Cakes and Ale for the Pagan Soul: Spells, Recipes, and Reflections from Neopagan Elders and Teachers [Paperback]

Patricia Telesco (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2005

Call them elders, teachers, priests, or priestesses: they are the forefront of a growing movement known as neo-paganism. This renaissance in pre-Christian religions represents a wide range of belief systems, such as Wicca, neo-Druidism, and other earth-based faiths. Compiled by pagan author Patricia Telesco, CAKES AND ALE FOR THE PAGAN SOUL offers 50 hearty doses of magic, wisdom, history, and humor for modern witches and druids. Notable contributors include Margot Adler (Drawing Down the Moon), Starhawk (The Spiral Dance), Raymond Buckland (Buckland’s Complete Book of Witchcraft), and many more. This A-to-Z compendium covers diverse topics such as community, mindfulness, children, and ritual, weaving a colorful tapestry of modern pagan views and values. You’ll be regaled with insightful stories and read tips about integrating pagan practices into the modern world through ritual and activism. Contributors also share recipes for their favorite incense blends, purposeful potions, and magical menus. So, take a seat on the communal hearth, and let CAKES AND ALE fill you with the warmth, sustenance, and inspiration every neo-pagan needs.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

*A treasury of 50 stories, spells, recipes, and other sundries from prominent pagan writers and personalities, compiled by a prolific author and leading voice in the neo-pagan movement. *Contributors represent a who’s who of the neo-pagan movement, including Margot Adler, Raymond Buckland, Phillis Curott, Selena Fox, Dorothy Morrison, Ashleen O’Gaea, Starhawk, and Oberon Zell.

About the Author

PATRICIA TELESCO is a well-known author and speaker on the topics of spirituality, folklore, magic, and witchcraft. She is the best-selling author of more than 50 books. She currently lives in western New York.

Product Details

• Paperback: 234 pages
• Publisher: Crossing Press (April 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580911641
• ISBN-13: 978-1580911641
• Product Dimensions: 5.6 x 0.6 x 8.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #475,712 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Patricia Telesco aka Marian Singer is the mother of three, wife, chief human to 5 pets, and a full-time professional author with over 60 books on the market, each of which represents a different area of spiritual interest for her and her readers.
Trish travels minimally twice a month to give lectures and workshops around the country. She (or her writing) has appeared on several television segments including Sightings on muli-cultural divination systems and National Geographic Today ' Solstice Celebrations. Besides this, Trish maintains a strong, visible presence in the metaphysical community including having given over 300 radio interviews from coast to coast, writings on the internet through popular sites like: www.witchvox.com, her yahoo club: www.groups.yahoo.com/groups/folkmagicwithtrishtelesco, and various appearances on internet chats and bbs boards.
Trish considers herself a down-to-earth Kitchen & folk magician whose love of folklore and worldwide customs flavor every word she writes. Her strongest ethical guidelines are honor, respect, and gratitude in all things.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reflections on the Pagan Paths, May 25, 2005

By 

Boudica (Ohio USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cakes and Ale for the Pagan Soul: Spells, Recipes, and Reflections from Neopagan Elders and Teachers (Paperback)

The newest entry in the books "for the Soul" is a book of collected experiences, stories, spellworkings and comfort food put together by Crossing Press and edited by our own Trish Telesco. The contributions are from some well known authors as well as some community elders.

The book is divided into themed sections, each containing some articles or essays. The topics covered are Path of Beauty, Wisdom of the World, Nature's Advisers, Community: Honor, Respect and Gratitude, Rituals for Life and Healing, Spells and other Sundries. These are all topics which would interest pagans of all walks of life and provide food for thought and meditation on our lives, our chosen paths and our world.

Some of the stories are personal experiences, crossroads in someone's life. Other stories are essays on our treatment of Mother Earth, the pagan community and the greater community of Humanity. Some are advises for pursuing our personal paths, "how to" articles on working rituals, and the usual "love" spells, recipes for the pagan passion of food or a quick remedy for a common ailment.

Most of the articles are short. This allows for mediation on the topic and some soul searching for inner truths if you are so inclined. There are some touching stories here, there are some moments of meditation and awareness. There is also some material here that begs for our attention and gives us some hard lessons.

The opening introduction by Trish Telesco is more of a statement on Neo-Paganism than it is on the contents of the book. There are statistics here that have no references to where they came from, while others seem to draw questionable conclusions. While it is true that there are probably more pagans than we roughly estimate, that paganism is a fast growing culture, and that the pagan religions are drawing much attention from various sources, we cannot draw any population conclusion based on the number of witch websites in Google or how many people are registered as pagans on a website. And while the actual numbers are unavailable and may spark some speculation, we need to remember that not everyone lives on the web.

However, it's not the introduction we are looking at. We are here for the content. With contributions by such well known authors as Margot Adler, Starhawk, Selena Fox and Dorothy Morrison, it is hard to ignore this book. The articles chosen fit the topics well, and while the articles may be short, they do provide much food for thought. After some of the stories, there is a small "project box" containing some kind of instruction to further your involvement with the topic discussed. After an article by Bonnie Jean Hamilton about Releasing your Fears there is a small spellworking to further your own personal work on fear. After an article on Discovery Through Dreaming by Ann Moura there is a small box on keeping a dream journal.

There are stories on personal tragedy, community ritual backfires, pagan protests, healing the healers, and more. There are outstanding articles by the likes of Jessie Wolf Hardin, Kristin Madden and Ashleen O'Gaea. There are also some gems by some lesser known authors like Ambrose Hawk and Precious Nielsen.

The stories cover the human community, the animals we love, the earth we cherish. There is much here in the way of positive affirmations and comments on the human condition. Personal responsibility, perfect love and perfect trust, and so much more that we hold dear are touched upon for our reflection.

There is appeal here for most folks following the pagan path who are looking for food for thought on their spirituality, their community, their lives and how interconnected this all is with our Mother the Earth. There is fluff amongst the trees of wisdom here as well, but that is the general appeal of books like this; that they have something for everyone. And I am sure if you pick up this book you will find a couple of articles or essays that will touch upon a particular string in your mind and it will harmonize with your own personal song. I do recommend this book for it's content, as it will also give you more of an insight into pagan spirituality and the pagan heart. This is a good presentation and one which I think you will find challenging and intelligent as well as inspirational and heart warming. boudica

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars May you never hunger or thirst, my friends, August 30, 2005

By 

M. Miller "evescaduceus" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cakes and Ale for the Pagan Soul: Spells, Recipes, and Reflections from Neopagan Elders and Teachers (Paperback)

I really enjoyed some of the pieces in Telesco's anthology, and feel they were worth the price of the book. The following selections are purely personal, but I felt Richardson was very moving, Starhawk most interesting, and Oberon Zell's brief piece was beautiful and peaceful, not soon forgotten. Precious Nielson also had an incredibly sad but revealing story to tell -she truly recreated the family she had lost with the snarling terrified cat and its kittens. Two other stand-outs - Dunham's tale of her miserable pregnancy, fear of labor and delivery, and the culminating transformation, and Adler's insights on the unexpectedly positive reactions of some of her nonpagan colleagues.

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book with One Flaw, May 14, 2005

By 

a person who reads (U.S.A, EARTH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cakes and Ale for the Pagan Soul: Spells, Recipes, and Reflections from Neopagan Elders and Teachers (Paperback)

This book was mostly a pleasure to read. The title is really an adorable twist on the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" books. Many of the stories had me in tears, others were very inspiring. I felt good reading this book except for one entry."Elements: From a Christian Consecration Ritual" by Ambrose Hawk felt really out of place. It's rituals were definitely magical but definitely not Pagan. They invoked Jesus and YHVH and quite frankly made me uncomfortable. The name of the book is "Cakes and Ale for the PAGAN Soul" and I feel the book should have stuck with the promise of its title.The other writings were wonderful. I especially loved Jess Wolf Hardin's "Burden Basket"--about Kokopelli and responsiblity. These writing will make you laugh and they will make you cry. It's not a how too book, although it does include some oil, incense and food recipes and spells. It is not a Wicca 101 book but is perfectly suituiable for newcomers to read--and it is good for old timers as well. It is a new catogory of Pagan book, not beginner, intermediate or advanced.Its a book for everyone who wants a little soul-food.here is a list of the contributers and their contributions taken from the table of content:Patricia Telesco, "Crossing Paths: The Witch Within" and "And the Children Shall Lead Us"; Selena Fox, "Crossroads of Life"; Dorothy Morrison, "Fear's Ship" and "Love: Strawberry Mousse Romance Inducer"; Bonnie Jean Hamilton, "Facing Your Fear"; Loba, "Intimacy with Self and Others, Earth and Spirit" and "Dance from Your Belly"; Mama Doyi-Astarte, "Joy and Peace"; Alicia L Folberth, "The Goddess's Call to Service: She moves in Mysterious Ways"; Siryn Dolphinsong, "Family Riches"; Katelan V. Foisy' "Children's Perspectives"; Shae Moyers RIghtmire, "Goddess Gifts: ALigning with Moneta Energies"; Jesse Wolf Hardn, "Commitment" and "Burden Basket"; Lady Willow' "Mindfulness"; Gail Wood, "Sweet Dreams: A Journey to Restfu SLeep and the Wisdom of Dreaming"; Ann Moura, "Discovery Through Dreaming"; Bev Richardson, "Tears"; Phyllis Curott' "Encountering the Divine in Nature"; Earthwizard, "Earth Religion in the Modern World"; Kristin Madden, "Man's Best Friend" and "Sound"; Branwen, "Furry Friends: Teaching Online"; Marian Singer' "Nature's Sense of Humor"; Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, "The RIver"; Janina Renee, "Weather Magick" and "Luck: Golden Sunshine"; Jennie Dunham, "The Snakeskin"; Cinnamon Moon, "Community/Unity"; Precious Nielsen, "Decency: A True STory of Goodness and the Power of Love"; Ashleen O'Gaea, "Magick and Community, Incarnate and Incarcerated"; Carl McColman, "Nurturing the Nurturers"; Starhawk, "Pagan Cluster in Calgary: A Short Report on the G8 Protests"; Laura Perry, "Stone Soup Casserole"; Ardy, "Touching the Community, and the Community Touching Me"; Mike Short, "Yuletide" and "Homegrown Cough Syrup"; Ambrose Hawk, "Elements: From a Christian Consecration Ritual"; Christina Linka, "Fire Scrying: Sophia's Legacy"; Rowan Hall, "Goddess"; Margot Adler, "Using Pagan Ritual in the Real World"; Judith Lewis, "Blessings and Protection"; Terrilyn, "Christmas Story"; Tamarack Song, "The Gifting Way: How Abundance Came to Me"; Jamie Wood. "Healing with Magick"; Selene Silverwind, "Love, Pagan Style"; Christine Jette, "Tarot for Healing" Overall, I recommend this book for some light and inspiring reading--just skip that one entry.