Although I write fiction that often involves magic and the supernatural, I am a pretty strict rationalist, which I feel is important context for my reAlthough I write fiction that often involves magic and the supernatural, I am a pretty strict rationalist, which I feel is important context for my review of this book. Simply put, I don't subscribe to any of the supernatural beliefs Teish advances in Jambalaya.
That said, I thought the book was excellent. There's music in the language and beauty in the underlying commitments that Teish promotes -- protecting the earth and empowering women. Her philosophy is inclusive and not merely tolerant of, but welcoming to many religions and worldviews. Kindness runs through virtually every page of this book, and a deep and genuine concern for all of those who encounter her ideas.
On top of that, Teish is a natural storyteller of the finest sort -- one whose eloquence seems far more effortless than it actually is.
Magic aside, I believe there are a lot of psychological insights here that many people will find powerfully affirming and valuable. If nothing else, Teish's personal tales are full of warmth and are well worth the read. And while it is aimed at women, we men can gain a lot from this book, too. ...more
Zora Neale Hurston was an author who loved language, and that love is fully evident in Mules and Men. She not only gathers a wonderful collection of "Zora Neale Hurston was an author who loved language, and that love is fully evident in Mules and Men. She not only gathers a wonderful collection of "lies", but vividly brings to life the men and women who told them. Her accounts of her several initiations by various New Orleans Voodoo practitioners are evocative and insightful. This book is a real gift to American culture. Great reading for anyone keen on anthropology or folklore or comparative religions, or simply entertaining stories told with zest and imagination....more
Kenaz Filan offers an excellent and extensively end-noted book that looks at all aspects of New Orleans culture, from its history to its music to the Kenaz Filan offers an excellent and extensively end-noted book that looks at all aspects of New Orleans culture, from its history to its music to the impacts of Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon disaster. All of this is examined in connection to the tradition of voodoo in the Big Easy. While the connections may seem tenuous, the author's point is that voodoo is inextricable from all of these influences -- to be understood as anything other than a stereotype, it must be understood in context.
Those seeking the procedures for creating gris-gris bags or sacred oils will find plenty here; those seeking biographies of famous Voodoo Queens and Root Doctors will also have plenty to sink their teeth into.
The New Orleans Voodoo Handbook is, in many ways, the antidote to Robert Tallant's venerable Voodoo In New Orleans. Tallant's book is entertaining and often compelling, but burdened with prejudices and preconceptions, and rarely sees past the tourist-directed facade of voodoo. Filan's book, by contrast, attempts to delve much deeper. Filan discusses both the flimflam elements and the genuine spirituality involved in New Orleans voodoo.
The book certainly isn't comprehensive -- that would require a library rather than a 294 page paperback. But Final works hard to go beneath the superficial, to illuminate tropes and explore the many roots of voodoo as it manifests in New Orleans. As such, this book is an excellent introduction to the subject matter, and well worth reading....more
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