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Book Review – Spell Jars for the Modern Witch by Minerva Siegel
Book Review Spell Jars for the Modern Witch: A Practical Guide to Crafting Spell Jars for Abundance, Luck, Protection, and More By Minerva Siegel Publisher: Ulysses Press 160 pages Publication Date: June 6, 2023 Minerva Siegel gives readers 50 recipes for spell jars, and the magickal fundamentals to know before you begin. While the title is “Spell Jars for the Modern Witch,” you don’t have to be a witch to protect, manifest, or heal. Also known as witch bottles, they contain the elements of a spell, and can easily be recharged and refreshed to offer long-lasting effects. The first part of the book describes six psychic…
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Book Review – The Witch’s Yearbook: Spells, Stones, Tools, and Rituals for a Year of Modern Magic by Clare Gogerty
Book Review The Witch’s Yearbook: Spells, Stones, Tools, and Rituals for a Year of Modern Magic By Clare Gogerty Publisher: David & Charles 128 pages Publication Date: August 10, 2021 Clare Gogerty, a seasoned practitioner of the craft, gives a year’s worth of ideas and wisdom for celebrating the sabbats that makes for a helpful resource for beginners. Chapters begin with an introduction to the festival, a topic of interest (trees for Mabon, the moon at Yule, magical creatures for Ostara), botanical and crystal correspondences, holiday traditions and customs, rituals and spells, and a witchy craft (apple wand, incense, Brigid’s cross). On the Samhain pages, for…
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Book Review – Spells for Change: A Guide for Modern Witches by Frankie Castanea
Book Review Spells for Change: A Guide for Modern Witches Written by Frankie Castanea Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing 208 Pages Release Date: April 22, 2023 Frankie Castanea called Spells for Change: A Guide for Modern Witches the book she wish she had at sixteen when she began her on her path. It provides the basic foundations beginners need for understanding the history, elements, tools, crystals, herbs, and spell crafting. Castanea, a practicing eclectic/folk witch, found herself answering all the questions she’s received as a mentor while building her audience on social media platforms. The information is purposefully devoid of any particular path or religion, focusing instead…
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Book Review – Herbal Tea Magic for the Modern Witch: A Practical Guide to Healing Herbs, Tea Leaf Reading, and Botanical Spells by Elsie Wild
Book Review Herbal Tea Magic for the Modern Witch: A Practical Guide to Healing Herbs, Tea Leaf Reading, and Botanical Spells by Elsie Wild Published by Ulysses Press 224 pages Publication date: November 23, 2021 If you like tea and want to know more about its magical use, you’re certain to enjoy Herbal Tea Magic for the Modern Witch. This book is a modern introduction to basic herbs, mixing and brewing tea, tasseography, and basic herbal magic. The first chapter explores the history of herbalism and tasseography. This history is fairly short, but provides a good basis of context for what follows. Chapter two lists a number of…
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Book Review – Witch, Please: Empowerment and Enlightenment for the Modern Mystic by Victoria Maxwell
Book Review Witch, Please: Empowerment and Enlightenment for the Modern Mystic by Victoria Maxwell Published by Red Wheel208 Pages Published: March 2022 “When we start getting into magical work we often get so carried away with the magic, connection to spirit and high- vibe feelings that we forget to ground ourselves in the here and now. But grounding is incredibly important. If we don’t stay grounded, our magic has nowhere to anchor itself. We can try to manifest amazing things in our lives, but if we aren’t present in our own bodies and in our own lives, that magic has nowhere to go. Or sometimes what happens is…
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Book Review – The Modern Witchcraft Guide to Runes: Your Complete Guide to the Divination Power of Runes by Judy Ann Nock
Book Review The Modern Witchcraft Guide to Runes: Your Complete Guide to the Divination Power of Runes by Judy Ann Nock Publisher: Adams Media 254 Pages Publication Date: 2022 Recently I was participating in a class that briefly taught about runes. Being the person that I am, I went out and purchased a set of runes. I got a book and I learned all about runes…or so I thought. The Modern Witchcraft Book of Runes taught me so much more than I had learned in class, from my rune book or from the internet. First, this book is well-written and enjoyable to read. Second, is the organization of…
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Book Review – The Divination Handbook: The Modern Seer’s Guide to Using Tarot, Crystals, Palmistry, and More by Liz Dean
Book Review The Divination Handbook The Modern Seer’s Guide to Using Tarot, Crystals, Palmistry, and More by Liz Dean Fair Winds Press 176 Pages I love little guidebooks like this. I must have well over a dozen of them. In each one, there’s an overview of a half-a-dozen or so divination methods – sometimes more – and even though the information may often be more or less the same in all the books, they each have some nugget of enlightenment that the other books don’t have – which is why I collect these books. And quite honestly, you can’t have too many books! The Divination Handbook: The Modern Seer’s…
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Book Review – Shamanic Healing: Traditional Medicine for a Modern World by Itzhak Beery
Book Review Shamanic Healing Traditional Medicine for a Modern World by Itzhak Beery Destiny Books 226 Pages Shamanic Healing: Traditional Medicine for a Modern World is a great introduction to the power and scope of traditional medicine techniques from cultures that stand outside of Western medicine. Itzhak Beery opens the book, his third, with a compelling chapter on the need to integrate the wisdom and personal approach of shamanic healing wisdom with the benefits of Western medicine. He then takes the reader on his personal journey to shamanism, starting with his first workshops with Michael Harner and John Perkins, both of whom were instrumental in popularizing cross-cultural shamanic practices and…
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Book Review – The New Witch: Your Guide to Modern Witchcraft, Wicca, Spells, Potions, Magic, and More by Marie D. Jones
Book Review The New Witch Your Guide to Modern Witchcraft, Wicca, Spells, Potions, Magic, and More by Marie D. Jones Visible Ink Press 256 Pages Marie D. Jones wrote “The New Witch: Your Guide to Modern Witchcraft, Wicca, Spells, Potions, Magic, and More” to bridge ancient pagan ways and today’s digital world. She offers ideas to bring together the nature-based traditions of the ancestors, and the powers of social media, to embrace the past and honor the future. It’s seemingly odd that a nature-loving tradition blends with the technology dependent world, but the vast amount of information available and the speed, ease, and options to communicate – not…
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Book Review – Strix Craft: Ancient Greek Magic for the Modern Witch by Oracle Hekataios
Book Review Strix Craft Ancient Greek Magic for the Modern Witch by Oracle Hekataios Llewellyn Publications 310 Pages I am the first to admit that I don’t know much about the different paths of Witchcraft or Wicca. I am eclectic; in that, I do what the Deities ask me to do. But they don’t require that I follow a specific layout in my worship. Strix Craft helped me understand why some people follow particular standards in their worship of the God/dess they work with and worship. In chapter one, the author, Oracle Hekataios, goes into detail about the different magics practiced and taught in Ancient Greece, especially in…
