t understand this, for the book was relatively short and cheaply printed. So I had decided not to review it in this series, assuming that even if you were intrigued you wouldn’t be able to find the book at a reasonable price. But I thought the book was worth reviewing and so I went and looked on Amazon and – lo and behold! – there it was, available in a new (seventh) edition at a reasonable price. I read the fourth edition but, while there appear to have been some changes since then, I assume the basic thrust is the same.
On the front cover of my copy of The Full Facts Book of Cold Reading is this explanation (I’m not sure it qualifies as a subtitle): “A comprehensive guide to the most persuasive psychological manipulation technique in the world and its application to psychic readings.” That’s right. It’s a book about psychics, from a guy who was one.
I had wondered, if I worked on the techniques in this book, if I would be able to persuade my students that I had psychic abilities. The short answer to that question is, by and large, yes. That is a longer story than I can tell here, and I assure you I later dissuaded them.
Ian Rowland’s book is not particularly about whether psychic abilities may actually exist somewhere, although you will clearly think it less likely after you read this book. Rather, it offers a description of the methods that psychics use to manipulate their customers. These techniques can be learned.
For instance, one of the crucial strategies is creating a context. For instance, if I am trying to convince Christian people I have extraordinary abilities, I will not describe my powers as psychic but rather as the gift of discernment bestowed by the Holy Spirit. Now you are already more susceptible to belief.
Another technique is to give with one hand and then take away with another, which winds up with a statement that is either so banal or universally true it will seem psychic to the inquirer. So the psychic might say, “You’re the sort of person who likes to go out with their friends but you also need your alone time.” Right. You could also say it just the opposite way and it would be equally true.
The book is not particularly well written. But it is informative. I continue to be concerned that many Christians accept at face value claims from gurus, prophets, and preachers that appear to me to be little more than psychic techniques dropped into a Christian context. Discernment? Maybe. I do not doubt that the spiritual world is more strange and wonderful than we will ever know. But there are a lot of people out there claiming they have extra special knowledge that you really need them to tell you, yet they don’t have your best interest at heart.
