Do What Thou Wilt

The legendary Aleister Crowley (1875-1947) is a tantalising and bizarre subject. As an occult leader, heroin addict, sexual adventurer, misogynist, and visionary, he is the inspiration for many vile Gothic protagonists. Author W. Somerset Maugham even devoted a novel, The Magician to this chilling figure of indulgence and religious mockery. Like any good biographer, Lawrence Sutin set out to discover the man behind the myth. After considerable research, Sutin admits that Crowley was "a shameless scoffer at Christian virtue" and "a spoiled scion of a wealthy Victorian family" but he also sees him as a 20th century figure as "protean, brilliant, courageous, and flabbergasting as ever you could imagine".

Consider these facts about the man who named himself "The Great Beast": he was one of the first Westerners to seriously study Buddhism and Yoga. He radically redesigned the traditional Tarot deck (thus the "Crowley deck"). Contrary to common belief, he was never known to participate in satanic ritual--to do so would acknowledge the Christian church, which he was loathe to do (although he nicknamed his son "The Christ Child"). These are but a few of the surprising morsels one can glean from this excellent biography. Don't expect to find Crowley a likeable figure. Do, however, expect to meet a flamboyant man who challenged all forms of religious, sexual, and social oppression and hence became a revered visionary and a reviled demon. --Tara West

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Kether on the biog tree of life! - Rated
Having read nine other biographies of A.C. I consider this to be in many regards the best. Sutin has here managed a thorough and fair treatment of the head spinning character that is Crowley, whom we follow up mountains, through deserts, into psychedelic discombobulation and beyond. Sutin has a great style which carries the reader smoothly through A.C.'s incredible life, never relying too much on extracts from the 'Confessions' as others have done. I feel Sutin's dedication to this book was immense; it really is a superb addition to the library dedicated to Crowley, oozing high quality research and sanity.

Warts and all. - Rated
Crowley has always been a figure deserving of a good biography but untill now he has only ever been portrayed as a charlatan and a pervert. Sutin has tried to draw up a picture of the man without exaggerating or overdramatising him. He never mocks Crowley's vocation and reports on his rituals and experiments with admirable impartiality, giving more credibility to the man as a whole. Overall, Crowley does not come across as a likeable person; he is arrogant, misogynous, intolerant, xenophobic etc But he is also shown as intelligent and capable and, in some cases, justified in his arrogance. Importantly the book never becomes boring, Sutin does not dwell on the more lurid details nor does he resort to reporting anecdotes or rumours. Some well known stories about the man are notably absent from the book. Probably the main problem about with this biography is the lack of concrete fact about Crowley. A good deal of the information in the book is drawn from Crowley's own autobiography and, as Sutin points out, Crowley is not always to be believed.
Overall the book is an enjoyable read, although those looking for sensational and lurid stories may want to look elsewhere, those with an interest in the magickal philosophy of Crowley, will be glad to see that it is presented with the respect that maybe it deserves.