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Haitian Vodou: Spirit, Myth, and Reality. Patrtrick Bellegardrde-Smith & Claudine Michel (eds.). Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2006. xxvii + 161 pp. (Paper US$ 24.95)
Haitian Vodou: Spirit, Myth, and Reality is notable for containing essays written solely by Haitian academics, some of whom, as practitioners of Vodou, are able to offer an insider's perspective on the role of the religion in Haitian daily life and culture. Included in the volume are a discussion of the concept of personhood as it is understood in the Vodou worldview by Guerin Montilus; the application of the principles of quantum physics as a lens through which to view Vodou ontology by Reginald Crosley; an exploration of the influence of Vodou on Haitian collective memory and history by Patrick Bellegarde-Smith; a discussion of the roles of teacher and student within the informal structure of Vodou pedagogy by Claudine Michel; an overview of the genres and customary functions of Vodou music by Gerdes Fleurant; the influence of Vodou ideology on peasant protest music by Renald Clerisme; insights from ten female priests of Vodou on spirituality, sexuality, and gender by Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, Claudine Michel, and Marlene Racine-Toussaint; a discussion of Vodou aesthetics by Marc Christophe; an exegesis of Marasa (twin) symbolism in Lilas Desquiron's 1990 novel, Les chemins de Loco-Miroir, by Florence Bellande-Robertson; and a discussion of methods of holistic medicine and herbalism in Vodou culture by Max Beauvoir. While some of the essays are invaluable for their insights and/or fresh perspectives - Michel's discussion of the educational ethos of Vodou, Beauvoir's explication of medicinal herbalism...