Book Review: Wild Witch by Marian Green

Cover of Wild Witch by Marian Green

My witchcraft journey was busted up a little bit – my mother was supportive but when she got sick and knew my grandmother would be taking over, she made me promise to keep it to myself where she was concerned, for at least as long as my brother was in the house so our relationship wouldn’t suffer. When I moved out on my own, well, with my hubster, I finally felt comfortable picking up more books than the two I’d been able to keep hidden.

I tried Wicca for the Solitary Practitioner and it didn’t really speak to me too much (certainly not enough for me to remember much of it 20 some years on and I passed that book along a very long time ago I think). One of the next books I picked up was called A Witch Alone by Marian Green. I’ve since passed that book along to a young witch but it was an excellent place to begin for someone very nature oriented. There are things I know now belong more to reconstructionists more than history like the tree calendar. But there was also a brief introduction to the ogham (pronounced O-wem) and a good introduction to the earthier parts, the green and the hedge, and the modern druid parts. So, when I spotted that she had another book when I was sifting through a list of witchy books, I grabbed it.

I was hoping for something a little less beginner oriented. I really wish I’d found this book in the 90s before “A Witch Alone”. I think it’s a much better foundational book. There’s a little bit of everything. Sometimes she does go off on tangents but that’s super easy to overlook. There are touches of loose druidry and not really much in the way of Wicca touches which is, for me, greatly appreciated. I am a very earth based, nature based witch. I love books that are geared for that.

The writing style is pretty open and breezy, not overly floral or purple, and engaging. In a few places it might be on the edge of snippy but not in an overly offputting way. The language is simple and not bloated which makes the whole of it pretty easy to digest. I do think it’s really aimed more towards the early years of practice though. It’s always nice to take on a new view point, read someone else’s personal gnosis. You never know where you’ll find a key or a phrase that opens the door to your next phase.

All in all, this probably goes on my pass it along shelf

Serious note: if anyone comes across books that are non-wicca based and geared towards experienced witches, I’d really love to add them to my wish list.