The Witch Book by Raymond Buckland © 2002 Visible Ink Press
ISBN 1-57859-114-7 624 pages Paperback $24.95 (U.S.)
$34.95 (Canada)
For some reason, the first few books I have "read" for review this year
have
all been reference works, only one of which wasn't a dictionary or
encyclopedia style. Two of the first three (including this one) were by
well-known authors and so I was familiar with their background and writing
style.
The entries in this book are easily cross-referenced through the use of
bold-face. They are clearly written and concise. The author has taken
the
time, in the introduction, to let the reader know why the word
"witchcraft"
is spelled with both an upper case and a lower case "w" depending on its
context.
I have owned a number of encyclopedia on the subjects of Witchcraft and
Paganism over the years, some written by "insiders" (Pagans and Witches)
and
some by outsiders (re****ters and researchers). Each of them had their own
biases, normally unacknowledged. Mr. Buckland (he seldom refers to his
doctorate in anthropology any longer) makes his very bias very clear in
the
introduction, so no one should be caught unaware.
As with his book on divination, there is an extensive resource section at
the end, although this one lacks internet references. Also, each article
has sources listed for ease of verification and/or further exploration.
The
vast majority of these references are relatively recent (within the 20th
century), although there are a few older works listed.
There are, unfortunately a number of typographical errors in this work
(e.g., "tow" for "two" [page 11] and "mon" for "moon" [page 23]). This is
not uncommon and so does not detract from the overall value of this work.
There are numerous illustrations, although not so many that they are an
attempt to increase the size of the book. They serve, primarily, to
illustrate key individuals and concepts discussed in the text. Most of
them
are drawn from the Fortean Picture Library.
One item which came as a pleasant surprise was the inclusion of a number
of
movies (good, bad and mediocre and both well-known and obscure) which have
****trayed Witchcraft through the years. I haven't encountered many works
which do this. Considering how much the entertainment media influences
the
perceptions of the "average man on the street" this serves a useful
purpose.
Like many "traditional" (non-eclectic) Witches, the author sees no
distinction between Witchcraft and Wicca. This may offend some readers,
especially those who promote the revisionist theory that "Wicca" was
created
by Gerald Gardner and the use of magic is equivalent to Witchcraft. The
author's viewpoint is the way most of us "old timers" were taught it.
Agree
or disagree with it, the non-distinction is a view shared by many of the
first generation or two of "out-of-the-broom closet" Witches.
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