Llewellyn's 2016 Sabbats Almanac: Samhain 2015 to Mabon 2016

Llewellyn's Sabbats Annual

by Llewellyn Publications

Celebrate the Seasons and the Wheel of the Year

Rituals - Recipes - Crafts - Pagan Lore - Planetary Guidance

Enrich your spiritual life with the lessons and gifts of the eight sacred holidays of the witches' year. Offering a variety of ways to work with seasonal energies, Llewellyn's 2016 Sabbats Almanac features ideas and insights from a wealth of favorite contributors:

Dallas Jennifer Cobb - Natalie Zaman - Suzanne Ress - Elizabeth Barrette - Diana Rajchel - Susan Pesznecker - Eilidh Grove - Magenta Griffith - Linda Raedisch - Blake Octavian Blair - April Elliott Kent - Doreen Shababy - Tess Whitehurst

Includes more than fifty articles written for newcomers and experienced witches:

Creative, low-cost arts and crafts projects Ideas for celebrating the sabbats as a family Simple recipes for delicious appetizers, entrees, beverages, and desserts Astrological influences with full and new moon rituals Extended rituals for groups and individuals Journal pages for keeping track of your festival plans and memories Fascinating Pagan folklore and customs Samhain 2015 to Mabon 2016

Genres: Spirituality, Paganism, Reference, Witchcraft, Wicca

312 pages, Paperback

First published July 8, 2015

About the author

Llewellyn George started his publishing company in Portland, Oregon in 1901, concentrating Astrological books and annuals. In 1961, Carl L. Weschcke of St. Paul, Minnesota purchased the company and relocated it to the Midwest.

Llewellyn is the world’s oldest and largest independent publisher of books for body, mind, and spirit.

Reviews

[Anna Katherina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Each "chapter" per Neowiccan holiday comes with an introductory essay that's supposed to be relevant to the holiday in question, but almost never actually is. This is followed up by a cosmological forecast that explains some astrology placements for that month, which I always skipped because it was written in 2015 and astrology's irrelevant to me anyways. Then by another essay that's supposed to be relevant but only vaguely is. Next some food recipes, what basically amounts to a child's craft, some nonsense about "secrets", and finally a ritual.

Honestly, if this almanac made me come away with anything? It's a particular hatred for the utter nonsense that self professed "Shaman, Druidic, Reiki Master-Teacher, Ordained Minister, and author" Blake Octavian Blair produces so frequently I'm questioning whether he's even remotely capable of writing anything but bullsh*t. And boy is this book filled with a lot of it from him in particular.

Diana Rajchel isn't much better in any regard... And is apparently convinced Beltane is all about Sex and deserves as much shade for it as Valentines; I want to chalk the clear bitterness up to the divorce she made (still makes?) a big deal about in her bio, honestly, but I can't bring myself to believe the divorce is her only problem. Clearly it isn't and she has deeper issues to deal with.

Eilidh Grove's little mention of Michael Dames' theories surrounding Silbury Hill were... Interesting. Not only because the book she quotes was written by a hack in the 70's, but also because by 2014, a year before publication, they were so far out of date it wasn't even funny. The fact she was still writing about it in 2015 cracks me up and makes me think none of these people ever revisit scholarship- if they even touched any legitimate scholarship in the first place (and I doubt they did).

I will say I do have to give Natalie Zaman props, at least, for having the courage to practice some Christian syncretic stuff without going on a tirade about how evil Christianity is. This is something which is virtually unheard of among Neopagans. But she instantly looses my ability to take her seriously when she asserts quite confidently that the three Magi "invented gift giving". I guess it could be interpreted that way if you squint really hard and tilt your head to the side, but it's so asinine and ignorant of the history of Christmas customs that couldn't help but laugh.

All in all, the book sucks. The history is bad. The claims are bad. The rhetoric itself is bad. The contributing authors are all idiots, through and through. And there's nothing particularly useful about any of the articles in the book; unless you're going to use it for the lackluster food recipes, I genuinely wouldn't bother. It's really just more of your fairly typical, subpar Llewellyn tripe... Nothing new or interesting here at all.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just don't find these books useful. I barely made it through this one and I got a few from years back that were dirt cheap just to read as a reference and I guess I feel they're really out of touch. If you want some Fantastical whimsical witchy Existence that jives with what mainstream witches are "supposed" to look like: earthy, and dancing and really bubbly and kind, this might be for you. But if you're looking for historically accurate good reading, and the meat, dirt and darkness that is the essence of witchcraft, meh, skip
On buying these.

[Mark Albright · Rating 5 out of 5]

The almanac covers from Samhain 2015 to Mabon 2016. Each sabbat is covered with an explanation, an astrological forecast, a few seasonal recipes and crafts, and an example of a ritual. All of these are meant to enhance your experience with each sabbat. I'm looking forward to purchasing next year's almanac.

[Misty B · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the little tidbits of information put together for these books. Some of the recipes have become family favorites.