Customer Reviews

Green Witchcraft: Folk Magic, Fairy Lore & Herb Craft

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

This is the first book I read by Ann Moura, and it has definitely left me wanting more. First, I'll mention the writing style: it can be very formal at times, which can make it dry and hard to get into, at least compared to some other books I've read. It didn't bother me, but it did slow me down a bit when I first started reading. There is a new heading (or several) on almost every page, which can interfere with reading it straight through smoothly, but I immediately recognized that these could be incredibly helpful if I go back to reference the book, especially since the first few chapters are very long.

The fairy lore portion of this book? If you are looking for fairy lore, get a different book. This is not at all a focus in this book. A few things are mentionned throughout the book, but there isn't a chapter on the subject.

The book forcusses mainly on what the green path is, and how to work with it. She writes as a solitary, for a solitary, but includes recommendations for group work. She seems to understand how different every witch can be and she explains her path in such a way that it could be followed as she writes it, merged with your own path, or just offer some helpful perspectives that might influence you on your path.

Her history is incredibly well researched, and really manages to put some perspective on some modern beliefs and practices. She explained very understandably where working with angels came from and why it is not really wiccan. She even explained something about the story of Cain and Abel that I couldn't stop thinking about for days.

She explains her approach to ritual in detail, giving reasons for her key decisions well before the book turns into a series of rituals. Some of the rituals that are included are a funeral-type ritual and a rite of passage. I mention these because you don't see these very often. Including a ritual for a departed friend strikes me as evidence that the author really takes their path seriously as a life-long journey and commitment.

Sabbat rituals are included (just like practically every book on witchcraft) and she includes a list of non-ritual activities to celebrate the sabbats. I usually find these more interesting that the published rituals, so I thought I'd mention them.

On the green path itself, I'll mention a few things. It is very earthy. There is a lot of emphasis on the elements. It's not all about the elements, but I noticed there was more of an emphasis on them than a lot of other craft books had.

In my opinion this book is great for beginners. This book was the first one I bought about 5 years ago, and I feel it has everything a beginner should know packed into one place. I love the tables in the book which I refer to over and over again. I love all her books. If you are a beginner in the craft this book is one for you.

I'll keep this short. I recommend this book to students of all levels. Some may not like her Christian upbringing and whatever influence it may play in her own path, but it really doesn't impact the quality of the material presented. I have incorporated some of her path into my own and have found it very rewarding.

First off, there are some good things in this book. Ms. Moura describes her personal path in a clear and readable way. And she presents a form of practice that will certainly strike a chord with a number of kitchen witches.

That said, there are many more things that prevent me from recommending this book - especially to beginners.

First, Ms. Moura presents her personal take on witchcraft as the basis for all forms of witchcraft, and blends this form of arrogance with an active hostility toward other religions (especially Judeo-Christian religions). Even though much of what she presents has a strong Wiccan flavor, she twists many elements of modern Wicca, using the problems she perceives from a rather odd mix of misinformation to belittle the entire religion and most of it's practitioners.

The "Craft history" she presents, and threads throughout many areas, is beyond questionable, and leans strongly toward highly imaginative. (It is the same speculative history that is presented in her "Origins of Modern Witchcraft".) While historical speculation is bound to come into almost any witchcraft work, I believe that it is inappropriate to present personal speculation as fact in a work aimed at beginners.

Additionally, Ms. Moura claims to be presenting practices used by simple, common people, but the rituals and spells she provides are more complex than almost anything I've ever seen. They're certainly not the clean, simple workings I would expect in a path claiming a shamanistic style. In addition to requiring inordinate amounts of preparation for very simple workings, she also calls for tools that she never explains or teaches how to prepare or use.

In short, there is little in Green Witchcraft that cannot be found in other "101" type books, frequently done much better. While there may be material useful for someone who has a good grounding in basic witchcraft, and there are some useful - if complex - rituals... the problems with history and prejudice as well as the amounts of basic information missing prevent me from recommending this book.

This is one of the few books on the craft that I actually read all the way through. I was always interested in the natural, herbal side of witchcraft and this book provided me with a lot of great, readable (honestly, some of these type of books can really make your head spin) information at an affordable price. My only riff...where is the fairy lore like it says in the title? There was only a tiny bit of info on fairy lore, definitely not enough to earn a spot in the title. But still, if you have an interested in nature and magick, this is for you. Thanks for readin!

I enjoyed this book. I'm still in the middle of reading it, and I think it's pretty good so far. It is definitely a book for beginners. She certainly doesn't beat around the bush. Her respect for green witchcraft is obvious. One thing I didn't like so much is that she speaks very much from a Shiva god point of view (for lack of better description on my part)and it seemed like she simply dismissed the Egyptian gods and goddesses except Bast. Isis is the goddess I turn to, and when I saw how little she spoke of Egyptian deities, I could not help feeling a little offended. But that is just my own subjective opinion of course. I also found myself skipping over a lot of the parts where she talks about her own stories. Despite all that, I think Moura is a good teacher, and presents the information in a very clear and concise way.

This is a wonderful book, as are all of Anne Moura's books. Diranda, on behalf of your local bookstore (I used to work in one), I'd like to suggest that you go to the library. A bookstore is not a library, and you are actually expected to keep the books once you've read them when you purchase them. I think this will make you and the employees of your local bookstore much happier. Blessed be to you, and may you find fulfillment in all your learning pursuits.

This is a good book for beginners who are interested in natural magic, green witchcraft. The book does read fairly basic and most of the information was already known to me. For those just starting out, it's a good starter book.

This is a good book for beginners who are interested in natural magic, green witchcraft. The book does read fairly basic and most of the information was already known to me. For those just starting out, it's a good starter book.

Well, I bought all the four books that go with the Green Tradition, they are: Green Witchcraft, Green Witchcraft II, Green Witchcraft III, and Green Magic. I'll have to say that I was kind of dissapointed in this book. It wasn't only Witchcraft, it had Wiccan things thrown in, but since I'm Wiccan, it wasn't a too much of a problem. She has some good memories of her childhood, and her magickal experiences. There is also lots of her bias views thrown in, and I agree with some of them. The "rules" that her mother thought her are very ethical, and they make sense.

To be honest, I didn't read the part where she gives rituals for the Sabbats, and the Esbats. They, in my mind, created the word "boring," plus, the bold lettering didn't help either. Also, the title includes "Fairy Lore," well, from what I've seen, there are bearly two pages on faeries and their lore.

So, to conclude my little review, I think that you can do without this book, but the other three seem good, I especially like Green Witchcraft III: The Manual. Green Witchcraft II seemed promising since I've chosen to work with Hecate (Hekate), but all it has are some meditations and divination, which I don't have time for right now. Green Magic is a very good book in my opinion, because it deals with energy manupulation.

While in this book she seemed to be doing something with Ceremonial Magick, in the other three, it seems like she's left that practice to focus more on the "Green" Craft. Thats all for my review of this book!

-Ater