Voodoo Books and Information: The Voodoo and Vodou Bookstore

The Voodoo and Vodou Bookstore

Most of the books reviewed here can be hard-to-find in your local bookstore unless you're in a city with lots of Voodoo interest. To make things easier, the New Orleans Cemetery & Voodoo pages in Association with Amazon.com have developed this online Voodoo Bookstore.

Voodoo Bookstore Information

	Simply browse the highlighted items, read my comments, then click to order the book. If you'd like other titles, a search feature is available at the bottom of the page. Included are several books about Voodoo, Santeria, Macumba, and related topics. The bookstore includes my comments.
	I've put a vever of Ayizan next to highly recommended books. If you disagree with recommendations or comments or have other books to add, send me the info. Shipping Options Customer Service Amazon.com payment options, security, and privacy Amazon.com offers customers a safe option for Internet purchases: all transactions use SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), which encrypts any information they type in. Amazon.com accepts American Express, Diners Club, Discover, JCB, MasterCard, Eurocard, Visa, Visa Check Cards, Amazon.com gift certificates, and checks, money orders, or cashier's checks denominated in U.S. dollars and drawn on a U.S. bank.

	Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti Maya Deren's classic work on Haitian Voodoo. This book is serious and interesting. Though written in 1953, feels contemporary. Buy this one. Also a companion Divine Horsemen video is sometimes available. The footage was shot by Deren and edited by Teiji and Cherel Ito after Deren's death. The video is difficult to get and pricing varies.
	The Serpent & the Rainbow and Passage of Darkness: The Ethnobiology of a Haitian Zombie Two knockout books by Wade Davis exploring the cultural and chemical possiblities that Zombies are more than a folktale or a Hollywood creation.
	Voodoo in Haiti Alfred Metraux's book is interesting because it was written so shortly after Deren's. He seems to take the religion less seriously, especially his views on possesion.
	Secrets of Voodoo by Milo Rigaud. The language in this book sometimes makes it read like an awkward translation. From the French in 1953, the same year as Divine Horsemen, the English version was copyrighted in 1969. No index makes finding specifics difficult. Cool pictures. Includes a very brief section on the connectivity of the African religions in the Americas from Brazil to New Orleans.
	The Sacred Art of Haitian Vodou from the UCLA/Fowler museum exhibit. This is great! Excellent photos and text. I also got the CD, Rhythms of Rapture: Sacred Music of Haitian Vodou. Both very worthwhile.
	Vodou Things : The Art of Pierrot Barra and Marie Cassaise Looks great! From Donald J. Cosentino who did the UCLA exhibit book.
	Sacred Possessions: Vodou, Santeria, Obeah, and the Caribbean edited by Margarite Fernéndez Olmos and Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert. This is a great book with many intersting, if slightly academic, essays and photos.
	Action & Grace: Soul of Urban Vodou Vodou music without synthesizers or pop arrangements. Puritan Vodou from RAM. Haitian roots music.
	The New Orleans Voodoo Tarot/Book and Card Set with art by Sallie Glassman. A beautiful set. You must buy this. Also check out her new book, Vodou Visions.
	American Voudou by Rod Davis. OK, I got this one as a present last Christmas, started it, and really didn't like the author's use of "Voudou" to mean anything connected with African belief in the Americas. It bugged me and I stopped reading it. I just started it again 8 months later and really enjoyed it. I understand what he was trying to do, although I still think his terminology hurt the book. Overall, a good discussion of the African experiences in hoodoo, Voudou, and Santeria all over the USA. Still, told by a white guy, but overall it was a worthwhile and informative read.
	Voodoo: Search for the Spirit by Laennec Hurbon. This book is part of the Discovery series from Abrams publishing. It's a nicely photographed little introduction to Haitian Vodou with some references to U.S. Voodoo. Nice production quality and artwork.
	Angels in the Mirror/Zanj Nan Miqa : Vodou Music of Haiti This new title is a CD/book combo from ellipsis arts...They produce excellent titles.
	Tell My Horse and Mules and Men Both by Zora Neale Hurston. The first is subtitled Voodoo and Life in Haiti and Jamaica, the second has a section on Hoodoo. I loved both, but reread Mules and Men. Very good stuff!
	Voodoo Past and Present by Ron Bodin. I picked this up in New Orleans. It's from 1990 and has some interesting materials. Ava Kay Jones is profiled. She's also featured in American Voudou by Rod Davis.
	Voodoo & Hoodoo by Jim Haskins has lots of folk hoodoo information including gris-gris formulas. Very cool old hoodoo advertising and photos are in the book. Is Dixie Drugs still in business in New Orleans? I unsuccessfully tried to find it.
	New Orleans Voodoo from the Inside This video looks very interesting. It features Ava Kay Jones. (See Voodoo Past and Present and American Voudou for related titles.)
	Jambalaya : The Natural Woman's Book of Personal Charms and Practical A popular title.
	The Faces of the Gods: Vodou and Roman Catholicism in Haiti A great book!
	Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn by Karen McCarthy Brown Updated! An excellent, interesting read. Covers the experience of a native New Yorker and her relationship with a Haitian immigrant.
	Vodou Box from Chronicle Books New An overview of Vodou, includes a "spirit bottle" and a box that transforms into an altar. Perfect for gift giving at the office this holiday season!
	Voodoo in New Orleans Robert Tallant's 1946 book that's got some interesting stories usually told from a Hollywood attitude about Voodoo. Interestingly, some stories make you seem that he takes Voodoo seriously, then he slides back into sensationalism. One of the few books specifically about New Orleans Voodoo.
	The Voodoo Queen is Robert Tallant's novel based on the life of Marie Laveau. It's based on facts and legend and is pretty entertaining.
	Elysium: A gathering of souls-New Orleans Cemeteries Not really Voodoo, but you'll see where the Voodoo Queen, Marie Laveau's tomb is!
	Mysterious Marie Laveau—Voodoo Queen and Folk Tales along the Mississippi by Raymond J. Martinez is from 1956. It's for sale new at the French Market flea market for $4.95. If you by it elsewhere expect to pay from $6.95-$9.95. It's a fun read full of invention and some fact.
	Santeria, Rituals and Spells of Santeria, The Santeria Experience, and Santeria: The Religion all four by Migene Gonzalez-Wippler. Each has a different focus and scope, with some overlap. Her writing is best in Santeria: The Religion, but the other titles are less mainstream and very interesting.
	Voudoun Fire: The Living Reality of Mystical Religion by Melita Denning & Osborne Phillips. This large-format book has some interesting line drawings and info. It's focus is on amateur photos from Voodoo ceremonies taken by Gloria Rudolph that show amazing strings and ribbons of "fire" swirling around participants. Apparently this swirling light wasn't visible during the ceremony and the photos are undoctored.
	Drums of Terror: Voodoo in the Cinema Looks like a good title.
	Spirits of the Night: The Vaudun Gods of Haiti OK book. Kind of light introduction to Vodou.
	Urban Voodoo: A Beginners Guide to Afro-Caribbean Magic This book isn't terribly well written and it's more about Santeria/Lucumi and not Voodoo at all. If you're into Western or Euro-magic, this book might be for you, as it writes from that background.
	Crisis of Possession in Voodoo Interesting, but seems dated. Good possession stories.
	The Voodoo Kit People seem to have fun with it.

	Famous Voodoo Rituals & Spells: A Voodoo Handbook by H.U. Lampe. A classic gris-gris manual with info about Hoodoo and some Voodoo proper. NOTE: This book is not currently available online, that I know of. You should be able to get it at your local botanica or occult shop. Look in your yellow pages for religious supplies or candles and herbs to find a local shop. If you can't find it, email me and I'll get you one at cost + shipping. No markup for me! See the Hoodoo bookstore for more information.

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