Book of Shadows (alkuperäinen julkaisuvuosi 1998; vuoden 1998 painos)

This is the best book on witchcraft for beginners that I have ever read. It is not a simple spellbook, but goes into the emotion and spirituality behind the magic. ( )

This is the best book on witchcraft for beginners that I have ever read. It is not a simple spellbook, but goes into the emotion and spirituality behind the magic. ( )

Excellent intro book that doesn't read like a how-to manual. It's her personal story... a journey from a place of thinking witches cavorted with Satan to a place of High Priestess. Fascinating read. ( )

A little fluffy at points, but a good book nonetheless... ( )

In Book of Shadows, the memoirist recounts her experiences as she encounters a group of Witches and becomes an initiate into their coven. This occurs in New York City sometime in the late 1970’s. She considers herself a rational, analytical person and at first has some difficulty merging her new discoveries with her scientific, factual background. This is helpful for the reader, as she explains how history , sociology, and quantum physics play a role in backing up what she is learning. At the same time, she is also trying to build a career in entertainment law and has to contend with a repulsive, smarmy boss in the days before sexual harassment was even a thing. She explores using her new power to improve her situation at work. These vignettes about her actual life were much more interesting, to me, than the historical and scientific background she relates, and often goes into a rant or tangent about right in the middle of an anecdote. She’s to be commended for relating the factual, informative parts to her life, but at times it seemed to almost devolve into a lecture or sermon for the benefit of the reader, rather than naturally flowing with the story. Other times, though, she gave the information as it was imparted to her, either in dialogue or recounting what she learned from a text, which came off as more cohesive and beneficial to the narrative.
The information contained was very helpful, and realistic. The author quickly disabuses the casual reader of the notion that witchcraft is about casting spells and hexes, and explains that the goal is to live more intentionally with the earth and harness its power to improve yourself and your situation, as well as to help and heal others. Although some rituals are described, there are a lot of details left out. This is not a manual –at all. It is a peek into one woman’s journey to enlightenment. She is lucky that she sort of stumbled into these women who were willing to work with her and teach her, and it seems like she almost doesn’t appreciate this. It is much more difficult to gain these skills and insights when working on your own, learning mainly from books.
Recommended for those curious about witchcraft, and fans of memoirs in general. ( )