The Rainbow Serpent tickled their stomachs and when the frogs laughed, the water spilled out all over the earth to fill the tracks of the Rainbow Serpent. The book is about a Harvard trained ethnobotanist who goes to Haiti to learn about some of the naturally occuring compounds used in the voudoun culture. Between the two, all creatures must live and die, but because he has a soul man can be trapped in a terrible place where death is only the beginning." It starts as a scientific adventure to discover the chemical makeup of the formula used to create zombis in Haiti. OfI had read this book once before and I (of course) have also seen the movie of the same name that was based on this book. A really thorough description of a mans journey to find the zombies of Haiti. Comments by Bob Corbett Oct. 1987 (With one addition in 1999) This is a strange book which purports to be a search for the putative poisons used in zombification. An illustration of an open book. I originally bought this book because my father told me it was a ‘classic’ of anthropological literature. I don’t know how true that statement is as I never came upon the book in my undergraduate anthropology classes but I didn’t take many cultural classes. Maybe the most interesting and unique non-fiction book I have ever read. Maybe the most interesting and unique non-fiction book I have ever read. See, this zombification is only done as a form of societally sanctioned retributive justice. As in Africa, past and future are but distant measures of the present, and memories are as meaningless as promises.”. There’s definitely some very interesting information in here, and the author deserves credit for taking a sober and serious attitude towards what is a sensationalist topic in the United States, but somehow the fact that it’s written (as a review on the back cover comments) as “a corker of a read” undermines its credibility. The Rainbow is a symbol of Heaven. The Serpent and the Rainbow, by Wade Davis. In 1982 Canadian anthropologist Wade Davis ventured to Haiti to learn if and how voodoo sorcerers turn people into zombies. Not sure what initially compelled me to buy The Serpent and the Rainbow â I get book cravings the way pregnant women get food cravings. One of my favorite passages was a description he wrote early in the book about riding a train. Between the two, all creatures must live and die. "Mr. Davis's book should become a classic in the literature of scientific adventure. Regardless, some wise person whose name I have long forgotten once said that if you faced you fears you would realize how foolish they were. The rainbow serpent was hungry and tricked the young men âI have no shelter, but you can hide in my mouth. As the Rainbow Serpent wound his way across the land, the movement of his body formed the mountains and the valleys where the rivers lived. Ok, but why is this even a practice? Interesting but dated and marred by the incessant fetishization of Haiti and Haitian people. Books. The first step in the process was total immersion in the culture in order to learn, among other things, Creole. As Alan spe⦠He shows you the deep well from whence the the people draw life from, and he shows you the purpose and rite of zombification. I've read this book 3 times. THE SERPENT & THE RAINBOW is a fascinating anthropological study that reads like fiction; capable of holding a readerâs interest from start to finish. “Only, in Haiti, I realized, is it possible to drink rum and haggle with a god.”. I would highly recommend reading this in conjunction with Mountains Beyond Mountains so that you can compare the different appearances of the Ton Ton Macoute. This book is more focused on the zombification practices, and the author's experiences with that. Reissued to coincide with the release of "One River"--a chronicle of Davis' exploration of the Amazon rain forest--"The Serpent and the Rainbow" presents the author's account of his venture into the heart of Haiti, on a search for a powerful sedative--a "zombie drug". He shows you the deep well from whence the the people draw life from, and he shows you the purpose and rite of zombification. - Playboy, "This first hand account reads like inspired fiction. Assisted by local contacts, Davis penetrated the society of houngans (vodoo priests) and bokors (voodoo sorcerers), attended voodoo ceremonies, and after a false start or two o. When I bought THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW by Wade Davis I was on a horror kick, a quest to find a genuinely scary book. He dared to venture into deepest Haiti and consort with dangerous characters in his search for the chemical used to change an ordinary person into a mindless (non-flesh eating) zombie. What I found remarkable about the book was Wade Davis' ability to embrace and respect the voudoun culture (and it is a culture in the full sense of the word) without making western value judgements and assumptions about it. Can't remember much else about it. I completely understand how and why Haiti has evolved to where it is today because of this book. By Wade Davis 1985. To find these, he goes to Haiti and begins to talk to people, eventually finding some who will help escort him around the country finding what he needs. Their poisons, he thought, might be medically valuable—the way curare, an arrow poison discovered by Harvard ethnobotanist Schultes, had proved valuable as a muscle relaxant for surgery. The Rainbow Serpent is known as Ngalyod by the Gunwinggu and Borlung by the Miali. We’d love your help. It starts as a scientific adventure to discover the chemical makeup of the formula used to create zombis in Haiti. And how he instead finds a family. It worked and he worked in Haiti for several years, educating educators offering classes to the (mostly) rural poor in their native language--a rather radical idea in a land where instruction has traditionally been conducted in French, a language foreign to almost everyone there. Book Review: The Serpent and the Rainbow Posted by scottkenemore June 6, 2013 June 11, 2013 Posted in Uncategorized Tags: serpent and the rainbow , wade davis Now and then, I meet people at horror/sci-fi conventions who offer to tell me about their encounters with âreal zombies.â Initially, I was really into this book, and I was impressed by the author’s descriptive talent. This one probably doesn't have as much variety as "tell my horse" might have I don't think? - Atlantic Monthly, "You might call this Indiana Jones Goes Spooking. The pharmaceutical company got word that a voodoo ritual was performed on Christophe and they want Dr. Alan to find what was used in order to replicate it and bring it back to the United States. A book that starts off with the taste of sterile laboratory text. 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. Davis starts out as a botanist looking for the secrets of a certain poison said to be able to raise zombies but in his quest to fully understand the zombie phenomenon, he turns into quite the dedicated cultural anthropologist. I believe this book is very good for 'blancs' to read, because Western society just doesn't engender the capacity to understand Haitian culture, or for that matter any culture that is highly spiritual outside of Judeo-Christian religions. Part of me would like to like it more than I do, and another part wants to hate it, but I can’t commit to either one or the other. And grows throughout to ensnare and hold you, till your sitting next to this man, feeling the mists from this massive waterfall caress your face. 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. It worked and he worked in Haiti for several years, educating educators offering classes to the (mostl. Anthropology students, Caribbean historians, cultural pharmacologists, I have very mixed feelings about this book. The hope is that some of the active compounds may provide a safer alternative to general anaesthesia. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. I spend more time thinking about what to do in the event of a zombie outbreak than is probably good for one's mental health. There are no discussion topics on this book yet. [Opening card] In the legends of voodoo the Serpent is a symbol of Earth. And grows throughout to ensnare and hold you, till your sitting next to this man, feeling the mists from this massive waterfall caress your face. He reports his adventures brilliantly, conjuring up characters and settings vivdly and creatiing sinister suspense with the skill of an accomplished novelist. " This is how the lakes and the rivers were first formed. It is the early 1980's and Harvard educated ethnobotantist (one who scientifically studies the relationship between people and plants) Wade Davis is sent to Haiti to investigate the validity of two reported cases of zombification. Yuppers. A really thorough description of a mans. Overall, there's a bit that's sensationalized and Davis does try to write like a writer, sometimes descending into rather purple prose but it's a fascinating book nonetheless. Turns out that the poison, in the correct dosage, works to essentially turn one comatose until the antidote is administered. Everything you think you know about voodoo is probably wrong. I noticed most of the poor reviews of this book come from people who were expecting to read about zombies and then the odd person who really dislikes Wade Davis. It is only through his understanding of the culture that he is able to learn what he came to find out. The old men told him that the Rainbow Serpent was one of the Dreamtime creatures who had shaped the Earth. Specifically, Davis was approached to locate the poisons and chemicals used to create zombis and the antidotes need to reverse the process. Will read it again. The Serpent and the Rainbow, by Wade Davis. Start by marking “The Serpent and the Rainbow” as Want to Read: Error rating book. This one probably doesn't have as much variety as "tell my horse" might have I don't think? Get it, read it, you should enjoy it. Their poisons, he thought, might be medically valuable—the way curare, an arrow poison discovered by Harvard ethnobotanist Schultes, had proved valuable as a muscle relaxant for surgery. Seeing the rainbow, and knowing serenity as the light falls upon your face. 3 Used from£26.892 New from£11.46. He is a serpent of immense proportions which inhabits deep permanent waterholes. The movie was bad, the book is good, but it’s not a horror story. easily penetrated as Davis describes. I'm not sure what I was expecting - maybe something fairly dry and academic, but I got sucked into Davis' story and thoroughly enjoyed reading about his adventures in Haiti. Note. August 5th 1997 Rain fell for days and days and the world was becoming flooded with water. The script by Richard Maxwell and Adam Rodman is loosely based on the non-fiction book of the same name by ethnobotanist Wade Davis, wherein Davis recounted his experiences in Haiti investigating the story of Clairvius Narcisse, who was allegedly poisoned, buried alive, and revived with an herbal brew which produced what was called a zombie. Ok, but why is this even a practice? If the point was to demonstrate the validity of the Haitian culture and their religious tradition, it succeeded to some extent, but not without relying on tired colonial tropes and sexualization. Pool read, zombied out and slathered in Coppertone. Heck, yeah. Davis and the book were both criticized by many in the scientific community, claiming multiple inaccuracies in his reports. THE SERPENT & THE RAINBOW is a fascinating anthropological study that reads like fiction; easily capable of holding a reader's interest from start to finish. Dr. Dennis Alan, played by Bill Pullman, is asked by a pharmaceutical company to go to Haiti and research a case of a man named Christophe. After graduating from Shimer College, my youngest stepbrother, Erik Badger, sponsored by an undergraduate mentor long active in Haiti, went to the island to work on education projects. Just from an anthropological standpoint, this book is highly interesting, but combined with all of the spiritual, political, and scientific background it becomes truly eye-opening. Does he do some ethically dubious things? Problem is, the book ends very abruptly just when we're getting to that nitty-gritty, so it's a letdown. To see what your friends thought of this book. Turns out that the poison, in the correct dosage, works to essentially turn one comatose until the antidote is administered. I guess most of you saw the movie first and expected that? Davis goes into more, fascinating detail about the representative bodies that make and carry out these punishments. In fact, his symbolic title refers to an ancient creation myth in which the serpent, identified with water and earth, merges with the rainbow, identified with light and air; the result is life. They asked for help sheltering from the rain. Sometimes a topic just overtakes me and I need to have it. I highly recommend this book to ANYONE!! Heck, yeah. He was deposited, alone, in a village where no one spoke English and lived there for several months. He is sort of fictional in some of the book as well I think... Wade Davis's renowned investigation into Haitian zombies has the benefit of featuring a hero who is fearless, rugged and insightful. This is not the case with Serpent and the Rainbow. The reputed purpose of this search is to use these drugs in Western medicine for anesthetic purposes. 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