Jamaican Folk Medicine: A Source Of Healing

This is very interesting for anthropology enthusiasts and those interested in the Caribbean, medicine, or magic. It fully details traditional healing practices in Jamaica and how they interact with spirit possession faiths such as Myal and magical traditions such as Obeah. It also examines the effects of colonialism, the difficulties of communication and understanding between English speaking Westernized Jamaicans and Jamaican dialect speaking ordinary Jamaicans, and discusses the effects of budgetary cutbacks on medical access. This is mostly for targeted readers, but also is surprisingly fun for those interested in supernatural shows such as The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, because it explains what vervain and Obeah are, which are mentioned on those shows.

"Jamaica Folk Medicine: A Source of Healing" is a very informative book on Jamaica's folk medicine traditions. A variety of styles and practices are explored including Jamaican bush doctors, balm yard healers, kumina, obeah, myal and mother healers. "Jamaica Folk Medicine" is an in-depth study by two Ph.D's with input from their students, in short, it is built on solid scholarship. The book highlights Jamaican healing methods but also discusses its connections to other forms of healing in the African diaspora and elsewhere. The only thing readers might have to get past is the dry writing style--once you get past the lackluster presentation, there is much to learn. This is the type of book you will want on your book shelf rather than taking it out of the library--readers interested in this topic, will return to this dense book again and again.

Very informative book. I like to imagine it's a prequel to the second season of Luke Cage.

Great info. Had to buy for my anthropology and nursing course.

Rarely are the sciences of the Caribbean or Africa shared. This is an important book.

Great book

This is a comprehensive, detailed, and scholarly account of `folk medicine' or `ethnomedicine' in Jamaica, largely from the perspective of medical anthropology. Payne-Jackson is an American anthropologist and Alleyne a Jamaican linguist. They demonstrate an extensive knowledge of the published literature on the subject and, in addition, have done extensive field research. The book effectively covers herbal, spiritual, and magical causes and treatments for illnesses and misfortunes. Jamaicans still utilize a large number of herbal treatments, along with magical oils, incense, and powders. In most cases, their folk medicine is intimately tied to religious beliefs and practices. Traditional healers are still common in the population. Even though the medical profession and government institutions ignore the folk sector, the authors argue that folk medicine is increasing in popularity, partly because of the difficulty of accessing and affording mainstream medicine but also because of the faith people hold in it. The book is well-organized, clear and easy to follow. It is also definitely the best source of information on the topic.

I bought this book after spotting it in a library review abroad and was interested in the subject matter. Unfortunately I made the mistake of literally flicking through the pages without propery reading a segment of it. So although the book is informative it seems to be the backbone of the authors university studies and is not an easy font of knowledge for everyday use. My fault and not the authors, but will be digested when I have the time and the inclination. Jamaican Folk Medicine: A Source of HealingJamaican Folk Medicine: A Source of Healing

Don't waste your money