Often sensationalistic but well-researched, this is a look at the the Voodoo tradition in New Orleans. From the 19th century Voodoo Queen (or Queens, as Tallant establishes) Marie Laveau, Voodoo permeated all layers of New Orleans society. The author was a New Orleans native and wrote several other fiction and non-fiction books on the topic of Voodoo and New Orleans. He also worked on the Louisiana State and New Orleans City Guides for the WPA Writer's project. The first-hand accounts of Voodoo ceremonies which he gives towards the end of the book ring truer than the historical accounts (some of which are pure 'pulp'). This book provides important historical and ethnographic details of Afro-Carribean religion, as well as plenty of supernatural New Orleans lore and atmosphere.
The copyright on this book at first appeared to have lapsed; no record of a renewal was found in the Copyright Offices' on-line database. On further investigation by a copyright research firm, the copyright does appear to have been renewed on a timely basis by a relative of Mr. Tallant. Attempts to reach the registrant have failed. If the registrant (who we have the name of) contacts us and requests that this book be removed from this site, we will comply, but until then we will leave this text on-line under the 'non-profit archive' provisions of the U.S. Copyright law, because of its rarity and importance for researchers. Please do not reproduce, repost, print or otherwise copy this material. No commercial use of this book is permitted.