Altered States, by Paddy Chayefsky

Altered States, by Paddy Chayefsky. 1979 Bantam Edition paperback. 205 pages, very nice condition.

Altered States is the ultimate horror story-- the story of one young scientist's terrifying experiment to find the origins of consciousness. Edward Jessup, a young psycho-physiologist, experiments with different states of consciousness, obsessed with an addiction to truth and knowledge. He injects himself with psychedelic drugs, lies locked in an isolation tank and experiences all the stages of pre-human consciousness until finally terrible changes take place with him: Jessup also physically transforms into a pre-human being. His thirst for knowledge drives him into ever new, increasingly irreversible transformations. Only the horror when his body begins to dissolve into pure energy brings him back to human bonds. This book was adapted into the awesome film, directed by Ken Russell, in 1980.