Ishtar Rising: Or, Why the Goddess Went to Hell and What to Expect Now That She’s Returning by Robert Anton Wilson, cover painting by Sallie Ann Glassman, cover and book design by James Wasserman’s Studio 31, the 1989 first edition from Falcon Press / Golden Dawn Publications, is part of the collection at the Reading Room.

Although this is the first edition of Ishtar Rising, the book was actually and originally published by Playboy Press in 1974 as The Book of the Breast.

“Psychologist, novelist and former Playboy editor Robert Anton Wilson takes you on [a] journey through esoterica and erotica, explaining why Eve in the Bible and Eris in Greek myth were both involved with nefarious apples … why the Great Goddess of the ancients went to Hell, and why most of us go to Hell in our dreams occasionally … why female pacifists baring their breast in front of the Pentagon were unconsciously repeating an ancient religious ritual … why celibates have burned so many ‘witches’ … and more!”— back cover

The Hermetic Library Reading Room is an imaginary and speculative future reification of the library in the physical world, a place to experience a cabinet of curiosities offering a confabulation of curation, context and community that engages, archives and encourages a living Western Esoteric Tradition. If you would like to contribute to the Hermetic Library Reading Room, consider supporting the library or contact the librarian.