44 Days of witchery - day 13: what are some of the witchy books that influenced you?
Lucky number 13! LOL I get to talk books on lucky day 13. :)
The first thing that I ever read where I learned that witchcraft is not at all like the historical witchcraft of the persecution years of medieval times was a fiction novel. In it, witches were doing interesting things; there was magic, healers, shaman-like trancing and ecstatic dancing. THIS! I knew after I read this book that I wanted THIS. I knew that even fiction authors do some research before writing, surely this book had been researched? So I started researching.
Diary
of a Witch by Sybil Leek is the first non-fiction book I read that did
not portray witches as "wicked, evil" creatures that worshipped a devil.
It just whetted my appetite.
The
only other books I found at the time (late 80's) that were at the
public library were two Cunningham books: Earth Power and the book of
Oils, Incense and Brews. I had them checked out for a long time! Then,
suddenly, there were lots more books at the library, and I had a job
where I could afford to buy books, and my tastes expanded. Also, I
joined a coven eventually, and had reading assignments... which I
expanded on my own.
And of course, Drawing Down the Moon is a MUST READ.
I read a ton of stuff... histories both pro and con witchcraft, treatises like The Chalice and the Blade and some others.
No student of the Craft can NOT read Spiral Dance by Starhawk. Very influential in my early years.
Some
books left more of an impression than others. I was glad that many
books were available through inter-library loan so I didn't have to pay
for them!
What are your most influential reads?
UPDATE 8/2016: I wrote this post two years after I left my initiating coven. That coven identified as a Wiccan coven and called themselves witches. When I discovered that coven and joined it, I thought it was exactly what I was looking for. A few years prior to leaving that coven, I started feeling something was lacking, but wasn't sure what it was. After I left that coven, I realized that Wicca isn't the only game in town, and that people are doing witchcraft differently. Several months after I wrote this post, a good friend invited several women to form a coven with her and we did. We now do witchcraft much more like I always wanted... and interestingly, much more like the witches in the first fiction novel that I posted about in this post. So I have been reading a lot since 2010 when I left my initiating coven. Here's just some of what I've read:
Inanna Queen of Heaven and Earth is actually a re-read. I'd read it about 15 years ago, but I recently re-read it because my coven created 2 rituals based on two of the stories. The rituals were intense, connecting and beautiful. This literature is intense and beautiful if you read it with an open heart.
Another classic that I've read recently is Aradia, by Charles Leland. I found it online at a website I think called Sacred Texts. I'd like to purchase a paper copy eventually.
I have read several books on Traditional Witchcraft. This book is
one of them and was very interesting. It's a shame Robert Cochrane is gone. I wonder what he'd think about the craft now.
Apocalyptic Witchcraft is an amazing book, and if I'd read it 20 years ago I might never have become a witch, it's that challenging. But now? Worth every challenge. Read it.
Masks of Misrule made a huge impression on me. I wish I'd found this book a very long time ago. I plan to read more like this, if I can find them.
The next 3 books listed here I am currently reading. Letters from the Devil's Forest is extremely thick. Extremely. But I like it's format: it is a series of essays written on individual topics and collected in the book. That makes it easy to consume... I can read an essay or two at a time and not feel like I'm stuck reading consecutive and cumulative chapters. I had originally bought it as a kindle ebook but I soon realized that I needed it in hard copy so that I could take notes in the margins, mark page edges for reference, and use a highlighter on lines I wanted to find quickly. I do not feel cheated out of my money. Now I have the kindle book AND the hardcopy... I can have it with me no matter what. And it's a self-published book so the deserving author gets the money.
The Secret History is written by the same author as above. However, it's a much thinner book and I'm very close to being done with it. I've enjoyed it a great deal, though there was one section I raised my eyebrow at, because it sounded almost... evangelical. I suspect Robin Artisson would not like that description lol... so I'm looking for a better way to say that. Still, it was very interesting and provided a lot of food for thought.
I'm also currently reading The Visions of Isobel Gowdie by Emma Wilby. This book is like a text book (I'd love to take this class! lol) However, it's very thick, written with very small print and is jam-packed with info. But it's also amazing information. Well worth reading no matter what.
My To-Read pile is HUGE. All books highly recommended for the study of modern traditional witchcraft and in no particular order of importance:
Witchcraft Medicine - Claudia Mueller-Ebeling
The Triumph of the Moon - Ronald Hutton
The Red Goddess - Peter Grey
Mastering Witchcraft - Paul Huson
Children of Cain - Michael Howard
History of the Devil, Horned God of the West - R. Lowe Thompson
Call of the Horned Piper - Nigel Jackson
Craft of the Untamed - Nicholaj Frisvold
Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits - Emma Wilby
Roebuck in the Thicket - Evan John Jones (I can't find it though)
Books by Gemma Gary, more by Artisson, and a number of other books that are not specifically modern trad witchcraft but are useful to it.
