The Essential Psychedelic Guide

In today's age of media hypocrisy and continual marketing blitzkriegs, it is a startlingly infrequent occasion when one finds something that lives up to its title. Well, friends, D.M. Turner's (great pseudonym!) Essential Psychedelic Guide is a book that does exactly that! Between its exquisitely fractalized covers one will find a wealth of useful information on some of the most sought after items on contemporary consciousness explorers' wish lists. The deceptively slim, practically pocket-sized volume contains fact-packed chapters on LSD, MDMA, Psilocybin, Mescaline, 2C-B, DMT (covering N.N., its less popular cousin 5-MeO, and ayahuasca), Harmine/Harmaline, and Ketamine. Each substance's chapter contains excellent, accurate information on intensity (relative to each other), history, chemistry, dosage range, effects, and compatibility in combination with other materials, all delivered in a clear, easy-to-read style that is refreshingly free of technical jargon. There are also very useful chapters on psychedelic history, safety, multiple combinations, CydelikSpace (the author's personal term for the transpersonal realm that many of the materials discussed admit one into), and a recommended reading list.

The real beauty of this work is that it comes straight out of the author's first-hand experience. Turner is a psychonaut of rare courage and adventurousness who has dared to rush in where angels fear to tread, and his lucky readers get to share the fruits of his explorations. His trip stories are lucid and evocative, communicating as much as is possible within the boundaries of written language. Especially entrancing is the Multiple Combinations chapter, in which he details some experimental sessions that are simply staggering to comprehend. There is information here that you just can't get anywhere else, because I'd be willing to bet that Turner is the only person who's tried some of these mixtures. Another section with great narrations from experience is the chapter on CydelikSpace, which contains some amazing reports from trips on Ketamine combined with 2C-B that had this reviewer salivating like a Pavlovian puppy at the thought of trying such a cocktail.

The only drawback to the book from the perspective of one interested in visionary plants is that it concentrates mostly on synthetic materials. With the exception of cursory mentions of cacti, fungi, and syrian rue/b. caapi, plants are under-represented within these pages. It would have been nice to see information on Salvia Divinorum, as well as natural DMT sources such as the Phalaris grasses. But then again, this wasn't intended as a fully comprehensive work. As it stands, I would recommend this very highly as a quick reference guide to the major entheogens. I also believe that it would make an excellent introductory volume for someone new to the visionary way, giving a concise summary of the information necessary to use psychedelics safely and rewardingly.