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The Serpent and the Rainbow: A Harvard Scientist's Astonishing Journey into the Secret Society of Haitian Voodoo, Zombis and Magic
by Wade Davis
- Used
- good
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Good/good
- ISBN 10
- 0671502476
- ISBN 13
- 9780671502478
- Seller
-
Benson, Vermont, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985. First Edition. Hardcover. Good/good. Shelf wear to the book; more to tips, corners, and edges of jacket which is rubbed with creases. First printing, full number line. "an arresting account of his search for poisons and antidotes presumably used to create zombis, the victims usually selected by a secret society tribunal. Analysis revealed that the poisons contain a substance that lowers the metabolic rate almost to the point of clinical death, from which, with the help of sorcerers, bodies may be raised from the grave. Vodoun priests, witnesses and alleged zombisone of whom Davis metmaintained that the victims of such unnatural deaths are often turned into robot-like slaves. How Davis gained access to the all-powerful network of secret societies similar to those of West Africa, witnessed and even participated in their meetings provides the final key to the zombi mystery. "--Publishers Weekly. Every effort is made to ship all books and other items within 24 hours. Clean recycled packing material will be used when possible. The Book Shed has a been a member of the Vermont Antiquarian Bookseller's Association since 1997. An online bookseller with a bookshop sensibility!
Synopsis
In April 1982, ethnobotanist Wade Davis arrived in Haiti to investigate two documented cases of zombis -- people who had reappeared in Haitian society years after they had been officially declared dead and had been buried. Drawn into a netherworld of rituals and celebrations, Davis penetrated the vodoun mystique deeply enough to place zombification in its proper context within vodoun culture. In the course of his investigation, Davis came to realize that the story of vodoun is the history of Haiti -- from the African origins of its people to the successful Haitian independence movement, down to the present day, where vodoun culture is, in effect, the government of Haiti's countryside. The Serpent and the Rainbow combines anthropological investigation with a remarkable personal adventure to illuminate and finally explain a phenomenon that has long fascinated Americans.
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Details
- Bookseller
- The Book Shed
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 2003582
- Title
- The Serpent and the Rainbow: A Harvard Scientist's Astonishing Journey into the Secret Society of Haitian Voodoo, Zombis and Magic
- Author
- Wade Davis
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Good
- Jacket Condition
- good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First Edition
- ISBN 10
- 0671502476
- ISBN 13
- 9780671502478
- Publisher
- Simon & Schuster
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1985
- Bookseller catalogs
- Science & Technology;
Terms of Sale
The Book Shed
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About the Seller
The Book Shed
Biblio member since 2007
Benson, Vermont
About The Book Shed
The Book Shed, now an internet only bookshop, has been a member of the Vermont Antiquarian Bookseller's Association for over twenty years. We stock good, hand selected books in a wide range of subjects. Our inventory of thousands is deep in cook books, philosophy and religion, American history and literature, especially British fiction particularly the works of and about Anthony Powell and his twelve novel sequence A Dance to the Music of Time. We also invite you to browse or listings of rock and jazz vinyl records.Items may be purchased through our website via PayPal or by contacting us directly to arrange payment. Occasionally additional shipping will be required for heavy items or sets most often for overseas delivery. Every effort is made to have your purchase in the US postal system within 24 hours. Please call (802) 345-3081 if you wish to use other delivery services.Like us on Facebook or you may also find us on the web at ABE Books, Biblio or Amazon. We work hard to maintain a five star rating on these sites.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Shelf Wear
- Shelf wear (shelfwear) describes damage caused over time to a book by placing and removing a book from a shelf. This damage is...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Number Line
- A series of numbers appearing on the copyright page of a book, where the lowest number generally indicates the printing of that...
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