The Encyclopedia of Magic & Witchcraft

by Susan Greenwood

This is an authoritative examination of the history and traditions of magic and witchcraft, from very early times to the present.

Genres: Nonfiction, Witchcraft, Occult, Reference, Religion, New Age, Magic

256 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2001

About the author

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Susan Greenwood - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery

Reviews

[Claudia Loureiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing. It's nicely illustrated with big glossy photos and I really love the rage of time the author covers.
Contents:
Introduction
Magic in myth, religion and science
Witches and supernatural beings
Early modern witchcraft
Witch hunts
Modern magic
Witchcraft today
Western magic today

[Rene Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good basic reference for individuals initially investigating the topic. Not great, but good.

[Joy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. I found this boring, but all the nudity was quite nice. I apologize for saying this (if you enjoyed this book) but I really wanted to open my front door and fling it into the sun. Although, I do agree with the author’s statement about Carlos Castaneda’s works being “hoaxes.” My elder son is Yaqui (Yoeme) indigenous, so I’ve believed for some time that the shaman “Don Juan” was either a hallucination or a total figment of Castaneda’s imagination. The Four Agreements is good advice, but did not seem authentic to Yaqui culture. I digress, though. This encyclopedia might be good for people who haven’t read up on witchcraft before, and be warned that it’s written in British English, so some of the spelling may seem odd to an American reader. Just a heads-up.

[Anse Kinnaer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beknopt en toch uitgebreid overzicht van verschillende vormen van 'magie' over tijd en culturen heen, bekeken vanuit antropologisch onderzoek.

[Ary Nilandari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buku ini menghuni rak bukuku sekitar 3 tahun lalu, kubeli cuma gara-gara lagi diobral dengan diskon 75% di Borders. Eh ternyata menarik. Sejarah magic dan witchcraft dari masa ke masa dan di berbagai belahan dunia. Referensi yang membantu memahami banyak istilah dan nama-nama praktisi yang kadang disebut di novel-novel genre ini.
Membantu memahami tapi tidak berarti membantu dalam penerjemahan ke dalam bahasa Indonesia. Perbedaan budaya spiritual dan supranatural yang begitu jauh membuat banyak istilah tetap tidak memiliki padanan.

Foto dan ilustrasi mendominasi buku ini. Begitulah coffee-table book. Tapi jelas aku tidak akan sembarangan meletakkan buku ini dalam jangkauan anak-anak. Banyak gambarnya yang terlalu mengerikan.

[Constantin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is a good book that has lots of references in it. Very well rounded with a variety of subjects and provides ad adequate insight in religions, traditions, culture and various societies.
Although, it should be much longer to fit everything in, which would be hard to read as the amount of grammatical errors it is really annoying (even for someone who does not speak English as their first language)
Other than this I believe it is a good reference book for someone who wants to start somewhere and do their own research. It also has very nice pictures in it that keeps you going. There is nothing new though that doesn't exist in other books.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

good history (with great illustrations for those more visually inclined) of witchcraft leading up to modern day and nonwestern variations on paganism. bargain book buy makes this monograph-like volume worth the purchase.

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great reference book for magic and witchcraft. Lots of pictures to keep you interested.

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't even finish this. Many grammatical errors and typos throughout. Really not worth the time.