With this book Desmangles has made a significant contribution to providing a scholarly understanding of Vodou. He has shown Vodou to be a well-developed, vibrant folk religion that has played and continues to play a major role in the religious lives of the common people of Haiti. . . . Professors of sociology, anthropology, and religion would be wise to give this book serious consideration for adoption in either graduate or undergraduate courses that deal with folk religion.—Sociology of Religion



An accessible, comprehensive overview of the folk religion of Haiti known as Vodou that takes into account the tremendous variety of religious forms as well as outside influences on the religion. . . . Vital for students of African American and Caribbean religions, but also of interest to anthropologists, political scientists, and historians of religion. Highly recommended.—Choice



The first comprehensive overview of Vodou in the twentieth century that takes into account the tremendous variety of religious forms and influences within the faith. Drawing from first-hand fieldwork in Haiti and the Republic of Benin, the author recognizes Vodou's continuities and discontinuities with the African past. Vital for students of African-American religions, but also of interest to anthropologists, political scientists, sociologists and historians of religion. Likely to be the authoritative study on this topic for years to come.—Stephen D. Glazier, University of Nebraska at Kearney