{"id":23484,"date":"2020-12-01T01:10:33","date_gmt":"2020-12-01T05:10:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/?p=23484"},"modified":"2020-11-30T00:33:22","modified_gmt":"2020-11-30T04:33:22","slug":"book-review-secrets-of-the-witch-by-julie-legere-and-elsa-whyte-illustrator-laura-perez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2020\/12\/01\/book-review-secrets-of-the-witch-by-julie-legere-and-elsa-whyte-illustrator-laura-perez\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Review – Secrets of the Witch: An Initiation Into Our History and Our Wisdom by Julie L\u00e9g\u00e8re and Elsa Whyte, Illustrator Laura Perez"},"content":{"rendered":"

Book <\/span>R<\/span>eview<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

Secrets of the Witch<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

An Initiation Into Our<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

History and Our Wisdom<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

by<\/span> Julie L\u00e9g\u00e8re and Elsa Whyte<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

Illustrator Laura Perez<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

The Quarto Group<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

80 Pages<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cDear sister, If this book has found its way into your possession, then it means it is time for you to begin your apprenticeship,\u201d<\/i><\/span> are the first words in the book \u201cSecrets of the Witch: An Initiation Into Our History and Our Wisdom.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Chances are readers (the target audience is girls ages 9 to 14) have already sensed some of their powers. The book, which has a feminist slant, is an introductory manual to help develop abilities, \u201cfor without knowledge, power is nothing. These pages will explain all you need to know about us and of what went before us,\u201d write authors Julie L\u00e9g\u00e8re and Elsa Whyte. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This book\u2019s intent is to retell the history of witches and reclaim their identity. The short, concise doses of history from ancient Egypt to pop culture include cultural beliefs about magic through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance and how it effected witches.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The book introduces folklore witches from around the world; profiles of notable witches and deities; and magical symbols, tools, and practices. A short introduction to herbs and crystals, plus directions for making talisman, amulets and pendulums are also provided.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Information is easy to comprehend. An airy layout with a multitude of illustrations make the book easy to read despite the often somber truths. For example, the crimes Adrienne d\u2019heur was accused of that led to being burned to death as a witch on September 11, 1646: \u201cSudden death of a child after she gave it bread; blinding a man, woman, and two children; drying up of a cow\u2019s milk; death of a horse; attempted child kidnapping; entering a house by night in the guise of a cat.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

My one objection, although I doubt it was intentional, is with the brief mention of the Romani people \u2013 referred to as gypsies, a word considered to be a slur \u2013 as \u201cromantic, strange, and free\u201d without mentioning the injustices that led to their nomadic life.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This book is good for giving young witches a sense of history and some basic information, and as a review for slightly older witches.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Secrets of the Witch: An initiation into our history and our wisdom on Amazon<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

***<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

About the Author:<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Lynn Woike<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

thewitchonwheels.com<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

All my life I have known magic was real. As a child, I played with the fae, established relationships with trees and \u201cjust knew things.\u201d In my maiden years I discovered witchcraft and dabbled in the black-candles-and-cemeteries-at-midnight-on-a-fullmoon magick just enough to realize I did not understand its power. I went on to explore many practices including Zen, astrology, color therapy, native traditions, tarot, herbs, candle magic, gems, and, as I moved into my mother years, Buddhism, the Kabbalah and Reiki. The first man I dated after my divorce was a witch who reintroduced me to the Craft, this time by way of the Goddess. For 11 years I was in a coven, but with retirement, I have returned to an eclectic solitary practice. When accepting the mantle of crone, I pledged to serve and teach. This is what I do from my skoolie \u2013 a 30-year-old school bus converted into a tiny house on wheels that I am driving around the country, following 72-degree weather, emerging myself into nature, and sharing magic with those I meet. Find me at <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>thewitchonwheels.com<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>, Facebook and Instagram.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Book Review Secrets of the Witch An Initiation Into Our History and Our Wisdom by Julie L\u00e9g\u00e8re and Elsa Whyte Illustrator Laura Perez The Quarto Group 80 Pages     \u201cDear sister, If this book has found its way into your possession, then it means it is time for you to begin your apprenticeship,\u201d are the first words in the book \u201cSecrets of the Witch: An Initiation Into Our History and Our Wisdom.\u201d Chances are readers (the target audience is girls ages 9 to 14) have already sensed some of their powers. The book, which has a feminist slant, is an introductory manual to help develop abilities, \u201cfor without knowledge, power is nothing. These pages will explain all you need to know about us and of what went before us,\u201d write authors Julie L\u00e9g\u00e8re and Elsa Whyte. This book\u2019s intent is to retell the history of witches and reclaim their identity. The short, concise doses of history from ancient Egypt to pop culture include cultural beliefs about magic through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance and how it effected witches. The book introduces folklore witches from around the world; profiles of notable witches and deities; and magical symbols, tools, and practices. A short introduction to herbs and crystals, plus directions for making talisman, amulets and pendulums are also provided. Information is easy to comprehend. An airy layout with a multitude of illustrations make the book easy to read despite the often somber truths. For example, the crimes Adrienne d\u2019heur was accused of that led to being burned to death as a witch on September 11, 1646: \u201cSudden death of a child after she gave it bread; blinding a man, woman, and two children; drying up of a cow\u2019s milk; death of a horse; attempted child kidnapping; entering a house by night in the guise of a cat.\u201d My one objection, although I doubt it was intentional, is with the brief mention of the Romani people \u2013 referred to as gypsies, a word considered to be a slur \u2013 as \u201cromantic, strange, and free\u201d without mentioning the injustices that led to their nomadic life. This book is good for giving young witches a sense of history and some basic information, and as a review for slightly older witches.   Secrets of the Witch: An initiation into our history and our wisdom on Amazon *** About the Author: Lynn Woike thewitchonwheels.com All my life I have known magic was real. As a child, I played with the fae, established relationships with trees and \u201cjust knew things.\u201d In my maiden years I discovered witchcraft and dabbled in the black-candles-and-cemeteries-at-midnight-on-a-fullmoon magick just enough to realize I did not understand its power. I went on to explore many practices including Zen, astrology, color therapy, native traditions, tarot, herbs, candle magic, gems, and, as I moved into my mother years, Buddhism, the Kabbalah and Reiki. The first man I dated after my divorce was a witch who reintroduced me to the Craft, this time by way of the Goddess. For 11 years I was in a coven, but with retirement, I have returned to an eclectic solitary practice. When accepting the mantle of crone, I pledged to serve and teach. This is what I do from my skoolie \u2013 a 30-year-old school bus converted into a tiny house on wheels that I am driving around the country, following 72-degree weather, emerging myself into nature, and sharing magic with those I meet. Find me at thewitchonwheels.com, Facebook and Instagram.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":210,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10005],"tags":[10095,12685,12686,10075],"class_list":["post-23484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-book","tag-book-review-secrets-of-the-witch-an-initiation-into-our-history-and-our-wisdom-by-julie-legere-and-elsa-whyte","tag-illustrator-laura-perez","tag-review"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/210"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23484"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23484\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23486,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23484\/revisions\/23486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}