The Bathhouse at Midnight: An Historical Survey of Magic and Divination in Russia (Magic in History)
A work of encyclopedic proportions, The Bathhouse at Midnight is sure to be the standard reference on Russian magic for years to come. For being essentially a catalogue, the book reads very smoothly. . . . Thus, this book can be read from cover to cover or, with the detailed table of contents and the index, it can be used to look up a particular phenomenon or beliefs. It will make a fine textbook, and for mature scholars, this is not only a valuable reference tool, but piece of scholarship very much worth emulating. --Natalie Kononenko, Russian ReviewWilliam Ryan's ambitious volume attempts a comprehensive survey of manifestations of magic throughout Russian history. . . . The result is a veritable encyclopedia of magical phenomena and beliefs, drawn from an extensive range of sources, but particularly from medieval texts and ethnographic data collected in the nineteenth century. . . . Ryan's book is a tour de force. It is likely to remain the fundamental reference work on magic in Russia for generations to come. --Eve Levin, Slavic ReviewThe Bathhouse at Midnight is an excellent study and source book of Russian supernatural and magical beliefs that should be read by anyone working with Russian supernatural belief, with the comparative study of belief whether Slavic, European, or Indo-European or with Christian folk religion --David E. Gay, Journal of Folklore Research