Description
Book SynopsisHaunting accounts of real-life exorcisms through the centuries and around the world, from ancient Egypt and the biblical Middle East to colonial America and twentieth-century South Africa
A Penguin ClassicLevitation. Feats of superhuman strength. Speaking in tongues. A hateful, glowing stare. The signs of spirit possession have been documented for thousands of years and across religions and cultures, even into our time: In 2019 the Vatican convened 250 priests from 50 countries for a weeklong seminar on exorcism.
The Penguin Book of Exorcisms brings together the most astonishing accounts: Saint Anthony set upon by demons in the form of a lion, a bull, and a panther, who are no match for his devotion and prayer; the Prophet Muhammad casting an enemy of God out of a young boy; fox spirits in medieval China and Japan; a headless bear assaulting a woman in sixteenth-century England; the possession in the French town of Loudun of an entire convent of Ursuline nu
Trade ReviewSuitably chilling reading for Halloween . . . Shows in illuminating detail how the belief in demonic possession stretches back more than 2,500 years * Economist *
Gripping . . . Thoroughly researched . . . [with a] descriptive flare in rendering the 'goblinlike entities,' jealous demons, and evil spirits . . . This is a boon for anyone curious about exorcism and its wide-ranging, spiritually diverse legacy
* Publisher's Weekly *
Spellbinding . . . Gripping . . . Fascinating . . . Demons, devils, dybbuks, jinn, zar and Chinese fox-spirits abound in accounts dating back to ancient times. . . . The editor's introductions are sharp and cogent. . . . [For] readers hungry for illumination - and a touch of terror * Shelf Awareness *
