The Secret History of Poltergeists and Haunted Houses By Claude Lecouteux © 2012 Inner Traditions International ISBN: 978-1-59477-465-2 246 pages Paperback $18.95 (U.S.) I expected The Secret History of Poltergeists and Haunted Houses to be little more than a collection of reports of the paranormal. I was surprised to find this book to be much, much more. To start with I learned that while spirits that make noise, usually knocking noises have been around for quite some time the term poltergeist is relatively new; first appearing in a dictionary in 1540. The first chapter of the book is devoted to explain what a poltergeist, or what we have come…

The Spellcasting Picture Book By Diana Rajchel © 2008, 2011 Diana Rajchel 48 pages electronic book available at http://www.dianarajchel.com The Spellcasting Picture Book’s full title is The Spellcasting Picture Book: Visual tools for grown-ups. At first glance it does appear to be a children’s picture book and not a book for adults. Further investigation reveals this to be a fun and inventive book. The book is full of fun colorful pictures with directions or spells. The artwork is done primarily in crayon and inspires the reader to take the whole further with their own fun with crayons and spells. The author does state the spells are designed for the reader…

Mystery Teachings from the Living Earth By John Michael Greer © 2012 by John Michael Greer ISBN: 978-1-57863-489-7 140 pages Paperback $16.95 (U.S.) Mystery Teachings from the Living Earth was both informative and thought provoking. The author starts with a brief discussion of the difference between a real and false Mystery School. Like most Mystery Schools this book is mostly a discussion of Seven Laws of Ecology.  The Seven Laws covered are The Law of Wholeness, The Law of Flow, The Law of Balance, The Law of Limits, The Law of Cause and Effect, The Law of the Planes, and The Law of Evolution. Each of these laws is explained…

Witchy Crafts By Lexa Olick © 2013 Llewellyn Books ISBN: 978-0-7387-2618-2 278 pages Paperback $19.99 (U.S.)   Witchy Crafts is more than just a book with Craft ideas and projects. The author starts the book with a discussion on materials with information on real over manufactured materials and how to tell the difference. starts out with a discussion of materials. It can be difficult to tell real from fake do to the way the items are advertised. I was not aware that feathers could be faked before reading this book.   In some craft books the author will advise using one technique or another that requires looking up that technique…

Magica Sexualis, Sexual Practices for Magical Power             By Paschal Beverly Randolph and Maria de Nablowska and translated by Donald Traxler © 2012 by Donald C. Traxler ISBN: 978-1-59477=418=8 174 pages Paperback $16.95 (U.S.)   Magica Sexualis was a pleasant surprise. I expected a book written in modern times that was basically a sex position and sex manual. Instead I found a comprehensive and in depth study of sexual practices originally complied in the 1800’s by the occultist Pashal Beverly and later translated and possibly augmented by Maria de Nablowska. This work was originally written in French, to be translated again by Donald Traxler who…

The Best of Equinox Enochian Magick Volume 1 by Aleister Crowley © 2012 Red Wheel/Weiser ISBN: 978-1-57863-530-6 204 pages Paperback $18.95 (U.S.) The Equinox, was originally a magikakl journal published by Aleister Crowley from 1909 -1919. Aleister Crowley is well known for his work with Enochian magick, a distillation of the work of the famous Elizabethan magi John Dee. This book contains an excellent introduction to the subject by Lon Milo Duquette. As a general rule I usually skip over the introduction of a book and dive directly into bulk of the manuscript. In this case I and the introduction an informative guide to the rest of the text. While…

  Goblinproofing One’s Chicken Coop by Reginald Bakely © 2012 by Reginald Bakely ISBN: 978-1-57324-532-6 190 pages Paperback $14.95 (U.S.) Do you have problems with goblins in your chicken coop? How about Brownies in your home or Dwarfs cluttering up your yard or farm? Like many others I saw Fairy Kingdom and most of it’s inhabitants as cute little creatures who meant no harm or at least only played tricks. Reading this book I learned how wrong I was, but more important I learned how to deal with these pest and which are actually good to eat. The author has done significant research into the areas he discusses and gives…