Books have always been tools of magic. With the turn of a page, we can be transported to the bottom of the ocean; to the limitless desert; to the surface of the moon. Books can lift our spirits, heal our wounds, steel our courage and strengthen our religious resolve. They can also arouse our curiosity, sharpen our minds, teach us new skills and alter our opinions.
Books are powerful tools of change.,Many people first learn of Wicca through reading books, and most use
books to guide their first steps on the X/iccan path. Such books, if writtenin a clear manner by experienced X/iccans, can be valuable learning tools.Quality books of this kind become their readers’ High Priestess and High Priest, coveners and friends.Indeed, due to the scarcity of those willing to teach Wicca, and the small number of students that they can effectively instruct, we’ve thrown the mantle
of experience and authority around books written by Wiccan authois. Such
works have largely become the teachers of the new era of Wicca.
Sometimes, however, reading more than a few books may lead to con-
fusion. Authors may make contradictory statements regarding Wiccan rit-
ual practices and concepts. Some may deliberately obscure Wiccaia knowl-
edge with mystic prose. The Solitary X/iccan, grasping for answers, may
only come up with more questions, as expert after expert states that her or his
way is the best or most effective (this tendency is disappearing in Wiccan
books today, but many older books that contain such statements are still in
print).
One book may state, “the altar is always in the East”; in another, the
North. An author might write that counterclockwise movement within the
circle is forbidden; another will direct the reader to move in precisely this