Review: The Penguin Book of Exorcisms, edited by Joseph P. Laycock

Abstract

Review| February 01 2022 Review: The Penguin Book of Exorcisms, edited by Joseph P. Laycock The Penguin Book of Exorcisms. Edited by Joseph P. Laycock. Penguin Books, 2020. 336 pages. $17.00 softcover; ebook and audiobook available. Donald A. Westbrook Donald A. Westbrook San Jose State University Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Nova Religio (2022) 25 (3): 153. https://doi.org/10.1525/nr.2022.25.3.153 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Donald A. Westbrook; Review: The Penguin Book of Exorcisms, edited by Joseph P. Laycock. Nova Religio 1 February 2022; 25 (3): 153. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/nr.2022.25.3.153 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentNova Religio Search The Penguin Book of Exorcisms is an anthology organized along geographic and topical lines, with sections on the ancient Near East, Greco-Roman world, medieval Europe, early modern Europe and America, Jewish traditions, the Islamic tradition, South and East Asia, and modern exorcisms. Joseph Laycock has singled out three dozen accounts of demon possession and exorcism from around the world. He acknowledges that “the collection emphasizes the Western tradition” (xi) but also draws on documents from places like India, China, Japan, Tibet, and elsewhere. Each section includes helpful introductory remarks from the editor before the source is then allowed to speak for itself. Laycock has drawn from a variety of works, including “poetry and popular legends, treatises by physicians and theologians, letters and diary entries by clergy, reports from missionaries and colonial officers” (xi), and more. Material from Ashurbanipal’s library, Josephus, the Atharva Veda, the Qur’an, and numerous other sources appear... You do not currently have access to this content.