Complete Book of Witchcraft (Llewellyn's Practical Magick) [Paperback]

Bitchcraft aside, Buckland's "Complete Book Of Witchcraft" is a title I recommend to all newcomers to the craft. Why? Firstly, instead of bogging the reader down with hundreds of pages of elaborate and complex theory, Buckland writes in a simplistic manner, encouraging the reader to actually start doing things rather than just reading about them.

It is not an authoritative book, and you will not become an all-powerful witch by reading it. What you will get is a taste for wicca, and a basic knowledge of many of the rituals and magickal practices of the craft.

When people set out on the wiccan path, the amount of books available is overwhelming. Wiccans are also not the most sociable people, and it is very difficult for newcomers to find covens or training. This book bypasses those frustrations, and the basic guides to the many craft interests should help newcomers decide on whether they wish to progress to further in-depth studies, and to find where they may have interests or talents.

Recommended.

It may be true that it wont have everything for everyone contained in its pages, but if you are wanting a good, thorough overview of basics in the Craft, this is what the book intends to do, and it does it!!

Some people may expect spells etc, but that is not what this book is about. Witchcraft is about bulding on basics and creating your own unique way of working, that's why its called the "Craft of the Wise"! If you want spells, Titania Hardie writes excellent books stuffed with loads of spells for every occassion, and her book Enchanted takes you through the Witches Year, with a master ritual (and lots of variations) for every month.

Ray Buckland is an excellent teacher in the Craft, and I am so grateful to him for sharing his vast knowledge with the rest of us. Thanks, Ray!

Several reviewers have highlighted one or two obvious flaws in the way the book is styled, and I must conditionally agree. Buckland does seem to insert rather an excessive number of references to his other books - although that being said, most of these are self-contained quotes and references used to make a point or provide further illustration. In the main, however, they do so without the necessity of buying these books. So they are at best informative extracts, and at worst adverts, rather than a requirement to buy. Secondly of course, there is the focus of the book. This is not "The Complete Book of Witchcraft" as its title suggests - although it might well have claimed to be "The Complete Book of Seax-Wica". Buckland does, oddly, seem to handle the words "Wicca" and "Witchcraft" interchangeably, although this is perhaps justified given that he is teaching a specific Wiccan tradition. The blurb by one reviewer on the back of this book calls it "eclectic", and it's important to understand that it is not - it is designed to teach Seax-Wica, with added information about other traditions scattered through the book for interest's sake.

In my own view, the style of the book is almost perfect for its intended audience. It is not flighty, since Buckland clearly (and understandably) treats his religion with a great deal of respect, and nor does it subscribe to the idea that you can be a witch simply by wearing black and buying "spell books". This book is not a "spell book" or a self-help book and is not intended to be - it is a course of tuition. The reader is the student, the author the tutor. The style is consistent with that idea, and anyone who has a genuine interest and can willingly submit themselves to the "student" role while they study the course will gain a great deal of insight and information from this book. It is, perhaps, not an ideal way to learn, but for those who are Solitary by situation rather than by choice, it is certainly the next-best-thing to a real-life tutor.