Customer Reviews

Elements of Witchcraft: Natural Magick for Teens

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you are looking for a great beginning Magick book, you've found it. I discovered Wicca when I was 11 but I had an awful experience with it and an ex-friend. I was discouraged from Magick until my mom got me this book.
This book has everything to begin witchcraft, a natural path, or wicca. It has sections on the elements, organizing magickal spaces, making tools, the god and goddess, the sabbats, rituals, and meditations. It has real life examples of spells working (and flopping) and will start anyone (not just teens) new to the craft off on the right foot. It is a very grounded and down to earth book and is not fluffy and sweet like most Wicca 101 books (No Offense, Silver Ravenwolf). It is well written and has simple spells to help anyone with their lives. It has detailed sections about the threefold rule, Magickal beings, how to be an inconspicuous witch, and the Witch's Pyramid. This book also gives recommendations of many other great Wicca books, but after you've read this book, no other book will measure up to it. Also, this is a great and reassuring book to read if your child is starting the craft and you are nervous about it. If you want to start (or restart) any type of natural magick, please buy this book. You won't regret it.

This is a wonderful introduction to Wicca for teens. It focuses less on "casting spells" and more on the spirituality of Wicca. It also places a lot of emphasis on personal responsibility and the ethics of the Wiccan religion.

The bulk of the book teaches the elements and the correspondences of each. It is written in a very organized, easy to follow and "down to earth" way. As a facilitator of a Wiccan youth group, I refer to it constantly.

Okay, so why do I love this book so much? Maybe I sound a bit like one of those enthusiastic baby-sitters club readers who likes the book no matter what's inside.
Well, I'm not. I love this book for a lot of reasons; a) the author doesn't expect you to be phenomenally rich, b) the author is friendly and warm c) the spells are simple, purposeful, and all the more powerful d) the writing style is flowing and has strong voice e) the stories of experiences from her own life are enchanting
The ONLY negative thing about this book (Besides the fact that at some point, you're going to finish it) is that it's really introductory. I mean, it's not bad for if you've read twenty other books and you'd like a difference of opinion, but there's plenty of stuff that's reveiw for more experienced Witches. (I've crossed my fingers - Maybe Ellen Dugan will write Something Something Magic, Natural Magic for the Intermediate Teen Witch, and then Something Something Whatever, Natural Magic for the Advanced Teen With, and then Something whatever something, More Natural Magic for Teen Witches, or whatever)
Anyway, you didn't need to see that. But trust me, you'll know what I mean by the time you've read this book! So the next question is, do you go to [the store] and read it off the shelf, or to the library to check out? Seriously, this is something you'll want to keep around. (Plus, if you buy one, she'll be more encouraged to write another.)
The only other author I like this much is Scott Cunningham. Seriously. Well, I guess I'm done ranting and raving. Just trust me - you will NOT be sorry if you buy this book.

"Elements of Witchcraft" has a title that says it all. It's a very element-focused book, and it is geared towards teens. You may find the tone friendly and down-to-earth, or you may find it a bit cheesy and condescending. You can tell a mom wrote the book, and that brings along all the pluses and minuses of that fact.

PROS:
* It's an earthy book that doesn't have the sparkly glitter and murky shadows of some other teen witch books. It's practical, it directly talks about safety and morals, and curious parents that leaf through it shouldn't find anything to hyperventilate about.
* The extensive information on the magical elements sets up the building blocks for curious teen witches.
* Flexible spells and correspondences continue the building block theme. There's explanation behind the concepts of magic and why/how it works, so it makes more sense.
* I love the format and the neat and tidy illustrations!
* It ends on a note about searching and moving forwards with research and such, so new kids will know where to go next to learn about what this book doesn't cover.

CONS:
* It spells magic with a k. ;) Personal preference.
* It doesn't go deep. This book is about witchcraft, not about associated religious paths. There is a short chapter that smacks of Wiccan beliefs about deity, but if you're a teen seeking some meatier religious or historical info, look elsewhere.
* Gnomes and brownies and such feature prominently. If you're the flavor of witch that doesn't talk about dragons, you may be rolling your eyes all the way through the guided meditations.
* Already a teen witch? You will not learn anything new.

All in all, I'm a bit fond of this book. It doesn't go where no teen witchcraft book has gone before, but it's still a good introduction.

to Teen Witches and Parents seeking a good book on Wicca and Witchcraft for their children: THIS IS IT. I would highly recommend this book; it's written very well and is understandable for any seeker of the Craft. This is the best book of them all on Teen Witchcraft. It has my FULL recommendation.

~Raven~
MT

This book is a great book for anyone just starting in the Craft. It is also a good book to give to parents, friends, or family members that don't fully understand your new faith. This is just a basic book and doesn't go into full detail of Witchcraft, although it covers a lot more than I thought it would, which is a good thing for beginners, it lightens the load of information that learning can bring. The Craft is a long road of discovery and takes more than one book to learn all you need, but for a starter book, this is, by me, very recommended. Good luck to all beginners. Blessed Be

Hi, this is a Teen Witch. It's nice to see books on witchcraft out there that aren't based on spells only. This book is down to earth and explains techniques in detail, like how to raise and focus energy, how to cast a circle, or commune with tree spirits. It is very earth-based and reflects the "real" ancient practice of withcraft and religion of wicca, and not the distorted religion that it has become for many teens. The author explains very well what witchcraft IS, and that magick is everything - the leaves that change, the snow that falls, the flowers that bloom - as opposed to casting fluffy "CALL ME" spells created by $ilver Ravenwolf.

This is a good book by Ellen Dugan. She gives lots of info on basic things to get started. She states a few basic beliefs and then goes into telling about the Elements and candle/color magick. She also decribes working with herbs and using the outdoors alot.

My favorite part of the book was when she went into detail about the element of Water because that was one element I felt most connected too and it helped get to know what symbols are associated with that element. I also was interested in the Fire element too seeing as I'm a Sagittarus.

This is a book I think all beginner teen will love and should read. It helps with the basic's and does provide a few spells to use.

Penny Lane

It's just a great book about witchcraft and wicca! It's written in a way that's slightly humorous and certainly easy to read. Unlike other books that make a big show about sounding and looking supernatural and sparkly, this one tells you to go plant something or sit in the morning dew and feel the sun warm you, which I suspect doesn't go over so well with bored teens that just want to look cool and rebellious and wouldn't want to get dirt within a mile of them, but keeps the truly interested... interested.

And if you're a "broom closet" witch, don't feel paranoid about leaving it out. Even relatively close-minded parents would, after reading it, would hopefully be accepting of your choice and supportive, and at the worst find it silly, but harmless. Other beginner's books may put emphasis on tools that parents would find expensive and dangerous or on bizarre spells that sound like they're from some cheap fantasy movie, but you won't find that here. Admittedly, the book has profoundly fluffy moments now and then (I don't know many people who honestly believe in gnomes), but it's nothing you can't wade through.

I hope Dugan writes a sequel sort of book with more advanced content some day. This book is good on magick but doesn't delve into any deep aspects of wicca.

If you are looking for a great beginners book, or just a natural magick book then this is for you. Ellen Dugan has the basics of magick and then adds her own twist. This book is full of humor and has parts that you must pay attention to. It also includes 4 great meditations for each element. It also tells you how to preform rituals and cast circles. One of my favorite parts of this book is where you can write in the book. Its called, "a place for your thoughts." It has 5 lined pages for you to write you thoughts down. All in all, this book is great and I would recomend this book for everyone of all ages! :)