 This is a book that every fan of written science fiction should read at some point. Stay with me. I'll explain why. First published in 1955, this is a collection of five supposedly true cases encountered by this psychoanalyst Robert Lindner in the 1930s and 40s and they are gripping reading although they're so gripping That one has to wonder how much they're being romanticized. Whatever the case, they're all very interesting and in true Freudian spirit all of these patients serious problems go back to sexual abuse in the childhoods and their parents blah blah blah, but the thing that makes this book so interesting for science fiction readers is the fifth story Called the jet-propelled couch. It is about a government scientist that this guy encountered Whose science fiction fantasy life was so intense and so vivid. He wasn't getting enough work done He was escaping into an almost catatonic state of fantasy and he was documenting it, too Here's a little bit of what the doctor encountered. There were to begin with about 12,000 pages of type script comprising the amended biography of Kirk Allen This was divided into some 200 chapters that read like fiction Appended to these pages were approximately 2,000 more of notes in Kirk's handwriting. These latter were largely incomprehensible since they were written in Kirk's private shorthand. He had created his own written language is what he had done a Glossary of names and terms that ran to more than a hundred pages 82 full-color maps carefully drawn to scale 23 planetary bodies in four projections 31 of land masses on these planets 161 architectural sketches and elevations 12 genealogical tables and one eight-page description of the galactic system 200 page history of the Empire Kirk Allen ruled a Series of 44 folders containing from two to 20 pages apiece Each dealing with some aspect of the planet With titles like the fauna of Sraam Alma one the transportation system of Sirana Science of Sraam the geology of Sraam Alma one the religious beliefs of the valley dwellers manufacturing processes and diet chemistry Food distribution in Sirana This guy was a serious mess and the story that the psychoanalyst tells about what he encountered and how he Quote-unquote cured the guy is really fascinating reading I had read it before but not in the context of the complete book and the entire book is worth reading There's been a great deal of speculation amongst Science fiction aficionados for decades about who this Kirk Allen actually was they suspect he was a well-known science fiction writer But no one has ever found any evidence But a good read nonetheless Please remember to press that like button it helps my videos get seen and then subscribe so you can come back next time I do science fiction book TV and movie reviews all the time and please consider becoming a patron There's a link in the description below