Book Discussions

Everything Else
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Seems that many new members ask about book recommendations and that many members

have said recommendations on their own path and more sometimes. I feel that we could use

a dedicated thread about books. Now it’s against the rules of the forum to post links to the books.

But, as I’ve said in a different thread, some books are public domain. However, that’s sometimes

a gray area. So, feel free to PM me if you have trouble finding a particular book, I can link

such on my file sharing service for you. Otherwise, use an Amazon link for recommendations.

All makes sense? Any book lists should go here too, with a category, like “White Witch books:”.

An example of an Amazon share: The Goddess Hekate

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Just starting out!
Hello just curious as a baby witch
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Also, post book archive links. Especially those with the free public domain books.

Library of Congress

welib.org/

(I’d post Anna’s Archive but it keeps getting shut down and moving)

I get a LOT of books off Facebook. There’s Groups that have PDFs. Public Groups.

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Super Saturday Sedim,

Yes this is a touchy subject. I will place my 3 beginner recommendations. I do not have a “site” so I do NOT earn any commission. My recommendations are exactly that, what I am recommending, nothing that I make any money from.

I have 3 basic, easiest read to more complex/technical.

Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner–Scott Cunningham—this is very easy to read, very simple, and totally understandable. It gives a great basis for someone to decide what they want/believe before thinking about joining a coven. Who knows, maybe a coven is not for you.

Buckland’s Complete Book of Witchcraft–Raymond Buckland–you may hear this referred to as “Buckland’s Big Blue”–this is easy, has short exercises, and gives easily understood explanations on the different “denominations” of Wicca.

A Witches’ Bible: The Complete Witches’ Handbook–Janet and Stewart Farrar–this follows Gardnerian Wicca very well; whether you agree with Gardner or not, this is a very “factual” book on what Wicca is. It is extremely informative, and many of us who do not follow the Gardnerian path, still keep this close at hand, because like the title says, it’s “A Witches’ Bible”—loads of information.

Well, I hope this holds, and I will not have to type this up again.

Oh, Sedim, I am very tactile and only use books that I can actually see and touch. But, I totally understand the “new way” of technology; just not for me.

Betwixt us both, we can keep everyone in reading.:laughing:

Lady Gene :phoenix:

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Nice idea. I will throw in the link to the Internet Archive Here:

Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Texts, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine

They have a HUGE selection. It does take a bit to figure out their search engine though, fair warning.

Cheers. :lotus:

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Me too, but I have a ‘try before you buy’ motto. If I like a book, I will buy a physical copy.

(Unless it’s super-rare or super-expensive.)

There’s a pretty good library at my high priestesses house, which is also our coven HQ.

I borrow & donate & will buy my own copy if it’s something I need all the time, reference.

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Likewise. I have a “frequent flyer” card for the library. I go through about 3 books a week. If I read a book numerous times, then I buy it. Lady Gene :books:

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I have a number of books that I like and have kept. Many of my occult/pagan/witch books have been gifted to others. I am who I am and see no point on those books I’ll never read again collecting dust. Among my keepers are Eva Peron by Alicia Dujovne Ortiz and Kleopatra by Karen Essex. I tried online stuff but just can’t seem to get into them. What I am doing in this moment is the longest I’m online at any given time, and I often go as much as a week without opening it - it’s a mental health thing.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must go bring in my plants that haven’t already blown away, since we are having 50 mph gusts and it is forecast to get into the teens tonight. :worried:

Brightest Blessings! :slightly_smiling_face:

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Where the heck you live? I’m on the Wisconsin border and here I always thought it was arctic…

About books I gave my huge Judaism library to the kids, like 99% of it. I still have to unpack

the bulk of my occult books and put them somewhere. Where, IDK. I have the ‘essentials’ on

one shelf. Otherwise I rely on internet copies, even of books I own. PDFs and such, I feel the

need to ‘hoover’ up as much as I can, I never know what will be needed when. Buy if useful.

Yup, I’m a hoarder. I REALLY need to sort it all, while the weather is awful.

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lol dear god Sedim, that sounds like a lot! I have little space and just one bookshelf, so anything I don’t NEED gets donated. I retain all my info through a stockpile of journals and typed documents.

And how cold is it for you now? I wager I can beat you in the cold temps any day. :rofl: (I wager I can beat anyone 99% of the time. I don’t say where I live, but when it says Arctic Circle on my profile, I mean it. After yesterday’s blizzard of about 6 inches of snow, it now feels like 7º outside. I can provide evidence! lol…

Cheers. :sweat_smile:

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No envy here!, so we have arctic and desert and down-under members. All over, I’m middle US.

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lol by no means should anyone envy that. … I really need to move. :sweat_smile:

Cheers.

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Dearest Sedim hi,
my humble suggestion is to go straight to the source; there are some things we just can’t find anywhere else, and we have to pay the institutions that hold them to get a copy.

If you’re interested, we can arrange to get them.

We need to discuss this calmly in detail.

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It is against the policy of this forum to link specific copyrighted works for illegal download.

Links to public domain book collections is allowed however, therefore. Links to books on

Amazon (or other seller) are encouraged for share of recommendations. I hope to see such

recommendations and book discussions here. Public Domain out of print does not always mean

readily available, however. For those rare out-of-print books yes more sources may be good.

If sufficient interest is generated for that rare work. My path does not rely on such as Shaman

don’t have or use a Grimoire. Closest is the journals that I have by Automatic Writings.

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At the moment I live on the very western edge of what they call central Kentucky. I think it is becoming the case everywhere but the weather here sucks. It’s as though Mother Nature is saying, “Oh yeah, well watch this!”. Two days ago, it was 81 degrees, today it is 17 with a coating of snow on the ground.

I have more or less adopted the philosophy that if something has been essentially untouched for a year or two, I don’t need it. I put things in a box, list the contents (not on the box) and label the box destroy/donate on “date”. I seal the box and if I haven’t opened it by the specified date, it gets tossed. By then I don’t have a clue what’s in the box without looking up the list of contents.

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Witchy Wednesday Marcus,

I am almost the same way. I try to go through everything twice a year. I save the yearly stuff, like the winter jacket; otherwise, if it hasn’t been used in 6 mos. I guess I don’t really need it.

Lady Gene

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Some links of download sites. Not links to the actual books. Use with discretion.

Some I’ve already posted:

https://welib.org/

New:

https://www.gutenberg.org/

https://oceanofpdf.com/

… and the one that’ll need constant updates:

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Siiince I found this for Moon, I thought I would add this here to the list. It looks good for researching deities. I have a vague memory of potentially reading it before, too:

Encyclopedia of Gods by Michael Jordan

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This topic got kinda stale. Just downloaded a small collection, thought I’d share the list:

“A small collection of what I personally consider to be the best introductory books on witchcraft.”

1.) Wicca : A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner
2.) Living Wicca : A Further Guide for the Solitary Practitioner
3.) Buckland’s Complete Book of Witchcraft
4.) A Witch’s Bible Compleate
5.) Sybil Leek : Diary of a Witch
6.) Drawing Down the Moon
7.) God/Goddess : Exploring the Two Sides of Wiccan Deity
8.) A Wiccan Bible
9.) The Crooked Path
10.) Maiden, Mother, Crone
11.) Circle of the Cosmic Muse
12.) Solitary Witch : Ultimate Book of Shadows for the New Generation
13.) King of the Witches : The World of Alex Sanders

Now, many of these will be on https://annas-archive.gl/
…but you didn’t hear that here… :wink: (PM me if there’s a problem)