Sandra T. Barnes is Professor of Anthropology and Director of African Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. She is author of Patrons and Power: Creating a Political Community in Metropolitan Lagos and Ogun: An Old God for a New Age.

O ... an ethnographically rich contribution to the historical understanding of West African culture, as well as an exploration of the continued vitality of that culture in the changing environments of the Americas.O NAfrican Studies Review OCults involving OgunNthe ancient African god of iron, warfare, and huntingNtranscend boundaries of ethnicity, race, and class. With more than 40 million adherents, the religion thrives in West Africa, South America, the Caribbean, and North America. Essays in this volume document the widespread appeal of Ogun, with each contributor presenting varying insights into the philosophy of life that Ogun embodies .O NChoice O ... leav[es] the reader with a sense of the vitality, dynamism, and complexity of Ogun and the cultural contexts in which he thrives... magnificent contribution to the literature on Ogun, Yoruba culture, African religions, and the African diaspora.O NInternational Journal of Historical Studies New material in second edition: part 3: Transformations of Ogun A Comparative Analysis of Ogun in Precolonial Yorubaland by J.D.Y. Peel Unveiling the Orisha by Philip Scher Repossession: Ogun in Folklore and Literature by Donald J. Cosentino Ogun and Mind/Body Potentiality: Yoruba Scarification and Painting Traditions in Africa and the Americas by Henry John Drewal and John Mason Ogun: Builder of the LukumiOs House by John Mason