I will kick it off, I guess. I added a link to amazon but I don't know that we have to do that.

Title: The Elements of Ritual

Author: Deborah Lipp

ISBN:0-7387-0301-X

Stars: 5 big ones

Review: Lipp, who was once married to Issac Bonewitts, has written a number of books on the elements & their use in ritual. In this book she breaks down the importance of each as it relates to  circle casting. She very specifically tells the reader the whys of each action and its relationship to earth, air, fire & water. It is easy to read &really informative. I refer to it repeatedly. marion aka lunastyx

• Moon Diary 2010
• Shekhinah Morgan
• ISBN # 9780975745458
• Review

Have to say that I buy this diary every year and use it every day. My current 2009 edition is very dog eared but much loved. Warning - This diary is for the southern hemipshere folks only!

Each year Shekhinah does this diary and adds to the it the Australian moon phases with thier astrological sygnificances and she uses the southern dates for the Wheel of the Year festivals too.

Have to say it's a favourite of mine. It is of course available in the shop :) at http://www.oakandmistletoe.com.au/catalog/50

• Rating: * * * *

With smiles and blessings,
Amethyst
Oak and Mistletoe Founder, Elder and Chair

I just wanted to say that this book is just amazing. I can't express how helpful it has been for me and how many usefull hints and tips it have give me. Really in depth study of ritual structure. For me - must have.

Blessings :)

• Title - The Circle Within
• Author - Dianne Sylvan
• ISBN # - 0-7387-0348-6
• Rating: 5 stars (or even more)

A book about creating your Daily Devotional Practice, to often forgotten part of Wicca Tradition. Many ideas about Daily Rituals and being Wiccan day-by-day and not only at Esbats and Sabats. My second must have book, which I've read several times and will read many more.

Blessings

TITLE: The Herb Book

AUTHOR: John Lust

ISBN: 0-553-20148-4

RATING: *****

REVIEW: Excellent coverage of all Herbs dating back to 3000BC This is one of the first books I bought a long time ago when I first wanted to practice witchcraft. It was first printed in 1974. Used copies are still available and is very informative for herbs long forgotten. Index by both Plant and Botanical Names, also by Medicinal uses, Legend and lore, Astrology, Dies, Scents, Drying, Storing, Tinctures, Cooking and Cosmetics, etc etc. What I find fantastic about this book is that it has plants that are not listed in many other books and tells you exactly which parts of the plants should be used for what purpose and how to. It is not the be all and end all and some techniques have changed over time which is also interesting to see, but for me it is a Great Complimentary companion to newer books released on Herbal Magick.

Merry Meet,

   Just finished a wonderful book, that I would reccomend to any serious Tarot student:

Title The Way of Tarot: The Spiritual Teacher in the Cards

Author Alejandro Jodorowsky & Marianne Costa

ISBN #978-1-59477-263-4(pbk.)

Review(succint)I recommend this book to any serious student of the Tarot

Rating:4

   Just remember when reading any book, you do not have to swollow it all. Some of his history has been changed recently, and some of his beliefs and methods raise questions. But for an in depth look at the cards it is well worth the read. The deck he uses is the Marseille deck and finding one that is correct to the drawings in the book is near impossible. But the interpretation of the cards can be applied to any deck.

Take Care

Blessed Be

Jamie Stone bear

Title : The Spirtual Runes A guide to Ancestral Wisdom
Author: Harmonia Saille
ISBN #  : 978-1-84694-201-3
Review

This book is great for beginners and those  more adapt at the study and use of the runes. It runs through the  h istory of the runes and  how t hey came about, rune lore, conneting with your rune set, Rune meanings (elder futhark ) in more ways  than just the meanings in a casting, Psychology and cosmology, Making, Inscribing, purifiying, and empowering runes, casting and reding and  Rune magic. Meanginful, yet uses plain language this book has been the rock of my discovery of the runes.
Rating:1-5 stars  5 stars

I have been reading the classic "Wicca - a guide for the solitary practitioner" by Scott Cummingham. Everyone has probably read it but being new to this I am still branching out. I am really enjoying it but there are a few thing in it that I will be asking Questions about during my lessons.

Title: Encyclopedia of Spirits

Author: Judika Illes

ISBN #: 978-0-06-135024-5

Rating: excellent

There are very few times I have gone to this book to reference and have not found what I am looking for.  It covers a great deal of information on a massive array of Gods, Goddesses, Fairies, Genies, Demons and Ghosts.  It would be one of my most used reference tools for meditation, and anything and everything else.  I adore it. and J.Illes is a great author.

Title: A Witches Bible

Author: Janet and Stewart Farrar

ISBN # 0-978-7090-7227-0

Rating: 5

Review: I like this book. Informative on all subjects. Based on the Alexandrian tradition but explains they have members from Gardnerian tradition.  One of the first books I bought on Witchcraft/Wicca and I really enjoyed it. It is definately a great book to have to reference for just about any subject on our path.  Great illustrations to experience their tradition and I would highly recommend this one. The only problem I have is with the Index, the book has far more information than what is indexed and can be a little hard to find the right chapter for the information you want, but that's a small criticism considering the great content!

Merry Meet,  

Book of interest for advanced students:

Beyond the Book of Shadows by Lynden Clark © 2010 Green Magic Publishing

ISBN: 978-0-9561886-0-1 180 pages Paperback $18.95 (U.S.) www.greenmagicpublishing.com

This is a book which steps beyond the basic Book of Shadows of Wicca. As such it is about magick in a religious setting. It is not to stand on its own, but rather to be used in conjunction with training already received.

This is a highly focused and specialized book. There are only two topics covered within its pages - erecting a Magick Circle and invoking divine forces into it. That's it. It is assumed that the reader is actively involved in the religion of Wicca and is proficient in the rituals that entails. If that does NOT describe you, this book won;t do you a lot of good

If you are looking for instructions in the more mundane aspects of the religion of Wicca, I can recommend a few books and authors to check out, this book is not going to help you on that quest. This book is intended to deepen understanding of makes a ritual succeed.

Although it has been pointed out repeatedly, books can't teach you magick! What they can do is to inspire you,  "to recognize the knowledge that you didn't know you already had." (Kinda like a Homer Simpson "Doh!" moment.) Since everyone has unique life experiences, it may take a different perspective to awaken what lies within.

He offers alternatives to the traditional elemental placements as well as a variety of invocation styles, carefully explaining the reasoning behind the alterations, and suggests several other possibilities. He draws his inspiration from hermetic sources as well as from various Wiccan traditions.

His presentation is interesting and informative, but not so boring that you will have trouble following his thought patterns. For some people, I suspect, it will be a case of overkill, since there are many acceptable formats available in a wide variety of other source materials. However, for the individual who is looking to explore other possibilities, this book brings together a variety of ideas, without the dogmatic "If you do this, then you MUST do that" that many authors seem to favor. It also avoids the "anything goes" attitude of many eclectics, since it stresses research into why you choose to do something in a particular way, and also strongly suggests that you experiment with changes on a continuing basis in order to be able to judge if they really work for you in the long run - one or two tries are not particularly conclusive.

For the novice, this book will serve little purpose, but more experienced practitioners will surely find that it deserves to be in their library. As I said earlier, no book can teach you magick, but this book may open your eyes to other possibilities and ways of approaching the subject.

Take Care

Blessings & Blessed Be

Jamie Stone Bear

 

Merry Meet,

   I just finished a year with this book, yes it taught me a lot, mainly that I have a lot yet to learn. I have always been daunted by Runes, after spending a year with them, they have taught that my life time will not be enough to fully grasp the "full" meaning of one Rune.

  The book is the best I have found. I reccomend it to any serious Rune study.

• Title -Taking Up The Runes 
• Author -Diana L. Paxson
• ISBN # -1-57863-325-7
• Review - "Diana Paxson is a riveting teacher- her passionate love for the ancient European Runes shines through on every page. So I lift my sumbl and drink my memory ale for the return of the Runes via Paxson's deep knowledge of them."
•                                                                     Zsuzsanna Budapest 
• Rating:1-5 stars- 4 1/2 
•  
• Take Care
• Blesseings & Blessed Be
• Jamie Stone Bear

Wisdom of the Elements: The Sacred Wheel of the Elements

Margie McArthur

0-89594-936-9

5 stars

Synopsis: This is a very specific discussion of the topics of wheels and elements.  It covers the Wheel of the Year, of course, but also discusses other cyclic patterns that are, have been, or could be understood in the same cyclic framework of the wheel (Wheel of the Day, Wheel of the Magician, Wheel of the Stages of Life, etc.) as well as how they relate.  It also has a deeper discussion of the elements, treated individually, from several perspectives, as well as excercises and practical discussions focusing on working with each one.

It focuses primarily on Western mystery traditions, including but not limited to Wicca.  But it also discusses how other systems that had wheel and elemental concepts have treated the subject including Taoism/Chinese folk religion, Native American traditions, Indian Chakras, and others, as a way of digging deeper into the subject.  As a resource I find it excellent.  It's easily among the top 5 pagan resources on my shelf and has seen its share of use from both my wife and myself.

I'll note as well that it has good reviews from long-standing members of several traditions including Wicca, Druidry, Faery tradition, New Age, and Native American spirituality.  McArthur herself has a background in Druidry and Faery tradition.