14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Gives the young reader an excellent place to start, June 17, 2003
This review is from: SpellCraft for Teens: A Magickal Guide to Writing & Casting Spells (Paperback)
This book is rather unique in that it is written by a member of the audience it is intended for, Gwinevere Rain is a teen witch herself, she understands the perspective of who she is trying to reach, and so approaches the subject in a different light than an adult may. She was raised by Catholic parents, though the religion was not enforced, her personal exploration of Wicca started with Greek myths as a child, and then carried on learning more from the Internet, where one witch suggested Cunningham's 'A Guide For the Solitary Practitioner', where she realized she had found a path that finally felt right, Wicca. A familiar story for many.
The preface sets the tone for the book, making it quite clear from the beginning that Gwinevere is a Wiccan witch and she approaches witchcraft from that point of view. Simple spellcraft with simple ingredients, she notes that creating your own spells can be more effective because you put your own energy into it from start to finish, but also takes into account that it is difficult to do when you're just starting out. She offers an interesting and effective solution to this problem, giving the reader various original incantations and chants that can be incorporated into a spell as well as suggestions to use and modify them. She lists reasons why not to use a spellbook and alternatives that may work for a teen just starting out.
She makes an informed distinction between Wicca and witchcraft that I share, noting that Wicca is a contemporary religion, a reivison of older roots. She understands that there is no direct evidence to an ancient secret cult of witches, but that witchcraft is 'the art and practice of Magick' (pg. 8). She also marks that some still do consider witchcraft to be a religion for various reasons and allows ambiguity on that history, but for her purposes, witchcraft is 'the magickal aspect of Wicca'.
However, I find Rain's definition of magick to be rather simplistic and niave, defining magick as 'the art of using positive energy to focus your will and create positive and useful change'. While not a terrible definition, especially for novice teens, not every magickal act is intended to be positive - though those presented in this book are. While it's good advice to persue magick with a positive intent, ignoring the negative possibilities of magick can be foolish and even dangerous.
Rain responsibly lists some important safety tips to take into consideration when using candles and/or incense, as well as ensuring that you have a parent's permission before setting the house on fire.
In fact, her attitude towards parental awareness and involvement in general is also very responsible. Her advice regarding coming out of the broom closet at first struck me funny because she recommends starting with telling a friend or sibling first, but I can see where she is coming from. It can be difficult to lay it on your parents to start with, you may be unsure of how they will react, and it's easier to start with someone closer to your age and maturity. They may ask questions your parents may echo, and you will already have prepared responses, and not be left at a loss. Rain also says if your parents object strongly to your becoming a Wiccan and/or a witch, to respect their decision and wait the few years until you can legally be considered an adult, and are able to make your own decisions.
This book gives the young reader an excellent place to start and a list of books for further reading to continue researching, as well as a note on finding supplies in your area. A great book to pick up for a curious young teen
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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Teen Spell CookBook, October 6, 2002
This review is from: SpellCraft for Teens: A Magickal Guide to Writing & Casting Spells (Paperback)
SpellCraft for Teens - A Magical Guide to Writing and Casting Spells by Gwinevere Rain
This release of a teen witch book is a "cookbook" of how to write spells and how to work with them. Written by a young lady who was a "teen witch" herself. She puts her experiences with working spells into her first book to share the experience with other teens.
It's not easy being a teen with a different spiritual path, and Ms. Rain imparts some of her own experiences in the introduction of this book. She also describes her own spiritual path of Wicca in easy to follow introductions called "Living Magically: The Wiccan Path and Enchanting: Magical Rules and Circle Casting. She does discuss the Rede and the Law of Three, coming out of the broom closet, circle casting and basic ethics for working magic. It's a very general and basic description but if you are already familiar with Wicca, this lays the groundwork for the rest of the book, the spell crafting.
Her section on spells covers those things which teenagers would be most likely to be interested. Besides the usual love, money, stop gossip and beauty spells, she also includes book blessings, healing, truth and protection spells, as well as a couple for psychic powers. There is also an "undoit" spell.
The back of the book contains correspondences and magical properties and discusses keeping journals and records of what you have done.
If you are a teenager who has a family background in Wicca, or you have been practicing for a while on your own and are looking to take the next magical step, this little book gives a basic overview of the spellworking process and where to start. A very informative "cookbook" of where you could start.
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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
this book rocks, December 27, 2002
This review is from: SpellCraft for Teens: A Magickal Guide to Writing & Casting Spells (Paperback)
This book is wonderful and I have no negative comments about it. I think this book would be perfect for anyone. It has a lot of information on witchcraft for beginners.Take my advice:its worth the money. Guinevere writes this book in an easy to understand manner for all ages.
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