Do What Thou Wilt

Aleister Crowley was a blustery coward, an arrogant, misogynistic racist with fascist leanings, and a callous user, as often threatened by his sexuality as he claimed to be liberated by it. But he was also a groundbreaking poet and an iconoclastic visionary whose literary and cultural legacies extend far beyond the limits of his reputation. This controversial individual, a frightening mixture of egomania and self-loathing, has inspired passionate--but seldom fair--assesments by historians. Sutin, by treating Crowley as a cultural phenomenon, and not simply a sorcerer or a charlatan, convinces skeptic readers that the self-styled "Beast" remains a fascinating study in eccentricity.
Lawrence Sutin is a professor at the University of Minnesota. His previous works include "Divine Invasions" and "Shifting Realities," on the life and works, respectively, of writer Philip K. Dick.
Aleister Crowley was a blustery coward, an arrogant, misogynistic racist with fascist leanings, and a callous user, as often threatened by his sexuality as he claimed to be liberated by it. But he was also a groundbreaking poet and an iconoclastic visionary whose literary and cultural legacies extend far beyond the limits of his reputation. This controversial individual, a frightening mixture of egomania and self-loathing, has inspired passionate--but seldom fair--assesments by historians. Sutin, by treating Crowley as a cultural phenomenon, and not simply a sorcerer or a charlatan, convinces skeptic readers that the self-styled "Beast" remains a fascinating study in eccentricity.
"Sutin's perceptive study restores this controversial figure to his proper place in the history of modern spirituality."--"Publishers Weekly" (Starred review)
"A rich narrative . . . This is certainly the biography against which to measure the lurid claims and devout counterclaims prompted by the Crowley legend."--"Kirkus Reviews"
"Sutin wonderfully details the eccentricities of this puzzling man . . . The result is a fascinating, easily readable narrative about one of the most interesting cultural phenomena of the late Victorian period."--"Library Journal"
"The definitive biography . . . Sutin's work will remain a benchmark against which all future biographies of Crowley will be measured."--James Wasserman, author of "Art & Symbols of the Occult "and "The Militia of Heaven"