Eysenck, Hans J., & Sargent, Carl. (*) Explaining the Unexplained: Mysteries of the Paranormal. Prion, 1993. A book by a distinguished psychologist who thinks there is evidence supporting the existence of paranormal phenomena. It focuses on the best evidence favoring ESP, after death experiences, and the like, but it fails to take account of all the criticisms.
Frazier, Kendrick (Ed.). The Hundredth Monkey and Other Paradigms of the Paranormal. (*). Prometheus Books, 1991. A collection of articles from The Skeptical Inquirer. All are critical of paranormal phenomena. See also other collections edited by the same author, Science Confronts the Paranormal (Prometheus Books.) and Paranormal Borderlands of Science (Prometheus Books).
Gardner, Martin. The New Age: Notes of a Fringe Watcher.
(*) Prometheus Books, 1988. Essays by the former editor of "Mathematical Games" in Scientific American. Gardner is a leading critic of claims of paranormal and is a major contributor to The Skeptical Inquirer. He writes well and convincingly. Another of his books that is worth searching out is On the Wild Side: The Big Bang, The Beast 666, Levitation, Rainmaking, Trance-Channeling, Séances, and Ghosts, and More. Prometheus Books.George, Leonard. Alternative Realities: The Paranormal, the Mystical, and their Transcendent in Human Experience. Facts on File, 1995. Written as a series of encyclopedia entries, the material is straightforward, fair, and clear. A good overview.
Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. Harper's Encyclopedia of Mystical and Paranormal Experience. (*) HarperCollins, 1991. A lengthy compendium of short articles and definitions on all aspects of the paranormal. The treatment is not critical, but the style is straightforward.
Hines, Terence. Pseudoscience and the Paranormal. Prometheus, 1988. A critical survey of various paranormal phenomena including psychics, astrology, ESP, faith healing and medical quackery, UFOs, and some forms of psychotherapy among others.
Hoggart, Simon & Hutchinson, Mike. Bizarre Beliefs. (*) Richard Cohen Books, 1995. Readable discussion (and criticism) of most of the standard anomalous beliefs such as ESP, Bermuda Triangle, ghosts, alien abductions, astrology, spiritualism, and crop circles.
Kurtz, Paul. The New Skepticism: Inquiry and Reliable Knowledge. Prometheus Books. Strong claims on behalf of objective standards for judging truth in science and ethics. Sharply critical of claims of paranormal effects.
Nickell, Joe. Looking for a Miracle: Weeping Icons, Relics, Stigmata, Visions & Healing Cures. Prometheus Books, 1993. A skeptical and well-written discussion of various miracles, etc. See also Nickell, Joe & Fischer, John, Mysterious Realms: Probing Paranormal, Historical, and Forensic Enigmas (Prometheus Books, 1992) and Nickell & Fischer, Secrets of the Supernatural (Prometheus Books, 1988). for case studies of mysterious events and ghostly encounters that have more prosaic explanations.
Parfrey, Adam. Apocalypse Culture I and II (*) Feral House, 1987, 2000. Collections of statements by and about people who have unbelievably unconventional (well, frankly weird) beliefs tending to focus on sex and violence. Not a book you will find at your local library and certainly not for the faint of heart.
Randi, James. Flim-Flam: Psychics, ESP, Unicorns and Other Delusions. Prometheus Books, 1982. A professional magician takes on the world of psychic phenomena.
Randi, James. An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural (*). St. Martins, 1995. A bit uneven but quite witty in places, this book covers most paranormal phenomena. A good general reference source for the skeptic.
Reed, Graham. The Psychology of Anomalous Experience (revised edition) (*). Prometheus, 1988. A general discussion which attempts to show that most anomalous experiences are elaborations of common experiences.
Schumaker, John. Wings of Illusion: The Origin, Nature, and Future of Paranormal Belief. Prometheus, 1990. A psychotherapist argues that belief in higher powers and the paranormal has had evolutionary payoff and is necessary for most people as they confront life=s mysteries. Interesting speculations.
Siegel, Ronald K. Fire in the Brain: Clinical Tales of Hallucination. Dutton, 1992. A neuropsychologist who is an expert on the effects of psychoactive drugs takes on case studies of vivid hallucinations. He is concerned to show that hallucinations are actually fairly common, and the main lesson is that we do not have to postulate extreme influences to account for the reality of vivid experiences (such as after-death experiences and feelings of having been abducted by aliens) that seem to be paranormal.
The Skeptical Inquirer. This is a periodical published by the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal. It is hostile to the usual range of paranormal beliefs, but consistently does a fine job of giving scientific explanations for such beliefs. Also book reviews and listings of relevant papers published in other places.
Stein, Gordon. Encyclopedia of Hoaxes. Gale, 1993. A good compendium for skeptics especially since hoax is defined fairly broadly.