Death by Astonishment

Confronting the Mystery of the World's Strangest Drug (The DMT Book)

By: Andrew R. Gallimore, Graham Hancock

Narrated by: Andrew R. Gallimore, Graham Hancock

For fans of the compelling critical and investigative style of best-selling authors Graham Hancock and Brian Muraresku, the first detailed account of the history and science of the world’s strangest and most mysterious drug: DMT. This program is read by the author and features a foreword written and read by British journalist and author Graham Hancock.

DMT is the world’s strangest and most mysterious drug, inducing one of the most remarkable and yet least understood of all states of consciousness. This common plant molecule has, from ancient times to the modern day, been used as a tool to gain access to a bizarre alien reality of inordinate complexity and unimaginable strangeness, populated by a panoply of highly advanced, intelligent, and communicative beings entirely not of this world.

In a story that begins in the Amazonian rainforests and ends somewhere beyond the stars, Andrew Gallimore presents the first detailed account of the discovery of DMT and science’s continuing struggle to explain how such a simple and common plant molecule can have such astonishing effects on the human mind. The history of the drug involves many fascinating characters from the scientific and literary worlds — including legendary ethnobotanist Dr. Richard Schultes; renegade beat writer and drug aficionado William S. Burroughs; philosopher and raconteur Terence McKenna; and the high priest of the 1960s psychedelic revolution, Dr. Timothy Leary. In the end, the story of DMT forces us to reconsider our most basic assumptions about the nature of reality and our place within it.

A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press.

Critic reviews

<p>"DMT is unique among all the psychedelics in that it affords access to an alternate reality that seems every bit as real as our 'ordinary reality' and yet is utterly alien. With the possible exception of Terence McKenna, Andrew Gallimore has been investigating this longer and more thoroughly than anyone else. I believe he may have cracked the code. His conclusions are astonishing. And to some they will be horrifying. This book is not to be missed." - Dennis McKenna, PhD <br><br>"An exhilarating, yet rigorously grounded, account of DMT's rapidly increasing influence on human consciousness. What if an unimaginably powerful psychedelic molecule, made in the human brain, could be harnessed to reliably provide contact with super intelligent beings from other dimensions of time and space? Gallimore's project provides an essential understanding of this nascent field, and its implications for our species' evolution." - Rick Strassman MD, Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry, University of New Mexico School of Medicine and author of <i>DMT: The Spirit Molecule and My Altered States.</i><br><br>"Compulsively readable and impossible to put down, <i>Death by Astonishment</i> is a page-turning odyssey into the enigmatic history of the world’s strangest drug. Bringing together many of the most pivotal stories in psychedelic history, Gallimore not only connects the dots but also fills in the missing pieces, shedding new light on the mysteries of this extraordinary molecule." - David Jay Brown, author of <i>The Illustrated Field Guide to DMT Entities<br></i><br>"Peeling away the many layers of one of our greatest mysteries while leaving intact the enigma at its core, combining the erudition of a scholar and the precision of a scientist, Andrew Gallimore leads a fascinating inquiry into the heart of the unknown." - Graham St John, author of <i>Strange Attractor: The Hallucinatory Life of Terence McKenna</i> (MIT Press, 2025 )</p>

Thought provoking is an understatement

Brain candy for my podcast: So You’re Living in a Simulation. Will be recommending it to my listeners. I suspect one could use the findings and ideas explored in this book to put together a more coherent understanding of the nature of our reality…particularly around Simulation Hypothesis!

A scientific marvel

I knew this title was going to be incredible but having finished it, it far exceeded expectations. The subject matter is fascinating, the vocal performance, enunciation, and dictation by Dr. Gallimore was a delight, and the book was wholly a joy to experience. The entire spectrum - from the history of organic plant concoctions formulated by indigenous cultures, experiences, theories, to the latest modern scientific methods is covered. This will certainly be a title that will leave the reader in reflection and I am looking forward to seeing what the field of research discovers in the future. I also purchased a physical copy to help better support Dr. Gallimore and wish to have it signed one day!

I am curious!

I read The Spirit Molecule when it came out years ago. I expected this book to be about the current research with extended DMT trips but it is more geared toward compelling the reader to accept DMT as a communication technology rather than simply a drug. The book accomplishes this. I was already convinced, but am even more so now.

Astonishing and believable

Important and inspirational. Aliens are everywhere coming from nowhere, perhaps operating at a negative omega Kardashev scale. The DMT molecule enables them to use the human brain as a canvas and meeting place, a Virtual Reality for them to experience us and we them. A must read for anybody interested in the human condition.

The full history of the molecule was laid out brilliantly.

I loved the entire book, it was eye opening. The way he explains all of the possibilities others has theorized, and then why they don’t make sense.