#witchy books

[breelandwalker]

Witchcraft Book Recommendation Lists

(Reposting again bc tumblr turned off the reblogs on the original wtf. From an answer to an inquiry in the witchcraft tags. Decided to repost for anyone else who might need it.)

Here’s the post I made with recommendations for green witchcraft and plant magic. The list includes magical resources and accompanying practical texts on botany, herbology, and medicinal plants.

Here’s the post I made with recommendations for general witchcraft study, including practical sources on the history of modern witchcraft. (In particular, I recommend Margot Adler’s “Drawing Down The Moon” and Ronald Hutton’s “The Triumph of the Moon” for information about the modern movement.)

Here’s a recent photo of my personal library, if you’re looking for a general list of titles to check out.

Here’s the post I made with a list of JSTOR articles I’ve found that relate to witchcraft, witch trials, folk magic, occult beliefs, superstition, and the history surrounding all of them. It’s not exhaustive, but it’s pretty comprehensive.

And here are a couple of masterlists of podcast episodes that deal with witchcraft, witch trials, the history of witchcraft-related beliefs, and resources for fact-checking and debunking misconceptions and misinformation commonly found in witchcraft spaces.

(Also I have published a few books on practical secular witchcraft, if you’re interested….)

You can also find additional recommendations in the "book recs" and "witchy books" tags on my blog.

Hope this helps!

(If you’re enjoying my content, please feel free to drop a little something in the tip jar or check out my published works on Amazon or in the Willow Wings Witch Shop. 😊)

[sapphicbookclub]

Sapphic Books List: Witches

Gather your coven and familiars and dive into magical worlds 🧙‍♀️

The Dark Tide by Alicia Jasinska

Now She is Witch by Kirsty Logan

The Scapegracers (trilogy) by Hannah Abigail Clarke

Payback's a Witch (series) by Lana Harper

These Witches Don’t Burn (duology) by Isabel Sterling

Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women & Witchcraft

Elysium Girls by Kate Pentecost

The Circle (Engelsfors trilogy) by M. Strandberg & S.B. Elfgren

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

The Lost Coast by A.R. Capetta

All the Bad Apples by Moïra Fowley-Doyle

Her Majesty's Royal Coven by Juno Dawson

Sweet & Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley

Witching Moon by Poppy Woods

The Midnight Girls by Alicia Jasinska

The Reluctant Witch (trilogy) by Kristen S. Walker

The Sting of Victory (series) by S.D. Simper

Not Your Average Love Spell by Barbara Ann Wright

Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker & Wendy Xu

Out of Salem by Hal Schrieve

Spellbook of the Lost and Found by Moïra Fowley-Doyle

Improbable Magic for Cynical Witches by Kate Scelsa

Walking Through Shadows by Sheri Lewis Wohl

Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno

[samwisethewitch]

REVIEW: Backwoods Witchcraft by Jake Richards

I feel like Jake Richards's books are pretty popular with folk witches. If you have any interest in Appalachian folk magic, or even American folk magic more generally, you've probably at least heard of this book. Part of why I put off reviewing it for so long is because I feel like there's already been plenty of attention given to it online, so I'll try to make this brief.

Pros:

Definitely authentic Appalachian folk magic. Jake Richards writes about a lot of things I've seen people do or heard people talk about but never seen written anywhere.

This book is really well researched! I'm very impressed by all the references and footnotes.

I love that Richards uses the correct Tsalagi (Cherokee), Gaelige (Irish), and Gaelic (Scottish) words when talking about the cultures that influence Southern folk magic. I also love that he includes pronunciation guides.

Cons:

I didn't finish this book on my first read. It wasn't until I revisited it recently that I actually read to the end. Something about the writing style and the way the book is organized made it a little hard to follow at times, at least for me.

The research is generally good, but there's definitely more detail given for European and Cherokee cultural influences than for African. When talking about European influences, Richards will usually specify the specific country or culture something comes from, but for African influences he just says "African." While this research is harder to do because the slave trade intentionally cut people off from their cultural traditions, other authors like Luisah Teish and Stephanie Rose Bird have shown that we can often trace these African influences back to a specific culture, or at least a region. I would have liked to see the same level of effort put into researching African practices that went into the European ones.

Other Observations:

Christianity is a big part of the author's practice. This is faithful to traditional Appalachian conjure, but just know that it may be triggering if you've experienced religious trauma in a Christian setting. I found this book harder to read than other books on conjure that incorporate Christian elements, and I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because it sounded too similar to the Appalachian church where my abuse happened? Just something to be aware of if this is a tricky topic for you.

Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

[witchesversuspatriarchy]

Bought this book yesterday

[witchcastors]

Witchy Library!

PSA to any of my occult darlings! Here's an e-library archive I found while cleaning out my likes

Subjects range from hermeticism and alchemy, to yoga, mythology, hypnosis, witchcraft, enochian magick and more. Go nuts 🔮

[iridescent-witch-life]

_Coppermoon_

[birchcraft]

I HIGHLY recommend this book for spirit workers or anyone interested in spirit work!

Here's a few things that the author goes over

Working with local spirits (water spirits, spirits of trees, etc)

Methods of talking to spirits

Spiritual dreams

Manifestation

Prayers and spells

Respecting spirits while also maintaining authority over them

Those are just some of the things I read so far, and I'm only halfway through!

[succulentsiren]

we are god and goddesses in the flesh!✨

Powerful Secrets of the Divine Feminine

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🦇 Happy Friday, bookish bats and ghouls! Looking to add a few more queer books to your TBR in an effort to #readqueerallyear? Here are a few perfect picks for spooky season!

🦇 Spirits 🦇 🔮 She is a Haunting 🔮 Rules for Vanishing 🔮 The Dead and the Dark 🔮 The Taking of Jake Livingston 🔮 Black Water Sister 🔮 Say I Boo

🦇 Vampires 🦇 🔮 Court of the Vampire Queen 🔮 The Lost Girls 🔮 Dead Collections 🔮 Cutting Your Teeth 🔮 How to Sell Your Blood and Fall in Love 🔮 Carmilla & Laura 🦇 Witches 🦇 🔮 Payback's a Witch 🔮 The Witch Boys 🔮 These Witches Don't Burn 🔮 Bitterthorn 🔮 Sweet & Bitter Magic 🔮 This Spells Disaster

🦇 Misc. Spooky 🦇 🔮 A Guide to the Dark 🔮 Heart Haunt Havoc 🔮 Spell Bound 🔮 Hell Followed With Us 🔮 Hollow 🔮 Night of the Living Queers

🦇 Horror / Thriller 🦇 🔮 You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight 🔮 I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast is Me 🔮 The Spirit Bares Its Teeth 🔮 Brainwyrms 🔮 Where Echoes Die 🔮 The Grimrose Girls

🦇 Monster Romance 🦇 🔮 Mirror Monster on My Wall 🔮 What a Lovely Sight 🔮 When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain 🔮 The Bigfoot's Mate 🔮 In the Bedroom of Medusa 🔮 On the Water

🦇 Graphic Novels / Comics 🦇 🔮 Mooncakes 🔮 Beetle & the Hollowbones 🔮 Doughnuts and Doom 🔮 Snapdragon 🔮 Taproot 🔮 M is for Monster

[chocolattefeverdreams]

Now I've been going through my old grimoire and so far, I've got

Tips to know before practising witchcraft

Elemental Witchcraft: Water Magick

Shielding, centering, and grounding

Sigils

A spell

A few diary entries

Shells (a list)

Cleansing a space

Colour Magick

The Pentacle / Pentagram

Imbolc (notes from a podcast)

Rituals

Study spells

The Moon: some facts

Moon Magick

Auras

Meditation

Intention and vision boards

Méditations based on the Moon phases

Magickal self-care

Dream Journalling

The books I've read so far are:

Llewellyn's Sabbat Essentials: Mabon, Yule, Imbolc, and Ostara

Water Magic by Lilith Dorsey

Air Magic by Astrea Taylor

Fire Magic by Josephine Winter

Earth Magic by Dodie Graham Mckay

Moon Magic by Diane Ahlquist

Moon Spells by Diane Ahlquist (NOTE: I'm not quite sure if Diane Ahlquist identifies with witchcraft, so I wouldn't base my entire practice of Moon magick from her books)

Pastel Spells by Orriculum Rose

The Modern Witch's Guide to Magickal Self-Care by Tenae Stewart

The Witch's Book of Self-Care by Anne Murphy-Hiscock

I HIGHLY recommend starting out with the books on self-care for beginner witches, even though there aren't any rules about where you start learning. This is only because it's easy to get burned out or feel overwhelmed by the lack of rules, and we all need reminders to slow down and take care of ourselves nowadays. Tenae Stewart's book tells us to find out for ourselves, while Anne Murphy-Hiscock's book has plenty of ideas and tips for beginners.

The Witch of Wonderlust channel on YouTube has also been incredibly helpful, and I also listened to some episodes of thecomfycozywitch podcast.

[psychopomp-recital]

People seem to have faith that magic will work well enough to summon spirits, but not well enough to protect you from them.

Consorting with Spirits - Jason Miller (page 107)

[breelandwalker]

Witchcraft Book Recommendation Lists

(From an answer to an inquiry in the witchcraft tags. Decided to repost for anyone else who might need it.)

Here’s the post I made with recommendations for green witchcraft and plant magic. The list includes magical resources and accompanying practical texts on botany, herbology, and medicinal plants.

Here’s the post I made with recommendations for general witchcraft study, including practical sources on the history of modern witchcraft. (In particular, I recommend Margot Adler’s “Drawing Down The Moon” and Ronald Hutton’s “The Triumph of the Moon” for information about the modern movement.)

Here’s a recent photo of my personal library, if you’re looking for a general list of titles to check out.

Here’s the post I made with a list of JSTOR articles I’ve found that relate to witchcraft, witch trials, folk magic, occult beliefs, superstition, and the history surrounding all of them. It’s not exhaustive, but it’s pretty comprehensive.

And here are a couple of masterlists of podcast episodes that deal with witchcraft, witch trials, the history of witchcraft-related beliefs, and resources for fact-checking and debunking misconceptions and misinformation commonly found in witchcraft spaces.

(Also I have published a few books on practical secular witchcraft, if you’re interested….)

You can also find additional recommendations in the "book recs" and "witchy books" tags on my blog.

Hope this helps!

[thevirginwitch]

some of my favorite beginner witchcraft books!

as a 'baby witch', it's hard to figure out what's truly meant for beginners, and what's meant for more advanced practitioners. so, i've compiled a list of my favorite beginner witch books!

Drawing Down the Moon by Margot Adler

A fantastic (yet dense) book on overall witch history, historical figures in witchcraft, and the different "branches" of witchcraft that has developed over the years.

Elemental Witchcraft by Michelle Heron

While this book is meant to be Heron's own teachings about the "pentacle path" (and I'm not a huge fan of Heron's writings/musings), there is amazing information in this book about the foundations of witchcraft like hermetic philosophy and witch history. If you pick up this book, just make sure to take everything with a grain of salt.

Queer Magic edited by Lee Harrington and Tai Fenix Kulystin

If you follow me, you're probably a queer witch - and this book is essential. It's a collection of essays and musings, all by witches from different backgrounds, orientation, and practices. It's a fantastic read that I highly recommend to anyone that wants to be more inclusive with their practice - especially those who plan on building their own witchy communities.

Grovedaughter Witchery by Bree NicGarran (AKA @breelandwalker, right here on Tumblr!)

I couldn't make this list without including this incredible spell book. I know beginner witches are eager to get their hands dirty, and this book is perfect for that - tons of simple spells, rituals, and crafts for any witch. (And, tons of sass from Mama Bree herself!) I highly recommend picking up this book if you're interested in getting started in spell work, and if you're new to learning about correspondences.

The Magical Household by Scott Cunningham & David Harrington

Now... I'm not a huge fan of Scott Cunningham. He has a lot published, and most of his books are just regurgitations of other books he's written - but I really enjoyed this one. If you're a household witch, or you're interested in household magic, this is a great book to have on hand. It contains tons of rituals for the home (folklore included!), magical recipes, and tons more.

if you're interested in additional witchy books/readings, check out my reading materials tag!

(also, my ask box is completely open for discussion! if you've read these books, let me know if you liked them or not! or, if you have any recommendations for other witchy books, i'd love those, too!)

[pigeonflavouredcake]

Here's my unwanted opinion on some witchcraft books

This is a list of opinions I have on some popular witchcraft, occult and practitioner related books. I don't talk about anything I haven't read myself.

This is in no way stopping you from reading them yourself, it's just what I think of them as an experienced practitioner and pagan.

I now have a Goodreads account you can look at if you're curious what else I've read but it's a mess and I've just added my bookshelf on in bulk.

Lisa Lister - Witch

To get this out of the way. It's bio essentialist crap and we all know this by know but it bears repeating. This is an example I've used in my grimoire of how transphobia seeps into spiritual spaces and goes unchecked under the guise of feminism and women empowerment. Arguing that a witch's power comes from her womb as a bowl of nature and creative magic. If that's what you like to draw from then all power to you, I have no problem with that. What I have a problem with is that Lister directly infers that the title of 'witch' is exclusive to this specific demographic of women.

I find her statements gross and dehumanising to women and her argument falls apart completely when you remember that not every woman has a womb, big duh moment I know. It correlates with TERF ideology that certain women are inherently more powerful because of a female reproductive system as opposed to women as a whole being powerful because of their autonomy as human beings. "But if that's true then what's stopping cis men, trans and nonbinary people from being practitioners?" LITERALLY NOTHING!

Sky Alexander - The Modern Witchcraft Spell Book and The Modern Witchcraft Grimoire

Very simple. Pretty cover. Overall they make for ok resources for beginners but once you're out of the beginner phase they really fall flat. Alexander doesn't provide much context when referencing certain tools and practices and tends to confuse witchcraft with wicca.

The Farrars - A Witches' Bible

Dated. Uses the G slur. Their books are all mislabelled wicca which makes sense because these books have been around since the 90's when there wasn't much of a difference and you can tell. They do not hold up to today's standards. They are a good example of how practices have historically been conflated in pop culture.

Does discuss ritual nUdity (they call it skyclad) and includes pictures. I wanted to mention it here to not surprise anyone in case any of you aren't comfortable with it.

Rachel Patterson - Grimoire of a Kitchen Witch

A book about kitchen witchcraft that doesn't include any kitchen witchcraft. It's more like a basic beginners grimoire. Very repetitive.

Features a chapter on hoodoo which I'm unsure about. I don't know anything about hoodoo or rootwork but I'm assuming it's a practice exclusive to the black community in America due to it developing during the period of enslavement in the US. I'm also assuming that Patterson isn't a part of this community due to being white and British. If I'm wrong and Patterson is genuinely part of the practice and can honestly speak on the topic please correct me.

Scott Cunningham - Encyclopaedia of Magical Herbs

A good resource for correspondences, easy to digest but Cunningham focuses on wicca (again) using wiccan practices like complementarianism and gendering nature which to me makes no sense (I know about the law of polarity but I do not agree with it). The pictures of plants are nice but the folklore provided for them is pretty minimal. You can find all the same info for free online.

Judika Illes - Encyclopaedia of Spirits

Honestly not that bad. There's a lot of information and it's pretty consistent throughout. It's a huge book though, it can be kind of overwhelming but they take from multiple sources when discussing the mythos of deities which is a plus. The pages are very thin and delicate which can make it hard to read the text.

Joey Hulin - Your Spiritual Almanac

it's eh in the broadest sense. I liked the folklore and the eco action sections but I didn't really absorb any of it. a lot of the corresponce lists was information I already knew about. It felt very repetitive. Would have loved to have seen more detailed information about the changes happening in nature each month.

Rachel Pollack - Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom

Pollack is very informative, and honestly a great resource for tarot work, she knows her shit and isn't afraid to info dump. The only thing I didn't really like is all the mentions of dualism like of mother v father, male v female but that's entirely my issue and it's the nature of tarot to be dualistic, It just isn't a necessity to me and my practice. Still a great book.

Aleister Crowley - Magick

A great example of what not to do. Appropriates dharmic practices and Jewish mysticism. When he wasn't stealing from other cultures or being a massive contrarian Crowley was writing about sex magic and it's discussed here in uncomfortable detail.

[witchesversuspatriarchy]

Collection of recommended books

Hello,

Below is a list of books I've been recommended or I've read recently. (and where to buy them). Enjoy!

Magical Blends by Electra Valencia. Incense, oils, powder recipes, both healing and baneful

The Un-Spell Book by Mya Om. It covers raising energy and tips to improve your results.

White Crow’s Louisiana Hoodoo by Jennifer M. Lefering. The print book is designed so that you can add to or revise the text. There is space between paragraphs and extra blank pages for notes.

 Psychic Witch by Mat Auryn.  Has tons of helpful information. Auryn wrote it so that it can be applicable to anyone, and isn't restricted to a certain practice.

[apolline-lucy]

marketing my book is so hard because I don’t wanna be like ‘hey I wrote this cute but kinda spooky sapphic fantasy with witches and monsters and mystery, please add it to your tbr on Goodreads and buy it next month when it comes out’ but at the same time that’s exactly what I should be doing lol oh to be a writer in this economy