The Paranormal Ranger: A Navajo Investigator's Search for the Unexplained

By Stanley Milford Jr.

Book Overview

*A NEW YORK TIMES PICK FOR TOP 22 NONFICTION BOOKS TO READ THIS FALL *

A Navajo Ranger's chilling and clear-eyed memoir of his investigations into bizarre cases of the paranormal and unexplained in Navajoland

As a Native American with parents of both Navajo and Cherokee descent, Stanley Milford Jr. grew up in a world where the supernatural was both expected and taboo, where shapeshifters roamed, witchcraft was a thing to be feared, and children were taught not to whistle at night.

In his youth, Milford never went looking for the paranormal, but it always seemed to find him. When he joined the fabled Navajo Rangers--a law enforcement branch of the Navajo Nation who are equal parts police officers, archeological conservationists, and historians--the paranormal became part of his job. Alongside addressing the mundane duties of overseeing the massive 27,000-square-mile reservation, Milford was assigned to utterly bizarre and shockingly frequent cases involving mysterious livestock mutilations, skinwalker and Bigfoot sightings, UFOs, and malicious hauntings.

In The Paranormal Ranger, Milford recounts the stories of these cases from the clinical and deductive perspective of a law enforcement officer. Milford's Native American worldview and investigative training collide to provide an eerie account of what logic dictates should not be possible.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0063371057
• ISBN13: 9780063371057
• Release Date: October 2024
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

A "Must Read"

This book is very entertaining, informative and spine-tingling. The author, a Navajo Ranger in the Four Corners area of the West, weaves together Navajo Creation stories with his experiences of growing up and becoming a Ranger for the Navajo Nation. The paranormal encounters he has had are sprinkled throughout the narrative, but the most intriguing parts of the book are those of his personal journey and Creation stories. I've been fascinated with the paranormal since I was a child and at age 68, I thought I'd heard it all. Being somewhat cynical at the ghost culture that predominates our screens today, I expected more of the same. However, Mr. Milford offers much more than the usual fare. The colloquial manner in which he writes feels as though he were sitting next to you and visiting over a cup of coffee or two. This is a thrill ride of a book, appropriate for junior high readers up to those over 100 years old. Milford is an author worthy of your full attention. With the holidays sneaking up, it would make a wonderful gift for just about anybody.