Rating: 
Summary: Interesting Read... Sometimes hard to get through
Review: I have been a little generous with four stars for this book. I would probably give it 3.5 stars, but that isn't an option. The reason being is that I think the material of the book is great! I really was intrigued by the ideas presented in the book and by Olga's spiritual transformation. But at times, I believed the setting; the desolate Siberian land, seemed to bore me a bit. I would give oneself a week to read it. It's a short book, but sometimes I needed to put it down and revisit it to fully take in the message of the book. I was especially intrigued with the idea of a Spirit Twin and Belovodia. Olga's dreams and journeys are a bit questionable, but what isn't when it is someone else's experience??? The plot of the book is as follows... Olga is a psychiatrist at a government run hospital. She happens onto a journey into the Altai mountains where she encounters a shaman and discovers some of her own shamanic powers. From there on she goes through many spiritual journies and discoveries.... finding out that she has a tremendous power of healing herself. The book is good... I would recommend it to anyone interested in reading about spirituality and the truth of life.
Rating: 
Summary: Not about real Siberian shamanism
Review: I have had more encounter with real Siberian shamans than the author of this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Have read and re-read
Review: I have read this book three times and found that I got something different from it each time. First, the narrative of her amazing experiences was compelling and carried me along much as good novel does. I was intrigued by her willingness to recount her subjective experiences with such confidence. Many of us with paranormal experiences hesitate to expound on them so openly - risking ridicule and perhaps even ostracism - as well as the fact that we often discount our own (subjective) experiences because we lack an external "objective" validation of them. The second and third readings found me paying more attention to the lessons and wisdom and questions of people she describes - the shaman Umai, the Russian physicist, and those she meets in her subjective experience reveal interesting and widely varied perspectives.I believe you will find Olga Kharitidi fascinating as well.
Rating:
Summary: This "Doctor" is a very hard stretch...
Review: I realize in this subject matter every airy-fairy author can jump on the bandwagon, originated by Carlos Castanada and write a book and make lots of money and not have to be concerned about "proving" or validating any of the "experiences" I was hoping this book being authored by a MD. might be a bit more factual and believible, a major disapointment of an MD, that would resort to this to make money.
Rating:
Summary: A book I could not put down
Review: I was hooked within seconds by the compelling story. As someone who has lived and worked in Russia I can vouch for the authenticity of the living conditions of ordinary Russian people.
For me this book was exciting to read like The Celestine Prophecy but it seemed that it was so much deeper. I gained deep insight into possible causes of negative human behaviour linked to trauma which damages the soul energy. The cures of deeply disturbed patients are profound and I had to smile at Olga's way of making her ancient shamanic practices acceptable to her stern Russian colleagues by describing them as experimental dissociative techniques!
A book about a medical doctor who has crossed the boundary into esoteric healing practices which could have profound implications for all people trying to understand where their negative behavior patterns come from. I would be delighted if she would visit the UK to share her experiences with likeminded people.
Rating:
Summary: among the worst of this genre
Review: If one reads between the lines, the reader will find a book put out by a major commercial publisher, written in English by a Russian (what, no translator?), with a flair for skillful narrative (several flashbacks, dreams interspersed in italics), with scores of details that will help to convince the reader of its authenticity, relying on stereotypes of life in the Soviet Union with its Gulags and dreary architecture and awful climate, and the people can't even get their own apartments to live in -- some of this may be true (unlike the story, perhaps), but it gradually becomes clear that this was written for a gullible market. "Shamanism" -- the word, the concept -- was supposed to originate in Siberia, and here's the proof, along with the location of the long-lost Shambala, and some details about the new-age evolution of humanity at large. I've read many books like this with complete gullibility, and am not embarrassed about that: I really like this genre. But this one is less likely than others to have any authenticity whatsoever.
Rating:
Summary: Good for sparking interest in Siberian magick
Review: Many have dis-liked this book, feeling that it is not valid, and a pure fictional account. This is not what I found, so much as it is an account of Siberian magick from the viewpoint of a first-timer. There are many assumtions made, and literary additions that seem unlikely, but at the core the methods described are the same as found in many reference books about Siberian magick - she may have even intended to compile information from other books into a narrative extraction for the sake of readability. I happen to find prose much more readable than the tombs of 'scholarly' reference books, and this book takes about one day to finish. All in all, a worthwhile glimpse into Siberian magick. Just dont use this as a reference for practicing it - let it spark the interest, and then get more accurate books if it was interesting.
Rating:
Summary: Engaging
Review: Ms. Kharitidi's account is very engaging and very readable. The skeptic in me wondered occasionally if the material was hers or a compilation of several of her patients; in any case one tends to believe the experiences are true regardless of whether the propositions (world view) therein are. The book inspires us to realize (1) that the GREATER "reality" is much richer in content and possibility than our scientific and religious traditions proclaim, (2) that we would do better to insist on less certainty, and (3) that there is more inside of us than outside of us. I ask myself, who am I to rate this sort of book? I would have given it five stars except that my little ego objected that while Ms. Kharitidi suggested WHAT is out there (in here), she did not give me instructions on HOW to follow her.
Rating:
Summary: The Only Aliens are the Ones Inside Each of Us
Review: Stop massing with the masses and come eye-to-eye with your own reflection. Discover what Olga Kharitidi did during her journey into the Kam Kingdom of Siberia: you
are the mystery behind the mystery of this thing we call
life. In Olga's journey from psychiatrist to visionary
we discover that psychotic and psychic are cousins of the
same reality. Both worlds respected and neither feared
by the masters of the mission. Whether we call them Shamans
or Kams they each serve the same cause - to help lift the
veil, to help each of us engage our potential
for shared humanity. In this refreshing read, we as the audience have the opportunity to experience a unique story as told by one human. Rather than re-digesting the Western
pronounciation of new age wisdom 'enter the circle' and experience mysticism first hand. If you're tired of listening to the flapping of other mouths and ready to hear
the inner voice which yerns to be set free then order this book today. The only hidden agenda is the one lurking within each of us. L. Sauls (space@marsweb.com)
Rating:
Summary: Olga uses the abnormal to argue the paranormal as a reality.
Review: That "this is the true autobiographical account of a ... mylife" it seems remarkable! As a fiction this is an excellent piece of work, however as a true account, well this is more difficult to accept. Olga is a good story teller that I throughly enjoy. Now I am finding the force of this story causing me to say, "what if every word Olga Kharitidi has written is true?" I am sure the true varies for each of us. The existence of a person inside is a little different for each one of us. As a Psychiatrist, for Olga to say that a fantasy is fact, then to observe the responce, may be smart marketing. As a Psychiatrist committed to the care of mental phychosis to say this is truth, is no less creditable than the religious man who says "Believe!" I love your writing Olga!
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