The Virago Book Of Witches

Description

Beware the women who are called witches, or those who claim the name for themselves... Banshees - a howling night-witch and harbinger of death; She-devils - Lilith and her daughters; or Bitches - Hecate, whose chariot is drawn by dogs. Alluring women, enchantresses, seekers of revenge, wise old women and badly-behaved girls. As Shahrukh Husain says: ' witches... womanhood in all its complexity' Over fifty stories of crones and nixies, shape shifters and beauties are here, including the loving fox witch of Japan; Italy's Witch-Bea-Witch; Scotland's Goodwife of Laggan; Biddy Earl and the terrifying Kali and Baba Yaga who comes in many forms to haunt, entice, possess, transform and challenge. From every corner of the globe, with tom-foolery, fun, strife and victory, these folklore and legends celebrate women who step out of line.

Shahrukh Husain writes fiction, non-fiction and scripts for children and adults. She is passionate about world mythology and folklore which provides a link between her two jobs: writing and psychoanalysis and claims to have been in the thrall of witches since childhood. She was born in Karachi, Pakistan and lives in London.

Shahrukh Husain gives us a delightful array of witches of all kinds from across the globe - from the kindly to the cruel, from the wise to the wicked. A collection of stories that won't fail to entertain. -- Elizabeth Lee, author of Cunning Women