Descriere
This richly illustrated history provides a readable and fresh approach to the extensive and complex story of witchcraft and magic.
Telling the story from the dawn of writing in the ancient world to the globally successful Harry Potter films, the authors explore a wide range of magical beliefs and practices, the rise of the witch trials, and the depiction of the Devil-worshipping witch.
The book also focuses on the more recent history of witchcraft and magic, from the Enlightenment to the present, exploring the rise of modern magic, the anthropology of magic around the globe, and finally the cinematic portrayal of witches and magicians, from The Wizard of Oz to Charmed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
As well as a masterly summary of Voltaires life, the reader gains a much better understanding of 18th-century France and Europe. ― David Lorimer, Network Review
An absorbing and illuminating study... Owen Davies succeeds in delivering an excellent, extremely useful work. ― Clive Prince, Magonia Review
Another quality book from Oxford University Press ... beautifully and informatively illustrated ... a goldmine for anyone looking for information on witchcraft and magic and perhaps those looking for inspiration and some unusual little fact or nugget if they want to dabble in some fiction involving witches or magicians, dark or otherwise. ― Ian Hunter, Concatenation
The breadth of knowledge shown here is impressive ... It informs, shocks, repulses and entertains ... The colour plates in the book are in turn sumptuous, beautiful and horrific a scholarly and impressive work ― On Magazine (Yorkshire)
If you are looking for a book about the history of witchcraft that is comprehensive and impeccably researched, but also well written and fascinating to read, then the new The Oxford Illustrated History of Witchcraft and Magic is what you should pop out and buy ... The illustrations, which include colour plates, really add to the book. As a practising witch myself, a photograph of what an ancient magical item or spell really looks like is more use than just a description. ― Bad Witch
[A] richly illustrated collection ... readable and compelling ... this ambitious project presents a helpful, visually stimulating contribution that should find a home as supplemental reading material in relevant undergraduate courses. ― Jodie Ann Vann, Nova Religio
