The Divining Hand cover

The Divining Hand

by Christopher Bird

"To dowse," says the author of this definitive study of the divining art, "is to search with the aid of a handheld instrument such as a forked stick or a pendular bob on the end of a string - for anything: subterranean water flowing in a narrow underground fissure, a pool of oil or a vein of mineral ore, a buried sewer pipe or electrical cable, an airplane downed in a mountain wilderness, a disabled ship helplessly adrift in a gale, a lost wallet or dog, a missing person, perhaps a buried treasure." Co-author of The Secret Life of Plants, Christopher Bird has filled this book with exciting, documented stories, most of them illustrated with photographs and diagrams. It provides a complete history of the art of dowsing around the world and discusses in detail the various existing theories attempting to explain this extraordinary phenomenon.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?