Strange Attractor

The Hallucinatory Life of Terence McKenna

Graham St John, Erik Davis

$75

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

MIT Press
07 October 2025

Biography: general

An intellectual biography of one of the most celebrated and yet least understood figures of the late twentieth century, Terence McKenna.

An intellectual biography of one of the most celebrated and yet least understood figures of the late twentieth century, Terence McKenna.

A stand-up philosopher who made a unique contribution to science, humanism, and the hidden arts, Terence McKenna (1946-2000) was the twentieth century's psychedelic Renaissance man. Perfecting his rugged philosophy on the role of psychedelics in evolution, consciousness, and time, McKenna was a riotous charmer who stalked the shadows, but also sought the iridescence. More than twenty years since his untimely passing, McKenna has an enduring magnetism across the virtual pop stream, in pervasive digitization, and within social media networks. In Strange Attractor, the first biography of this enigmatic figure, Graham St John detects the signal behind the noise.

This book is an engaging chronicle of the life, works, and legacy of this brazen adventurer of the inner and outer dimensions, whose weird intelligence has affected multitudes and whose spirit continues to haunt the present. It draws on original documents and letters, features fifty two rare photographs and artworks, and shares previously untold stories from over eighty people. Neither glorifying nor disparaging its subject, Strange Attractor will appeal to those interested in the evolution of a psychedelic intellectual, and to those for whom McKenna's wisdom endures.

By: Graham St John, Erik Davis
Imprint: MIT Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 178mm,
Weight: 567g
ISBN: 9780262049573
ISBN 10: 0262049570
Pages: 528
Publication Date: 07 October 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Introduction Freak Gnosis Book Outline PART I Chapter One — Edge Runners Chapter Two — Berkeley Chapter Three — Terry Incognita Chapter Four — La Chorrera Chapter Five — Return to Paradise Chapter Six — Growmance Chapter Seven — Special Projects Chapter Eight — Stand-Up Philosopher PART II Chapter Nine — Timewave Zero Chapter Ten — Psychedelic Guru Chapter Eleven — Zone Ghost Chapter Twelve — Metamorphosis Appendices A. Acknowledgements and Sources B. The McKennaverse

Graham St John is a cultural anthropologist and a recent recipient of a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowship in the Department of Media, Humanities and the Arts at the University of Huddersfield where he is a Senior Research Fellow. He is the author of ten books, including Mystery School in Hyperspace- A Cultural History of DMT, Global Tribe, and Technomad. He is founding Executive Editor of Dancecult- Journal of Electronic Dance Music Culture and has published widely on the ethnobiography of transformational events.