Bringing together many of today's key scholars of verbal charming, these essays cover vernacular magical texts and practice from Malaysia to Madagascar, and from England to Estonia. As the most comprehensive collection of research on charms, charmers and charming available in the English language, it forms an essential reader on the topic.

Introduction: Unity and Diversity in Charms Studies; J.Roper PART I: TOPICS AND ISSUES IN CHARMS STUDIES The Charmer's Body and Behaviour as a Window onto Early Modern Selfhood; L.Stark 'If not, shall employ "Rough on Rats"': Identifying the common elements of rat charms; P.Cowdell Miracles and Impossibilities in Magic Folk Poetry; E.Pócs Snakebite Charms from a Gender Perspective; R.Herjulfsdotter Charms as a Means of Coping; U.Wolf-Knuts Towards the Systematization of Narrative Elements of Slavic Charms; V.Klyaus Conformity and Originaligy in Middle English Charms; T.M.Smallwood The Nightmare Charm in King Lear; J.Simpson Expressions of Impossibility and Inevitability in Mari Charms; N.Glukhova& V.Glukhov PART II: NATIONAL TRADITIONS Russian Charms in a Comparative Light; A.Toporkov Slovenian Charms and Conjuring: Between South Slavic and Central European Tradition; M.Kropej Finnish Snake Charms; H.Ilomäki Estonian Narrative Charms in European Context; J.Roper Lithuanian and Latvian Charms: Searching for Parallels; D.Vaitkeviciene Charms in Late Middle English Recipe Collections; L.Olsan The Charms of the Biljana, a Bajalica (Conjurer) in Budisava, Serbia; M.Vivod Verbal Charms in Malagasy Folktales; L.Haring The Structure and Use of Charms in Georgia, The Caucasus; M.Tsiklauri Malay Magic; K.O.Low