The Weiser Field Guide to Witches: From Hexes to Hermione Granger, From Salem to the Land of Oz

by Judika Illes

Witches peek from greeting cards and advertisements, and they dig twisted roots from the ground. Witches dance beneath the stars and lurk around cauldrons. Witches heal, witches scare, witches creep, and witches teach! A compendium of witches through the ages, from earliest prehistory to some of the most significant modern practitioners, The Weiser Field Guide to Witches explores who and what is a witch. From such famed historical legends as Aleister Crowley, Marie Laveau and Elizabeth Bathory to the popular literary and cinematic figures Harry Potter and The Wicked Witch of the West, Illes offers a complete range of the history of witches. Included also are the sacredIsis, Hekate, Aradiaand the profanethe Salem Witch trials and The Burning Times. The Weiser Field Guide to Witches is appropriate for readers of all ages and serves as an excellent and entertaining introduction for those fascinated by the topic.

Genres: Witchcraft, Nonfiction, Reference, History, Paranormal, Witches, Spirituality

272 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2010

About the author

Born in New York City, my metaphysical career began early: My first encounter with tarot cards at age six was also my first experience of love at first sight! That passion still burns true. Although I do practice other forms of divination, tarot remains the foundation of my practice.

A lifelong pursuit of metaphysical wisdom followed and continues: astrology, mythology, Kabbalah, the Egyptian mysteries as well as spiritual, magical and healing traditions from all over Earth but particularly Africa and Asia.

I've also been a blues and free-form rock and roll disc jockey, a corporate travel consultant specializing in the Caribbean, a skin-care and cosmetics consultant, and a teacher of mythology and multicultural studies. I wrote and edited the Ancient Beauty Secrets section for the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism's monthly online magazine, which integrated modern aromatherapy with ancient methods of body care and decoration.

True love's arrows pierced my heart yet again when I first encountered a vial of essential oil. (Essential oil of frankincense, to be exact, still a favorite.) Essential oils are not true oils but potent plant extracts. Modern aromatherapy, with its roots stretching back to ancient China, Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Middle East, is the manipulation of essential oils for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes. Essential oils are perhaps the purest, most potent expression of a plant's power and play a profound role in rituals, potions and spells. Many are powerful aphrodisiacs and may be used to enhance health, beauty and peace of mind.

Following over a decade of independent study, I earned a certificate in therapeutic aromatherapy. I served on the faculty of the Australasian College of Herbal Studies as an aromatherapy tutor, teaching the certification program.

My special passion for almost fifteen years has been magical and traditional approaches to fertility. Originally stimulated by own reproductive challenges, I was frustrated by the medical options offered to me. I went searching for other avenues, gentle Earth and female-friendly solutions and found them: a vast repository of women's wisdom. Two children and many years later, I still search and research, impressed and empowered by thousands of years of women's inventiveness, endurance, defiance and humor.

Reviews

[NormaCenva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good guidebook with a bit of humour!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and fun read all about witches....famous ones, those put to death, their familiars, movie star witches...even places to travel in the world to see witch museums, the largest being in Cornwall, England. Every culture in the world acknowledges some form of witch even going back to Ancient Egypt. The English word "witch" is Anglo-Saxon meaning "wise one". In Sweden, witches are associated with Easter...not Halloween. Over the centuries the term witch also meant midwives, herbalists and other traditional healers. Now...just where is my black cat and broom?

[EZRead eBookstore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, the sweet sweetness of a brand-new ARC in the mail. This week, I was treated be Weiser Books to preview “The Weiser Field Guide to Witches”, a guide book to all things witchy. As advanced as I thought my knowledge of witches were from “Harry Potter” and “The Crucible”, I was taken to school with this easy-to-digest and somehow very comprehensive guide to famous and infamous witches. I dare anyone to not want to pick up this book after looking at the cover, by the way, it’s adorable.

The book is set up in different sections to explain the fact and fiction behind witches. “Tools of the Trade”, “Types of Witches”, and “Are You a Witch?” are all covered with bold terms or names and a brief definition. The style is straight-forward and often funny, with suggestions on where to travel and further reading for witches-in-training. This would be perfect for the Harry Potter YA crowd; the book is age appropriate and would be a wonderful book report idea, vs. “Guide to Civil War Shoes” or “Healthy Grains Throughout History”, whatever the kids are reading these days. I would have loved this book if I were twelve; I was the kind of kid who was always saying “did you know…?” and then annoying everyone with facts. And YA aside, I actually did learn quite from the guide. For instance, did you know the term “hedge witch” comes from “hedge rider”, which defines someone going between the natural world and the civilized world? The more you know!

Loaded up with images and short stories, this book is a good introduction to a fascinating tradition that shows up in all cultures historically (and now!). And while supernatural monsters are all the fashion, I enjoyed this reminder that witches are way more awesome, and flying on brooms is a far superior ability than being handsome and bloodthirsty. Also, unlike sticking a false set of pointy teeth on your chompers, you can actually learn about living, breathing witch traditions. Pardon me while I don my pointy hat!

EZ Read Staffer Jenifer

[Starr · Rating 1 out of 5]

coming from a witch myself: this “guide” is poorly researched and almost entirely unsourced, even though it claims to cite true historical events and people. illes flagrantly throws around terms and practices from a host of origins and cultures, many of which are closed. while i appreciate the avoidance of the entirely wiccan-ized lens that many metaphysical authors write through in books about witchcraft, the insistence that other peoples’ practices or habits in their personal lives undoubtedly made them a witch in some form or another leaves a bad taste in the mouth. many better, more thorough and factual books exist and should be consulted long before this one whenever research is being done on witches and the history of witchcraft.

[Dana Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book caught my attention the moment I saw it on the shelf. I was lucky to receive a copy from the publisher for review. What an excellent reference for all things witchy! Check out my review on my new witchy themed blog.

http://onthebroomstick.blogspot.com/

Check out the Practical Magic Blog Party on September 24th, 2011 @ On the Broomstick. An interview will be posted of Judika talking about her work.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A easy read 3.75 stars. A great way to digest a lot of historical and mythological information in a concise and easy to understand manner. It will be a great reference tool if I’m reading other books on witchcraft.

[Angela Pippinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable and perfect for witches and non witches alike! See my website for more detailed review

[Maureen Grimoire · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for any witch/witch enthusiast! It was a really fun read.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I learned so much while I was reading it and it was all fascinating.

[Umrtia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting to read. Nothing amazingly eye opening but I can see how it would be good for people who know nothing on the subject.

[Maanasa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting, but formatting wasn't my style and it went on for a while

[Adrienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview. Not a ton of info but brief and informative and interesting.
I could use more “real” info and less pop culture witch facts.

[Kaylee Drew Pittman · Rating 5 out of 5]

very informative!

[Celea · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's mid. As is to be expected of a "field guide" of witches as an abstract concept, crammed with religious, spiritual, and fictional tidbits, this book is wide and shallow. For a beginner's book or someone interested in the cultural egregore of a witch, this is a good read. However, Judika Illes is a well respected author that should know better than to screw up her research so poorly. Her writings in here on the Greek gods (and by proxy some of the Roman) is not only incorrect, but downright insulting for such a household name on one of the most well documented pantheons in the Western world. The only reason I am not dragging her over the coals more thoroughly is that since the Greek pantheon is so well known and easy to research, her factually incorrect claims in this book are easy to debunk. I expected more, Illes, I expected more.

[Garrett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amusing and informative, but not terribly revealing. Most anything I read with a religious or "spiritual" background is just me surveying anyway, and this is written as a kind of surevy, it was a quick read, perfect for my needs. It is hard to take any belief system seriously which is this excited about incorporating pop culture into itself, but I'm sure I missed the point somewhere. Anyway, if you don't know anything about witches, this might be one of the good places to start, especially for the famous ones in a historical context.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started my adventure through this book just flipping to random pages, and had fun discovering new and interesting characters and information. Then I read the introduction and just kept reading. I wasn't expecting this to be a read cover to cover book but that is just what it turned out to be! There is so much information and covered in a way to give you a short overview but leave you excited to do more research! I highly recommend this book.

[Derek]

a nice history and collection of basic knowledge regarding the topic. isn’t much more than an abbreviation of wikipedia pages but having it all in one place is nice. a good entry point to learning about witchcraft and other similar magic. references and put me onto a lot of other material that i will definitely want to check out soon!

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was a well intentioned and sometimes humorous little book that covers everything from kitsch (Bewitched) to history (Salem) and touches on various traditions, tools and craft. I enjoyed it.

[Jenny B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book very interesting. I was deeply entertained by the detail in historical figures, and variety of pagan belief. Anyone interested in pagan practice or cultural beliefs, then I would recommend this book to you.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

review upcoming @ thefaeryromanticlibrarian.blogspot.com

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great overview of witches in history, lit, and film. It doesn't go into great detail on any of them, of course, but it's a good way to get leads for further research. :)

[Nychola · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting! loaned from library..might buy a copy.

[L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent overview and brief history of witchcraft. Good intro for those with knowledge limited to Hollywood versions.

[Skye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Snappy and easy to read. Includes fictional and factual occurences! I have forgotten about my Charmed ladies and Sabrina the teenage witch (born from Archies comics)

[Aleasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I skimmed it really, but I nice little history and easy to read

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe it is not the best but i felt very happy reading it.

[David smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

great reference written in a fun manner.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as fun as I was hoping, but also not especially informative. Alas.

[Breanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great beginners guide to witches in pop culture and history.