What do you think?
Rate this book
Conjuration: Hoodoo Spells from 1800 to 1920
Previously published as Conjurin' Ole Time, this up-to-date version has been enlarged, corrected, revised and filled with all-new workings from real historical sources! The magical art of hoodoo has been misunderstood throughout its existence. With this historic treasury, you will be able to see the genuine style of spell used by the practitioners of old time, including spells from Doctor Buzzard, Marie Laveau, Zora Neale Hurston and others. This new edition is conveniently organized by spell intent for easy reference. Conjurations CONJURE BAGS, HANDS, MOJOS & GRIS-GRIS - BOTTLES & GOURDS - SIGILS & SACRED WRITINGS - DANCES - LOVE SPELLS - FIDELITY - MARRIAGE - REMOVING LOVE RIVALS - RETURNING LOST LOVERS - MONEY SPELLS - WIN AT GAMBLING - BUSINESS SUCCESS - JOB GETTING - VICTORY IN COURT - ESCAPING LEGAL TROUBLE - GET OUT OF JAIL - AVOIDING CAPTURE - GAINING JUSTICE - JINX, HARM & DEATH SPELLS - VOODOO DOLLS - PROTECTION & JINX-REMOVAL - REMOVING WITCHCRAFT & CONJURE Over 160 spells!
150 pages, Paperback
Published September 13, 2016
16 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 29, 2016
This book was sent to me by the author for an honest review.
Conjuration: Hoodoo Spells from 1800 to 1920 provides an in-depth survey of historical Hoodoo practices gathered from primary sources and loosely grouped by category. It's hard to figure out how to classify this book, and I'm not really sure who its intended audience is. It's not exactly a guide for modern practitioners of Hoodoo. (When describing spells, the voice of the text vacillates between the present tense instructional, and a more distant past tense descriptive.) Nor does it seem to be intended for fellow academics. Perhaps it serves best as a general introduction to Hoodoo magic to those with a hobbyist's interest in such history. Personally, I think it'd be a great resource for authors who need a quick reference guide for depicting fictional characters using authentic Hoodoo spells.
Much of the book reads like a simple list of similar spells from varying sources in a given category, though there aren't always clear citations for each spell. This is definitely the kind of reference book you flip through for examples rather than read cover to cover, as the list format gets plodding and repetitive. The early chapters seem kind of disjointed and there wasn't much of a flow from topic to topic. It does, however provide a pretty decent overview of the history of Hoodoo and the primary sources that are available for studying it. Reading the book through will also give you a great sense of the common themes and patterns throughout different Hoodoo practices, as well as in other folk magic traditions.
Though this is the reworked version of a previous book already published by Talia Felix, it read a bit like a draft and could have used some more careful editing. There were a few simple oversights, such as an entire paragraph being repeated word-for-word 2 pages after it first appeared. But more importantly, I think working with an editor on the overall structure, organization, and tone would have vastly improved the book. Like many self-published works, the book had some unusual formatting, of the sort that probably only bothers publishing professionals and book snobs, but I felt was somewhat distracting (starting chapters on the verso, weird fonts, etc.) I found the bibliography to be particularly unsightly, with huge gaps of white space caused by justified text and long URLs.
Overall, the book contains some great material, but I was a bit put off by the presentation.
Conjuration: Hoodoo Spells from 1800 to 1920 provides an in-depth survey of historical Hoodoo practices gathered from primary sources and loosely grouped by category. It's hard to figure out how to classify this book, and I'm not really sure who its intended audience is. It's not exactly a guide for modern practitioners of Hoodoo. (When describing spells, the voice of the text vacillates between the present tense instructional, and a more distant past tense descriptive.) Nor does it seem to be intended for fellow academics. Perhaps it serves best as a general introduction to Hoodoo magic to those with a hobbyist's interest in such history. Personally, I think it'd be a great resource for authors who need a quick reference guide for depicting fictional characters using authentic Hoodoo spells.
Much of the book reads like a simple list of similar spells from varying sources in a given category, though there aren't always clear citations for each spell. This is definitely the kind of reference book you flip through for examples rather than read cover to cover, as the list format gets plodding and repetitive. The early chapters seem kind of disjointed and there wasn't much of a flow from topic to topic. It does, however provide a pretty decent overview of the history of Hoodoo and the primary sources that are available for studying it. Reading the book through will also give you a great sense of the common themes and patterns throughout different Hoodoo practices, as well as in other folk magic traditions.
Though this is the reworked version of a previous book already published by Talia Felix, it read a bit like a draft and could have used some more careful editing. There were a few simple oversights, such as an entire paragraph being repeated word-for-word 2 pages after it first appeared. But more importantly, I think working with an editor on the overall structure, organization, and tone would have vastly improved the book. Like many self-published works, the book had some unusual formatting, of the sort that probably only bothers publishing professionals and book snobs, but I felt was somewhat distracting (starting chapters on the verso, weird fonts, etc.) I found the bibliography to be particularly unsightly, with huge gaps of white space caused by justified text and long URLs.
Overall, the book contains some great material, but I was a bit put off by the presentation.
Displaying 1 of 1 review