A naive but intrepid young man, fresh from university in the 1960s, takes a well-paid banking job in Brazil for which he is ill-suited, at a time when the country hardly figures on the world stage. Inspired by Brazil's rich African heritage and the remarkable powers of voodoo priests to heal the sick, he gives up banking and returns to live as a research student in remote communities, examining how serious illnesses are cured by herbs, flogging and fumigation.
The Banker Who Turned to Voodoo
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
...yet I know it's all true. An excellent read, full of atmosphere and vibrancy. The author saw the lighter side of things but also took a serious interest in the lives of his hosts, all captured with great affection, and a lot of laughs. I enjoyed it greatly.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By IGM
Format:Paperback
This is a very interesting account of how the African Slaves' Pagan beliefs, deities and practices were tolerated by the Catholic Church provided all the Slaves were baptised and instructed in Christian beliefs. There are numerous illustrations of direct links between Christian Saints and African deities. Thus was honour satisfied for both parties !
This acceptance of African culture and beliefs persists to the present day
There is an interview with a woman well into her nineties who could remember the time when slaves were liberated in 1888 and who could recall her father "plodding wearily back from the sugar-fields with cumbersome shackles on his ankles" Also with another woman who rolled cigars in the tobacco factory until mechanisation made such workers redundant.
There are many illustrations of the poverty that existed in the sixties. Bank clerks who did all the work being paid a small fraction of the salary of trainees with little or no useful work to do. Bar tenders whose weekly pay was roughly equal to the cost of a round of drinks. Worst of all - whole families surviving on hand-me-downs and unwanted scraps of food from garbage containers. All these experiences caused the author to ponder deeply, and prompted him to examine further what life was like in remoter parts.
He attended and described in detail how a cult healer performed exorcisms and healings which reminded one that similar "faith healings" used to be part and parcel of Christianity, but the skills have in most cases wasted away over the years. As the author puts it: "You cannot but believe that there are forces, still not properly understood, that can and do work for the good of all".
This acceptance of African culture and beliefs persists to the present day
There is an interview with a woman well into her nineties who could remember the time when slaves were liberated in 1888 and who could recall her father "plodding wearily back from the sugar-fields with cumbersome shackles on his ankles" Also with another woman who rolled cigars in the tobacco factory until mechanisation made such workers redundant.
There are many illustrations of the poverty that existed in the sixties. Bank clerks who did all the work being paid a small fraction of the salary of trainees with little or no useful work to do. Bar tenders whose weekly pay was roughly equal to the cost of a round of drinks. Worst of all - whole families surviving on hand-me-downs and unwanted scraps of food from garbage containers. All these experiences caused the author to ponder deeply, and prompted him to examine further what life was like in remoter parts.
He attended and described in detail how a cult healer performed exorcisms and healings which reminded one that similar "faith healings" used to be part and parcel of Christianity, but the skills have in most cases wasted away over the years. As the author puts it: "You cannot but believe that there are forces, still not properly understood, that can and do work for the good of all".
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Meliclare
Format:Paperback
An intriguing title and a compelling personal account of expat life in Brazil in the 1960's, this is an interesting and thought-provoking read. Paul Williams has a knack for engaging the reader with his witty and insightful prose. His clever, detailed cinematographic style has the effect of drawing the reader into the action - a literary editorial trick in the style of Guy Ritchie. Read the opening paragraph and you'll see what I mean.
Not only are the insights into the British and Brazilian banking world as a trainee in the 60's interesting, they are highly amusing too and Williams describes the characters involved with great skill. His adventures in Brazil are at once fascinating and terrifying as he becomes unwittingly involved in a murder and flees the country.
The second half of the book has a rather different feel as he returns to Brazil, penniless, as a research student with a typewriter, recording equipment and an open and enquiring mind. His research takes him to Itaparica, the Island of the Dead and deep into the Amazon rainforest where he meets witch doctors and spiritual healers, gaining trust, friends and information thanks to his linguistic skills and becoming in the process one of the pioneers of Amazonian anthropology.
Well worth reading, this book is a real page-turner, which will give you valuable insights into the `dark side' of Brazil and make you question conventional medicine as we know it.
Not only are the insights into the British and Brazilian banking world as a trainee in the 60's interesting, they are highly amusing too and Williams describes the characters involved with great skill. His adventures in Brazil are at once fascinating and terrifying as he becomes unwittingly involved in a murder and flees the country.
The second half of the book has a rather different feel as he returns to Brazil, penniless, as a research student with a typewriter, recording equipment and an open and enquiring mind. His research takes him to Itaparica, the Island of the Dead and deep into the Amazon rainforest where he meets witch doctors and spiritual healers, gaining trust, friends and information thanks to his linguistic skills and becoming in the process one of the pioneers of Amazonian anthropology.
Well worth reading, this book is a real page-turner, which will give you valuable insights into the `dark side' of Brazil and make you question conventional medicine as we know it.
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4.3 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Couldn't put it down
Fascinating account of Brazil as it could never be described again. Who would have thought that in the relatively recent past, slinging the body of a dead tramp onto the back of a... Read more
Published 2 months ago by EdWill
4.0 out of 5 stars
Magic!
A delightful, fast-moving read, full of humour and the little details that make one want to see this country as it was, and hold on to the appeal it had for a young man in the... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Winefride2
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Compelling Read
I recommend this intriguing book. It is atmospheric and humorous with some thought provoking insights into the life and ancient customs of the native inhabitants of the Amazon. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Margot Konitzer
5.0 out of 5 stars
A true must-read
A really evocative and hilarious account of an amazing time and place. Paul Williams recounts his extraordinary adventures in Brazil with enormous warmth and humour, I simply... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Clarrey
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very entertaining and insightful
A highly readable and entertaining book about life and culture in Brazil in the late 60s and early 70s. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Carlitos Castor
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love, death and parrots
Think being a trainee banker or researching for a PhD sound dull? Think again! Paul Williams vividly portrays his life-changing experiences in Brazil and illustrates them with the... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Parker51
5.0 out of 5 stars
Deeply witty and fascinating observations
I had the tremendous good fortune to be taught Spanish by Paul and his wonderful wife, Rosie. Not knowing that they had spent some of their youth in such adventures, I was... Read more
Published 9 months ago by JWT
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful!
Paul Williams' autobiographical account of 1960s Brazil captures the spirit of a unique time and place and he tells the dazzling story of his early adulthoood with marvellous... Read more
Published 9 months ago by TEGM
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thoroughly enjoyable
Downloaded it yesterday and have spent today reading your thoroughly enjoyable, entertaining and thought provoking book. I would recommend it to all - when's the next one?
Published 9 months ago by Emma B
5.0 out of 5 stars
You MUST buy this book
A real page turner, but also a book which made me stop and think. One enters another time, another universe - a surreal, intense and hilarious world where anything is possible (a... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Neriman Kamcili
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