Category: Spirituality Publisher: Samuel Weiser, Inc.
ISBN-10: 0877288240
Type: Non-Fiction
Pages: 200
Copyright: May 9 1995
Kitchen and home witchery.
For those who have mastered the basics of their chosen tradition (wicca or otherwise) and who now want to move out of the circle and into the house, this is an excellent primer on the use of magick around the house, specifically folk magick and hearth craft.
Professional Reviews
Magical Hearth by Danielle Naibert
The author, Janet Thompson, talks personally to her readers. Her book is a quality conversational instead of a telling you about. I appreaciate it when writers can do this, it is a challenge to keep the reader involved with the words, but to draw them as if they are in your kitchen is harder. Rarely have I found writers that can actually do this, and Thompson is one of them that I have found does this in all of her works.
I am always looking for new books to add to my collection of "Witchy" library, and I had discovered Thompson about two years a go, and I keep an eye out for any of her new books. She is also the author of Of Witches: Celebrating the Goddess of a Solitary Pagan.
This book contains information regarding different spells that involve herbs, waters, nature and of course the wonderous Moon. The spells are non-complicating, and if you are a herb gardener, you will have most of the ingredients right in your kitchen or back door anyways.
She also explains the power behind using crystals and their magical forces. She talk about the Witches Wheel, and the stages of the Goddess (Maiden, Mother and Crone). Thompson also includes fun activities that can involve children and even cats. Two fun chapters that I have bookmarked quite often.
One thing she adds at the end of some of her chapters are "safety tips", simple steps on how to do something (EX: To protect your home from anger, the use of betony and lavender on the doorsteps.) and her personal poetry.
She doesn't dwell heavily on the historical facts, she touches bases and then goes into the happy lifes of modern Paganism, with just the right touch of old-fashion remedies.
This is a highly enjoyable book that I believe can be read by anyone who wants to keep a happy home for themselves and their families. Even if you don't use the spells, the herbal recipes are grand, and the activities with kids are enjoyable. You don't have to be a Witch to love this book, a woman who loves to try new things in her kitchen, loves the smell of food cooking will love this book as much as I do.
Our culture has taught us to believe in many ideas which aren't actually real. Exposing these illusions allows us to recover the power to live our lives according to our deepest desires.