Ratings of the below are subjective to some degree, and depend on the phases of the moon as well as my mood.

- Marginal, or I forgot what it was about, or who knows??
* - Pretty good
** - More than pretty good
*** - Highly recommended!!!

This is by no means a final list of what is available -- I have purposefully omitted some books, while other books which may be good just have not come into my possession. Yet.

**Ashcroft-Nowicki, Dolores. 1987. Highways of the Mind: The Art and History of Pathworking.
Aquarian Press, Wellingbourough, England.

**Adler, Margot. 1986. Drawing Down the Moon, rev. & expanded ed.
Beacon Press, Boston.
(A definitive book on the varieties of Witches and Neopagans today.)

*Anderson, William. 1990. Green Man: The Archetype of Our Oneness with the Earth.
HarperCollins, London.
(Excellent photography with good commentary.)

**Baring, Anne and Jules Cashford. 1991. The Myth of the Goddess: Evolution of an Image.
Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, England.
(The authors have background in psychology and philosophy; they detail cultural Goddess archetypes over time, and show how relationships to these goddesses developed and changed.)

Beck, Renee and Sydney Barbara Metrick. 1990. The Art of Ritual: A Guide to Creating and Performing Your Own Rituals for Growth and Change.
Celestial Arts, Berkeley, California. ISBN 0-89087-582-0
(Using ritual in a non-religious context; some good self-help ideas, also some philosophy of ritual.)

*Beyerl, Paul. 1984. The Master Book of Herbalism.
Phoenix Publishing Company, Custer, Washington.

Beyerl, Paul. 1989. A Wiccan Bardo: Initiation and Self-Transformation.
Prism Press, Dorset, England. ISBN 1-85327-036-9.
(And mine eyes glazed over...)

**Bonewits, P. E. I. 1978. Real Magic.
Creative Arts Book Company, Berkeley. (Theories of magic.)

Budapest, Zsuzsanna. 1993. The Goddess in the Office: A Personal Energy Guide for the Spiritual Warrior of Work.
HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 0-06-250087-2.
(Empowering yourself in the office place. Some ideas are good, but other ones impinge on the free will of others. In other words, bring your ethical checklist with you...)

**Budapest, Zsuzsanna. 1989. The Grandmother of Time.
Harper and Row, San Francisco. (A cycle of the year book.)

*Bulfinch, Thomas. 1959. Bulfinch's Mythology, a modern abridgement.
Dell Publishing Co., New York.
(A concise old source.)

Campanelli, Dan and Pauline. 1993. Circles, Groves and Sanctuaries: Sacred Spaces of Today's Pagans.
Llewellyn, St. Paul, Minn.
(Information on Circle and ritual setup; photos of various sites in black and white, plus commentary by the people who use such sites.)

**Campanelli, P. 1989. Wheel of the Year: Living the Magical Life.
Llewellyn, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN 0-87542-108-3.

**Campbell, Joseph. 1986. The Inner Reaches of Outer Space: Metaphor as Myth and as Religion.
Harper and Row, San Francisco.

**Campbell, Joseph. 1968. The Hero With a Thousand Faces.
Princeton University Press, Princeton.

*Clifton, Chas A., ed. 1992. Witchcraft Today - Book One: The Modern Craft Movement.
Llewellyn Books, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN 0-87542-377-9.
(Intro essays on various aspects of Witchcraft: including its connection with shamanism, Witchcraft and the law, living 9 to 5.)

**Clifton, Chas A., ed. 1993. Witchcraft Today - Book Two: Modern Rites of Passage.
Llewellyn Books, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN 0-87542-378-7.
(A collection of thoughtful essays on life stages: including excellent ones on working with the underage seeker, Pagan approaches to grief, illness and loss, the older Witch, and more.)

*Clifton, Chas A., ed. 1994. Witchcraft Today - Book Three: Witchcraft and Shamanism.
Llewellyn Books, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN 1-56718-150-3.
(From a variety of approaches.)

***Clifton, Chas A., ed. 1996. Living Between Two Worlds: Challenges of the Modern Witch.
Llewellyn Books, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN -56718-151-1.
(Effectively the fourth in the Witchcraft Today series, herein Clifton hits his editorial stride. Pros and cons on coming out of the broom closet, everyday life, practical issues of confidentiality, the dichotomy of "us vs. them", and more.)

*Craighead, Meinrad. 1986. The Mother's Songs: Images of God the Mother.
Paulist Press, Mahwah, New Jersey.

***Crowley, Vivianne. 1989. Wicca: The Old Religion in the New Age.
Aquarian Press, Surrey.
(Meaty and important.)

**Crowley, Vivianne. 1998. Principles of Wicca.
Thorssons. ISBN: 0722534515
(While this book is apparently being touted by the publisher as the only introduction you'll ever need to the topic, the author's own take is much more realistic. Whether or not it is the *only* introduction needed, this book is quite a decent intro to the religion. I recommend it heartily. She sees the subject with a depth of field, and does not turn it into a cookbook of recipes, including just enough of the latter to give a person a feel, and to get her or him started.)

**Crowther, Patricia. 1998. High Priestess: The Life and Times of Patricia Crowther.
Phoenix Publishing. ISBN: 0-919345-87-5.
(One of the early and important figures of the contemporary Craft presents an autobiography fascinating to read. Her style may jump around a bit, but it is all worthwhile.)

Cunningham, Scott. 1982. Magical Herbalism.
Llewellyn, St. Paul.
(Recipes.)

*Cunningham, Scott. 1985. The Magic of Incense, Oils and Brews.
Llewellyn, St. Paul.
(More recipes.)

*Cunningham, Scott. Wicca for the Solitary Practicioner.
Llewellyn, St. Paul.
(Yet more recipes. There's a certain all-pervasive blandness here, from which two schools of thought arise: Is it better to have a bland intro book, or should more of the flavor of the depth of Wicca permeate books? Well, it's here, for people to have the freedom of that choice, or maybe any choice, in outlying areas, and I'm glad it seems to be available so prevalently. But try the intro books by Crowley or Hunter, if you have the option.)

*Cunningham, Scott. 1994. The Truth About Witchcraft.
Llewellyn, St. Paul. ISBN 0-87542-357-4.
(This pamphlet-sized book looks about right for handing someone who is questioning you about your religion. It is meant to cover the basics, and by and large it does a decent job of explaining the Craft to, say, your parents or a friend who may be concerned for your sake. It is inexpensive enough that you may want to stock up should you decide to wander out of the broom closet.)

**Downing, Christine. 1981. The Goddess: Mythological Images of the Feminine.
Crossroad, New York.
(An exploration of the archetypes from a personal perspective.)

Farrar, Janet and Stewart. 1987. The Life and Times of a Modern Witch.
Phoenix Publishing, Custer, Washington. ISBN 0-919345-69-7.
(An informal study of who we are, done mostly through self-selecting surveys. Not a major book. You are best steered to others of their books.)

**Farrar, Janet and Stewart. 1981. A Witches Bible Volume I: The Sabbats.
Magickal Childe, New York.
(Sabbat rituals, along with discussions.)

***Farrar, Janet and Stewart. 1989. The Witches' God.
Robert Hale, London.
(Discussion of God-roles; rituals; index to Gods. Good jumping-off point.)

***Farrar, Janet and Stewart. 1987. The Witches' Goddess.
Phoenix, Custer, Washington.
(Discussion of Goddess-roles; rituals; index to Goddesses. Good jumping-off point.)

**Farrar, Stewart. 1983. What Witches Do: The Modern Coven Revealed.
Phoenix Publishing Company, Custer, Washington.

**Feinstein, David and Stanley Krippner. 1988. Using Ritual, Dreams and Personal Imagination to Discover Your Inner Story.
Tarcher, Los Angelos.

**Fortune, Dion. 1962. Applied Magic.
Aquarian Press. Wellingborough, England. ISBN 0-850218-8.
(Fortune appeared on the magickal scene in the early part of this century; her books, with modifications, have been a cornerstone in many Wiccan and Pagan approaches to the topic of Magic. Here she discusses aspects of and approaches to occultism.)

**Fortune, Dion. 1935. Practical Occultism in Daily Life.
Samuel Weiser, York Beach, Maine. ISBN 0-87728-316-8.
(This thin volume has chapters on incarnations, karma, divination, and "magnetism".)

**Fortune, Dion. 1957. Psychic Self-Defence.
Samuel Weiser, York Beach, Maine. ISBN 0-87728-381-8.
(Types of attack, differential diagnosis, defense.)

*Gimbutas, Maria. 1982. The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe.
University of California.
(Anthropological perspectives. Some material has been superceeded by subsequent research, but still important, and well-illustrated.)

*Graves, Robert. 1966. The White Goddess: Amended and Enlarged Edition.
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York.
(Sort of a classic, but very oddly organized and more than sometimes hard to read. I'm feeling less well disposed to this book as time goes by. I regret having required it as reading for early students of mine. It's supposed to be more inspirational than factual, but on an inspirational level I'd say most of the chapters are a good panacea for insomnia. The sole reason it gets a star is due to its classic status.)

Hamilton, Edith. 1940. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heros.
Mentor, Boston.
(Your basic mythology, mostly Greek.)

***Harrow, Judy. 1999. Wicca Covens: How to Start and Organize Your Own.
Citadel Press. ISBN 0-8065-2035-3.
(Personal and psychological dimensions and interpersonal dynamics in beginning and running a coven, or any small working or spiritual group. To see some related and basic Counseling for Pagan Clergy information by Judy Harrow, click on the link.... Unfortunately, Citadel Press has gone out of business, but AzureGreen has a few copies of this left.)

**Harvey, Graham and Charlotte Hardman, ed. 1995. Paganism Today: Wiccans, Druids, the Goddess and Ancient Earth Traditions in the Twenty-First Century.
Thorsons (HarperCollins), London. ISBN 0-7225-3233-4.
(Although a few of the essays herein seem a tad lame, overall this collection of thought from a range of British authors is quite stimulating, and reflects the many directions British Paganism is taking. It is not without relevance to those of us across the Puddle, as in most cases a certain depth of vision is achieved.)

*Hopman, Ellen Evert and Lawrence Bond, ed. 1996. People of the Earth: The New Pagans Speak Out.
Destiny Books, Rochester, VT ISBN 0-89281-559-0.
(Interviews with a variety of folks walking the Pagan/Wiccan paths, dealing with some of the more outspoken and articulate members of our community. The book would have been strengthened had it included conversations focusing on various practitioners of formative Wiccan traditions such as Alexandrian, and branches of Gardnerianism.)

**Hunter, Jennifer. 1997. 21st Century Wicca: A Young Witch's Guide to Living the Magical Life.
Citadel Press, Seacaucus, New Jersey. ISBN 0-8065-1887-1.
(Yet another Intro Witchcraft book? Yes, but with a difference. This is not an oversimplified collection of spells and watered down Witchcraft. The author is young enough to remember being a younger, beginning Witch, and writes unpretentiously without talking down to her audience. Recommended for beginners, and interesting for those who have been around the block as well.)

***Hutton, Ronald. 2000. The Triump of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft.
Oxford University Press, Oxford. ISBN 0-19-820744-1.
(The focus here is on British Witchcraft, and this is indeed an excellent book. For those who just want spells and how-to's, this is not the book. Rather, it discusses the underpinnings of contemporary Pagan Witchcraft, which of course does not go back into the hoary and ancient matriarchal past that a few still wistfully wish for. Scholarly but fascinating, and room for reasoned debate. The author recogizes that there are parts of what Gardner popularized that we will never have complete historical answers for.)

**Jones, Prudence and Caitlin Matthews, ed. 1990. Voices from the Circle: The Heritage of Western Paganism.
Aquarian Press, Wellingborough, England. ISBN 0-85030-785-6.
(Well-thought out articles by the editors, RJ Stewart, Vivienne Crowley, and others. Topics include learning from animals, initiation, Druidism, and a very interesting creative article comparing what one can learn from Paganism to elements in a stone circle.)

***Jones, Prudence, and Nigel Pennick. 1997. A History of Pagan Europe.
Routledge, New York. ISBN 0-415-15804-4.
(A fascinating read, and an essential book for anyone interested in a well-researched book on the history of European Paganism. Written by Pagans, it is about time we actually did the research, and went beyond wishful thinking. This book is an excellent start. And, there are appparently a lot more Pagan influences in the various European cultures than we commonly credit.)

Kelly, Aidan. 1991. Crafting the Art of Magic: A History of Modern Witchcraft, 1939-1954.
Llewellyn, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN 0-87542-370-1.
(Some interesting jumps in logic to reach his points regarding the creation of contemporary Witchcraft, which he regards as invented by Gardner with some backsourcing. This seems likely, but he has an occasional habit of making a hypothesis about some portion of this, and then voila refering back to it as a statement of fact, which the scientist in me finds sloppy. PS, I'm not a Gardnerian, and hence my religious validity has no personal stake in the roles Gardner played or didn't play at the onset of contemporary Witchcraft. I've seen some interesting privately- printed material by Don Frew which treats much of this material more rigorously from an opposing standpoint, and have looked more closely at Kelly's electronically-circulated material as well -- since the latter gets past the issue of the Llewellyn editing job. I remain an "interested agnostic" on the topic. PS, the Hutton book is far superior to the Kelly material.)

**Lewis, James R., ed. 1996. Magical Religion and Modern Witchcraft.
State University of New York Press, Albany. ISBN 0-7914-2890-7.
(A collection of articles going into greater depth with specifics of the Craft and Paganism, including valuable contributions by Judy Harrow, Dennis Carpenter, Sabina Magliocco, James W. Baker, Jeffrey Kaplan, and others, on topics of worldview, magic and ritual, ethics, history, etc.)

Mariechild, Diane. 1981. Mother Wit: A Feminist Guide to Psychic Development.
The Crossing Press, Trumansburg, New York.

Monaghan, Patricia. 1994. O Mother Sun!: A New View of the Cosmic Feminine.
Crossing Press, Freedom, California.
(Myths and considerations; I haven't gotten to read this one yet, but it looks intriguing.)

**Monaghan, Patricia. 1999. The Goddess Path: Myths, Invocations Rituals.
Llewellyn Books. ISBN 1-56718-467-7.
(Occasionally, Llewellyn publishes something good. Monaghan works on bringing out the experiential aspects of goddesss work, with some, but not extensive, historical background. She writes clearly and supplies suggested exercises. She is the widow of the late and sorely missed Robert Shea.)

**Olson, Carl, ed. 1987. The Book of the Goddess, Past and Present.
Crossroad, New York.

*Ryall, Rhiannon. 1989. West Country Wicca: A Journal of the Old Religion.
Phoenix Publishing, Custer, Washington. ISBN 0-919345-98-0.
(There's controversy on this one over how much she made up, but the recipes in this book, and some of her comments, are inspirational at the least.)

*Sjoo, Monica, and Barbara Mor. 1987. The Great Cosmic Mother: Rediscovering the Religion of the Earth.
Harper and Row, San Francisco. ISBN 0-06-250791-5.
(Women's religion and women's culture -- some excellent art by Sjoo, as well as commentary and discussion on the role of women's culture through history. A bit of overreliance on patriarchy as the grab-bag enemy, though.)

***Smith, Jonathan Z., William Scott Green, and the American Academy of Religion. 1995. The HarperCollins Dictionary of Religion.
HarperCollins, San Francisco. ISBN 0-06-067515-2.
(Whilst getting a lot of good solid information about all faiths, the entries for Wicca (properly capitalized!), neopaganism, and related faiths, are well handled and described as accurately as space limitations would allow.)

***Starhawk. 1979. The Spiral Dance.
Harper and Row, San Fransisco.
(A "must-read"!!!)

*Starhawk. 1987. Truth or Dare. Harper and Row, San Fransisco.

***Starhawk and M. Macha Nightmare, ed.. 1998. The Pagan Book of Living and Dying: Practical Rituals, Prayers, Blessings, and Meditations on Crossing Over.
Harper, San Fransisco. ISBN 9-780062-515162.
(Paganism is maturing, and addressing important questions on death and dying from multidimensional perspectives. The book contains thought provoking and challenging essays, discussions of mythologies, rituals and meditations.)

*Stein, Diane. 1987. The Women's Spirituality Book.
Llewellyn, St. Paul.
(Good -- relevant to men as well as women.)

Stein, Diane. 1990. All Women Are Healers: A Comprehensive Guide to Natural Healing.
Crossing Press, Freedom, California. ISBN 0-89594-409-X.
(I have problems with the "all" blanket-statement approach. The book is an introductory and simple overview of healing methods; go to more specific books for deeper reference.)

**Stewart, R.J. 1998. Power Within the Land: The Roots of Celtic and Underworld Traditions Awakening the Sleepers and Regenerating the Earth.
Mercury Publishing, Lake Toxaway, NC. ISBN 1-892137-00-3.
(Create intensive meditative experiences to explore the powers of the Land within the Underworld. While most of the meditations use Celtic myths to some extent, this exercise book which is complete with principles and philosophy, can be adapted to a variety of growth experiences.)

***Stewart, R.J. 1985. The Underworld Initiation: A Journey Towards Psychic Transformation.
The Aquarian Press, Surrey. ISBN 0-85030-399-0.
(Celtic underworld myths and meanings, especially as they relate to rebirth markers of initiatory experience.)

Telesco, Patricia. 1995. Folkways: Reclaiming the Magic and Wisdom.
Llewellyn, St. Paul, Minn. ISBN 0-87542-787-1.
(Snippets of folklore from all over.)

*Telesco, Patricia. 2000. Magical Places: A Wiccan Guide to Sacred Sites and Spiritual Centers.
Citadel Press. ISBN 0-8065-2138-4.
(A great starting point for information on a variety of sacred and spiritual places around the world. In most cases, she provides contact information as well. While the book is alphabetized by site (not by location), there's a useful appendix with listings by location. Obviously, in a book of this nature, a lot of worthy places will be omitted -- and if you do plan to travel to any of these one would want to do additional reading before going.)

The editors of Time-Life Books. Witches and Witchcraft.
Time-Life Books, Alexandria, Virginia. ISBN 0-8094-6392-X.
(Mostly geared to the Inquisition, but some material with accompanying photos of contemporary Craft activities. This book is in the Mysteries of the Unknown series; it was possible to obtain just this one book. One of the unknown mysteries is the names of the actual authors; and the copyright date seems to be off in a time which is not a time; a time which is all times... The photographs, as one can imagine, are excellent.)

*Weinstein, Marion. 1981. Positive Magic, rev. ed.
Phoenix Publishing Company, Surrey, B.C., Canada.

**Valiente, Doreen. 1989. The Rebirth of Witchcraft.
Robert Hale, London. ISBN 0-7090-3715-5.
(Good background information on the contemporary development of Witchcraft, written by a seminal figure.)

*Valiente, Doreen. 1975. Natural Magic.
Phoenix Publishing, Custer, Washington. ISBN 0-919345-80-8.

***Valiente, Doreen. 1978. Witchcraft for Tomorrow.
Phoenix Publishing, Custer, Washington. ISBN 0-919345-83-2.
(Building on work done earlier in the century, Valiente discusses signs and symbols, alphabets, festivals, and the Magic Circle.)

Weinstein, Marion. 1986. Earth Magic: A Dianic Book of Shadows, rev. ed.
Phoenix Publishing, Custer, Washington.

**Wolkstein, Diane and Samuel Noah Kramer. 1983. Inanna: Queen of Heaven and Earth: Her Stories and Hymns from Sumer.
Harper and Row, San Francisco.
(Translations of Sumerian, and commentary.)

You have a while to wait before I get around to putting in ISBN numbers on ALL of the above books.

This textfile is an emendation and expansion of a far-older list (WIC-BK.LST), which is possibly still found on CompuServe's Religion Forum (Pagan and Occult section).

Last Updated: November 26, 2000 ce.