Scan barcode
schinko94's review against another edition
5.0
This book was absolutely wonderful, and deepened my understanding of Vodou tremendously. Mama Lola, since the time that the book was written, has become one of the most important Haitian-American spiritual leaders in the diaspora, and this book is a stunning account of her life. My only criticism is that, since this book is first and foremost an ethnography, the author is sometimes a bit too analytical. She has to be, because she is an academic, but too much analysis takes away from the orthopracitcal core of Vodou. It is a religion that depends more on what a person does rather than what he or she believes in, and this notion gets somewhat lost when the author expounds her thoughts on spiritual matters. However, on the whole, this book is very good, easy-to-read, and highly enjoyable.
outcolder's review against another edition
5.0
Like [b:Nisa: The Life and Words of a !Kung Woman|93487|Nisa The Life and Words of a !Kung Woman|Marjorie Shostak|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320064595l/93487._SY75_.jpg|90129], which I also loved, this is an ethnography that focuses on one woman informant. Well, one woman and her family. Mama Lola faces a lot of drama, in her own life and in the lives of the Brooklynites she helps by serving the spirits, so there are a lot of amazing stories in here. Brown alternates between chapters written like gonzo journalism and chapters that are more in line with anthropology, which allows for more freakiness than other academic disciplines, but still, strives for something like "truth." I don't know if Haitians or Vodou practicing people think this book is true, but I thought it was amazing. Even at the distance of a few decades and thousands of kilometers, I thought some of the spiritual insights here and theories of magic were helpful for me personally. I also kept flashing back to bits of [a:Nalo Hopkinson|27528|Nalo Hopkinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1361387199p2/27528.jpg] stories and memories of encounters with Santeria when I lived in NYC, which was nice. All in all this is an exciting, warm, and loving book.
izzylashley's review against another edition
4.0
I read this for my comparative religion course, it was honestly pretty good. It was extremely in-depth and I feel like I really did learn a lot about Vodou and what it means to the people who practice it.
meowzik's review against another edition
4.0
An interesting book - subject was fascinating, though I did find the writing a little disjointed at times.
caitjones0310's review against another edition
3.0
Read for my gender studies/religious studies class. Really enjoyed actually reading what vodou is as I have only ever encountered it in its westernised/ appropriated state. Very enjoyable, not too heavy, especially the shorter chapters that traced back Alourdes' family to her great grandfather and analysed how their familial spiritual connection to vodou was passed down, culminating in Alourdes' role as a mambo in Brooklyn
kitsana_d's review against another edition
Bit off more than I could chew. I'm just not up to it right now. It's not really keeping my attention when I do tackle it, so that tells me it's time to move on.
j00j's review against another edition
4.0
This is a really fascinating look at Vodou. Brown talks about it largely from the perspective of the people she grew to know in the course of writing the book, and from her own perspective as she became involved with the religion herself, rather than as an outsider looking at a little-understood (and much-misunderstood) religion. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about Vodou, and to people who want to know more about Haiti, since while the focus is on Haitian immigrants in Brooklyn, their lives and experiences are very much tied to Haiti and the importance of Vodou in Haiti.
More...