Sounds of Infinity

by Lee Morgan, Lily Collard

The 'Good Folk', also known as the Hidden People or the Faeries, govern a dominion marginal to humanity, inhabiting shadows, mists, dreams, and the forsaken places of nature. For the greater part of history, their influence has been characterized by malignance, threat and harassment of human society. Similarly, the accursed witch inhabits a world characterized by its liminality, partaking in light and darkness, and the ritualized forces of life and death. Although participating differing currents of lore and magic, the spiritual provinces of witchcraft and the faerie share many remarkable features. In an innovative narrative style, and approaching the subject from diverse points of view, the author argues for a unified onotological understanding of Witch and Faerie, and contemplates the points of power they share in common through the three zones of legend, folklore and magic.

Genres: Witchcraft, Occult

272 pages, Paperback

Published October 31, 2018

About the author

Lee Morgan lives on a communal homestead on kunanyi/Mt Wellington in nipaluna/Hobart, where he creates sanctuary for other weirdos, raises books, people, and ideas from the grave. He has had novels and non-fiction published by Moon Books, Three Hands Press, The Witches Almanac and Rebel Satori. Having survived an enormous tumour, Lee currently is busy filling the room in his skull with new brains, writing Folk Horror, and queering the world one step at a time.

Reviews

[Nightshade · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an exquisite and masterful work of art crafted with the power of faery cunning and magic. The beauty of Morgan's words is coupled with an in depth look at faery lore in various cultures, and speaks to the close relationship between Witches and Faeries and the powerful ambivalence of both worlds.

[Jeanine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very strange book, hard to read and follow.

[Silen Wellington · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how Lee Morgan moves seamlessly from historical analysis, reaching for ancestors' worldview on things to weave in the enchanted with historical context. This book was a slow, luxurious read for me because every page was so full of insight, I wanted to chew on it for several days. I love the weaving of fiction, nonfiction, and practice.

[Luke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lee Morgans work is always well written, with well referenced research and a wealth of expertise. This is perhaps one of the best books on the subject. Highly recommend.

[William Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Putting occult fiction in the middle of a book on the Faerie Faith is a decision I can get behind. I’m susceptible to a strange story, and Morgan gives storytelling a job to do here. The fiction takes up ideas from the opening section and lets them work on the imagination before the practical grimoire brings ritual into the picture. Someone has thought about how the reader gets from understanding an idea to being sufficiently involved to do something with it.

That involvement is what interests me. I can accumulate information about witchcraft quite happily while remaining almost entirely undisturbed by it. Morgan’s use of imagery and suggestion makes that comfortable arrangement more difficult. There’s something fitting about approaching faerie through a story whose significance you have to sit with. I wouldn’t expect the Good Folk to provide an executive summary.

My reservation is also about that approach. Sometimes I want an explanation to stay put long enough for me to examine it, and the movement into visionary language asks for a different sort of attention. I’d want to be in the right mood for this one. It has very little regard for my desire to look something up quickly.

The progression into practical work gives the experiment its appeal. Morgan follows through on the implications of making the imagination part of a magical education. I like the ambition of that, even where I’m inclined to linger over a question he’s already carried further into the woods.

[Damian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book, though it may not be for everyone. Personally, I enjoyed it a lot. It is a book about fairies, their magic, and their world, approached from the perspective of Traditional Witchcraft and inspired by folklore, rather than by a kind of New Age romanticization of these spirits.

The illustrations are simply fantastic, and the content itself is very informative, with a practical section that can be somewhat complex, but is still perfectly doable. Highly recommended.