Reviews
"An amazing achievement, not just for its depth of research but its breadth, from Massachusetts to Martinique to Mauritius. It must become the classic work on the subject."--Ronald Hutton, author of The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft"Excellent and nuanced."-- History Today"A sweeping, fascinating history... Highly recommended."-- CHOICE"Among the many pleasures of reading Davies' book is the simple, shiver-producing enjoyment of scanning the rich, ominous-sounding titles that he catalogs in the course of charting their historical development."-- Los Angeles Times, "An amazing achievement, not just for its depth of research but its breadth, from Massachusetts to Martinique to Mauritius. It must become the classic work on the subject."--Ronald Hutton, author of The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft "Excellent and nuanced."--History Today "A sweeping, fascinating history....Highly recommended."--CHOICE "Among the many pleasures of reading Davies' book is the simple, shiver-producing enjoyment of scanning the rich, ominous-sounding titles that he catalogs in the course of charting their historical development."--Los Angeles Times "Davies...opens up sp many new and fascinating areas in the history of magic."--Michael D. Baily, Iowa State University "Davies' book is indeed a remarkable accumulation of exotic data...Owen Davies' Grimoires is an extraordinary assortment of riches - it is highly recommended."--Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review, "An amazing achievement, not just for its depth of research but its breadth, from Massachusetts to Martinique to Mauritius. It must become the classic work on the subject."--Ronald Hutton, author of The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft "Excellent and nuanced."--History Today "A sweeping, fascinating history... Highly recommended."--CHOICE "Among the many pleasures of reading Davies' book is the simple, shiver-producing enjoyment of scanning the rich, ominous-sounding titles that he catalogs in the course of charting their historical development."--Los Angeles Times "Davies...opens up sp many new and fascinating areas in the history of magic."--Michael D. Baily, Iowa State University "Davies' book is indeed a remarkable accumulation of exotic data...Owen Davies' Grimoires is an extraordinary assortment of riches - it is highly recommended."--Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review, "An amazing achievement, not just for its depth of research but its breadth, from Massachusetts to Martinique to Mauritius. It must become the classic work on the subject."--Ronald Hutton, author ofThe Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft "Excellent and nuanced."--History Today "A sweeping, fascinating history... Highly recommended."--CHOICE "Among the many pleasures of reading Davies' book is the simple, shiver-producing enjoyment of scanning the rich, ominous-sounding titles that he catalogs in the course of charting their historical development."--Los Angeles Times "Davies...opens up sp many new and fascinating areas in the history of magic."--Michael D. Baily, Iowa State University "Davies' book is indeed a remarkable accumulation of exotic data...Owen Davies'Grimoiresis an extraordinary assortment of riches - it is highly recommended."--Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review, "An amazing achievement, not just for its depth of research but its breadth, from Massachusetts to Martinique to Mauritius. It must become the classic work on the subject."--Ronald Hutton, author ofThe Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft "Excellent and nuanced."--History Today "A sweeping, fascinating history... Highly recommended."--CHOICE "Among the many pleasures of reading Davies' book is the simple, shiver-producing enjoyment of scanning the rich, ominous-sounding titles that he catalogs in the course of charting their historical development."--Los Angeles Times, "An amazing achievement, not just for its depth of research but its breadth, from Massachusetts to Martinique to Mauritius. It must become the classic work on the subject."--Ronald Hutton, author of The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Pagan Witchcraft"Excellent and nuanced."--History Today "A sweeping, fascinating history....Highly recommended."--CHOICE"Among the many pleasures of reading Davies' book is the simple, shiver-producing enjoyment of scanning the rich, ominous-sounding titles that he catalogs in the course of charting their historical development."--Los Angeles Times"Davies...opens up sp many new and fascinating areas in the history of magic."--Michael D. Baily, Iowa State University"Davies' book is indeed a remarkable accumulation of exotic data...Owen Davies' Grimoires is an extraordinary assortment of riches - it is highly recommended."--Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review
Synopsis
No books have been more feared than grimoires, and no books have been more valued and revered. In Grimoires: A History of Magic Books, Owen Davies illuminates the many fascinating forms these recondite books have taken and exactly what these books held. At their most benign, these repositories of forbidden knowledge revealed how to make powerful talismans and protective amulets, and provided charms and conjurations for healing illness, finding love, and warding off evil. But other books promised the power to control innocent victims, even to call up the devil. Davies traces the history of this remarkably resilient and adaptable genre, from the ancient Middle East to modern America, offering a new perspective on the fundamental developments of western civilization over the past two thousand years. Grimoires shows the influence magic and magical writing has had on the cultures of the world, richly demonstrating the role they have played in the spread of Christianity, the growth of literacy, and the influence of western traditions from colonial times to the present., The first ever history of magic books - or grimoires - from the ancient Middle East through to the modern day, from harmless charms and remedies to sinister pacts with the Devil., No books have been more feared than grimoires, and no books have been more valued and revered. In Grimoires: A History of Magic Books , Owen Davies illuminates the many fascinating forms these recondite books have taken and exactly what these books held. At their most benign, these repositories of forbidden knowledge revealed how to make powerful talismans and protective amulets, and provided charms and conjurations for healing illness, finding love, and warding off evil. But other books promised the power to control innocent victims, even to call up the devil. Davies traces the history of this remarkably resilient and adaptable genre, from the ancient Middle East to modern America, offering a new perspective on the fundamental developments of western civilization over the past two thousand years. Grimoires shows the influence magic and magical writing has had on the cultures of the world, richly demonstrating the role they have played in the spread of Christianity, the growth of literacy, and the influence of western traditions from colonial times to the present., What is a grimoire? The word has a familiar ring to many people, particularly as a consequence of such popular television dramas as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed. But few people are sure exactly what it means. Put simply, grimoires are books of spells that were first recorded in the Ancient Middle East and which have developed and spread across much of the Western Hemisphere and beyond over the ensuing millennia. At their most benign, they contain charms and remedies for natural and supernatural ailments and advice on contacting spirits to help find treasures and protect from evil. But at their most sinister they provide instructions on how to manipulate people for corrupt purposes and, worst of all, to call up and make a pact with the Devil. Both types have proven remarkably resilient and adaptable and retain much of their relevance and fascination to this day. But the grimoire represents much more than just magic. To understand the history of grimoires is to understand the spread of Christianity, the development of early science, the cultural influence of the print revolution, the growth of literacy, the impact of colonialism, and the expansion of western cultures across the oceans. As this book richly demonstrates, the history of grimoires illuminates many of the most important developments in European history over the last two thousand years.
