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Pather paperback, pub 1974. Clean copy with rubbing at the spine edges and some light spotting to the fore-edge. Very small damp stain to the lower front corner affecting first 8 pages, otherwise internally the pages are clean and free of inscriptions or annotation marks. Buy with confidence from a genuine independent book shop. Pather paperback, pub 1974. Clean copy with rubbing at the spine edges and some light spotting to the fore-edge. Very small damp stain to the lower front corner affecting first 8 pages, otherwise internally the pages are clean and free of inscriptions or annotation marks. Buy with confidence from a genuine independent book shop. See less
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Colin Wilson
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Philosopher's Stone Paperback – 5 Sept. 1974

by Colin Wilson (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars 175 ratings
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  1. Print length
    272 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    HarperCollins Distribution Services
  4. Publication date
    5 Sept. 1974
  5. ISBN-10
    0586039430
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0586039434
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins Distribution Services
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 5 Sept. 1974
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ New
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0586039430
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0586039434
  • Item weight ‏ : ‎ 120 g
  • Best Sellers Rank: 222,886 in Literature & Fiction (Books)
  • Customer reviews:
    4.3 out of 5 stars 175 ratings

About the author

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Colin Wilson

Colin Wilson

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Colin Henry Wilson (26 June 1931 – 5 December 2013) was an English writer, philosopher and novelist. He also wrote widely on true crime, mysticism and the paranormal. Wilson called his philosophy "new existentialism" or "phenomenological existentialism", and maintained his life work was "that of a philosopher, and (his) purpose to create a new and optimistic existentialism".

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Tom Ordelman Thor NL (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5-2.0-1.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
175 global ratings

Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • Seagull
    5.0 out of 5 stars A classic
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 April 2013
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    I first read this book nearly forty years ago, and couldn't put it down. It's now dated a little, of course, yet remains an intriguing, thought provoking read as we follow Howard's journey to explore and expand human mind power - a journey which becomes ever more absorbing (and surprising) as it goes along. The fact that I have kept my battered paperback all these years is testament to my enjoyment of it, so I was absolutely delighted to find it on Kindle. Now I can read and re-read without risking my increasingly fragile paperback copy. This is an unusual and constantly interesting book - difficult to describe, but very enjoyable.
    9 people found this helpful
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  • Gazza
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Philosopher's Stone
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 May 2019
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    Haven't read yet, but based on the strength of the reviews here on Amazon, it sounds like a very interesting read. So far, I've read a number of Colin Wilson's books, but few of his novels, so this is a change of direction for me.

    I shall update my review in a week or so along its star rating.
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  • AnnaEsse
    5.0 out of 5 stars This book engages the readers from the first line.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 February 2019
    Verified Purchase
    I read this book a few years ago and was so impressed that I bought it as a Christmas present for a family member. I don't have feedback from him as yet, but I enjoyed it immensely. Readers who have enjoyed the work of Jorge Luis Borges will love this book.
    One person found this helpful
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  • wendy felstead
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 January 2021
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    Another fantastic book of Wilson's. Thoroughly enjoyed the Lovecraftian theme that runs through it. I have read many of Wilson's books now, & he had a wonderful writing style thank keeps me gripped to the story.
    One person found this helpful
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  • D. L. Ashcroft-nowicki
    5.0 out of 5 stars Friendship memories.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 January 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Again a book t return to again and again... I must hve bought 8/9 copies for friends and family..and my own copy is loaded with underlines and "thought"... I have two copies... one just to read and savour the old one to read my pencil notes. I miss Colin very much .
    10 people found this helpful
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  • Helen
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 May 2016
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    excellent thanks
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Top reviews from other countries

  • David Williams
    2.0 out of 5 stars Unmemorable
    Reviewed in Australia on 13 October 2022
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    I decided to check this one out after reading a reference to it in one of Gary Lachman's books. I discovered I had read it before in 2017 but couldn't remember it. So I pulled it up and read it again and found that I hadn't retained a scrap of it in my memory . . . it was like reading it 'again' for the first time! And now that I have valiantly fought off drowsiness and slogged through it a second time I shall proceed to forget it again, for it simply isn't worth remembering.
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  • Patrick Von Maryland
    5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent Cthulhu Mythos Lovecraft style novel
    Reviewed in the United States on 29 December 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Colin wasn’t a lover of Lovecraft’s writing but he oddly parallels many of his views on humanity.His first book called” The Outsider “without him even realizing it was similarly named to Lovecraft’s posthumous collection “The Outsider and Others” so over time and an actual challenge he decided to incorporate Lovecraft into a few of his stories and also wrote one of The Necronomicons as well.This effort is the best ,even using some real life events to go along with the story like Lovecraft.It starts out a little slow with 2 main characters attempting to have what are known as V.E. (Value Experiences) but once the characters succeed,his visions of the return of The Old Ones And their history is fabulous.High recommendation ,especially in our present time as yes there is a need for the skilled minority to leave the mass of humanity and their problems to be solved by the evolved Old Ones who are awakened now.
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  • Dimitris
    4.0 out of 5 stars Consciousness expansion and... Kthulhu?
    Reviewed in the United States on 27 May 2018
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    I like Colin Wilson. His breadth of perspective is refreshing and inspiring. I chose something to read at random and I needed a novel, so The Philosopher's Stone fit the bill nice. It began slowly, picking up later on and it became captivating just before the middle. What I had not really known (and I don't think I am adding a spoiler here, as I have seen this written in descriptions and biographies, including the one at the end of this book itself) is that this is, to a great degree, a 'Kthulhu' novel. Having read that Mr Wilson was not so enamoured with H. P. Lovecraft, I had not seen this coming. But I like Lovecraft. The bottom line: this is a great book, written as a memoir, and it contains some great insights on Mr Wilson's (and mine) main topic: consciousness and its scope for 'expansion'. I am amazed at how the great old ones and Kthulhu were implicated in this, and I am guessing that The Philosopher's Stone was Mr Wilson's attempt to give a more positive reading of Lovecraft's dark and fear-induced writings. A very good book then. My only gripe is the end, which, I think, felt somewhat rushed to conclude the story and kind of 'shorter' compared to the rest of the book. Still, a very good and enjoyable read.
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  • Tasawuf
    5.0 out of 5 stars A masterful...metaphysical... psychological...mystery story!
    Reviewed in the United States on 14 March 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I recently finished a 2d read of this book and, while I read it in fits and starts, I gotta say, Colin Wilson is one of my favorite authors when it comes to "thinking" novels of this genre. If nothing else, he provides an introduction, at least, to the ideas of many other thinkers, philosophers, speculators etc. of the past, many of whom are not so known (if at all) by those of us who have not really studied in this area. And, this is a really interesting mystery story of humanity's evolutionary potential, including our humble, otherworldly origins, written by a guy who's brilliantly done a lot of the work for us.

    I cannot help but think that many readers of this book (as well as some of his others like The Mind Parasites, The Outsider etc.) will experience its effect as being expansive of their psyches or their outlook; and, in challenging or discovering some of the heretofore unconscious or unexamined limits of our worldview...both as to ourselves and everyone else. 50 years from now, if not sooner, this book will be considered one of the classics of the 20th century!

    Thank you Colin Wilson, wherever you are!
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  • Francis Maguire
    5.0 out of 5 stars Intelligent Science Fiction.
    Reviewed in the United States on 11 April 2013
    Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
    I have read a good many of Colin Wilson's books and they are always thought provoking and even informative. I am self-taught and most of what I learned I got from GB Shaw, S. Beckett and Joyce. Their books sent me after other books and so on. The same thing happened with Colin Wilson's books they helped me to take a different view of the world and I am the better for reading them. I really enjoyed the Philosopher's Stone because it read like fact but it was all fiction and a great read.
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