The Complete Idiot's Guide(R) to Voodoo

by Shannon R. Turlington

Discusses the history of voodoo, the responsibilities of a voodoo priest or priestess, the charms, spells, and possession involved in voodoo, and the identities of the voodoo gods.

Genres: Nonfiction, Religion

336 pages, Paperback

First published November 14, 2001

Reviews

[Emilie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first got this nearer to the time it was published. I read it again towards the end of last week. It lays out basic information in what I thought was a clear way.

I had previously read older books by anthropologists who used the French words for the terms in the religion. Newer books, even relatively newer, like this one, use spellings from Haitian Kreyol. This is likely more respectful, but I had a harder time figuring out what the words meant. This is my problem, not the problem of the books. I want to know the word origins and the context. A younger reader might simply wish to learn the modern version of the word in the language of the practitioners.

But for clear information, laid out in an easy-to-follow manner, I'd recommend this as a good starting place.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised that I learned something from this book, considering I have studied Haitian Voodoo and from time to time practiced Voodoo on my own. What I found most interesting was the history of Voodoo in Haiti after the slave revolution of 1791. I knew that Voodoo played a major part as a rallying point in the revolution, what I didn't realize was how much the leaders of the rebellion had turned around and repressed the practice after they attained power.

I'm not ordinarily a person who reads idiot guide books, especially not cover to cover, but I'm surprised to say I really enjoyed this one!

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've spent a fair amount of time in New Orleans and wanted to learn more about Voodoo. This book gave a very good overview. One thing I found interesting was that the more the U.S. Military tried to eradicate Voodoo in Haiti, the stronger it grew.

[Jane]

I am not especially interested in Voodoo, but this caught my eye when I was in the library last week looking for cookbooks and I enjoy anything that has a Caribbean focus. This was the first "Idiot's" book I'd ever read, it wa okay.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this book knowing just the Hollywood movie view of voodoo. This book really taught me more and showed me the religious side and not the side we all think we know. Fantastic book for learning this ancient religion. Recommended