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Reviews
Year of the Witch: Connecting with Nature's Seasons through Intuitive Magick by Temperance Alden
crystalnv's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
4.5
I enjoyed some parts of this book more than others. Some sections felt drawn out, but I did enjoy the author's opinions and personal touches on relatively basic concepts surrounding the wheel of the year. It made me think of my traditions more and how I am honoring each season.
praisethee's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Brilliant book to understand the wheel of the year in a way to personalise it to your own climate, beliefs and personal spirituality. The how to's are easy to follow and informative
_lilyofthevalley_'s review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
4.5
oleade's review against another edition
4.0
I have a feeling that I will come back to this book a few times as I continue to develop my spiritual practice. What I love most is that it gives a good framework without encouraging consumerism and adherance to strict traditions. I don't come from a household that is rich in traditions, and I've been wanting to create rituals that contribute to self care, love and peace for me and my loved ones. This books does a great job of offering possibilities and ideas while providing background behind the elements of the wheel of the year.
emilygaynier's review against another edition
5.0
**Please be aware that because of some disagreements on social media, people have been giving this book negative reviews without having first read the book.**
My original review is below, but I feel like a more in depth review for my reread is necessary.
I am also going to take this space to remind people to do their own research. If something feels iffy or icky, do a quick google search before declaring something as racist or intolerable. It might just be something you've never heard about.
I want to address several things in my review. The first of which is that I do not know this author personally nor do I feel like I need to defend her, but there have been a lot of negative reviews that are focusing on specific sections of this book, sometimes even down to a single sentence. There is a lot of disinformation in these reviews.
Other reviewers have made these points as well, but as someone who reads reviews (both positive and negative) I want to add my review to the mix. I personally feel like Alden has not deserved the review bombing she has gotten. I get that you can’t please everyone, especially as an author and social media presence, but the intensity in which people have taken to bash on small sections of her book is insane.
All of these are issues people have found with sections of her book. I have not touched on everything, as I don't know enough about some topics to feel comfortable with adding my input.
Climate Change:
What Alden is talking about in her book is not the Climate Change we as humans are causing to the earth. She is talking about the natural cycle, that science has proven, that has happened over the millions of years that the earth has been around for. Climate change is not just the big scary increase in global warming we are currently experiencing. Alden is not denying that Climate Change is happening because she doesn’t talk about it in her book. The earth has natural fluctuations in warm and colder climates.
Birth Control:
Alden is not shaming others for using hormonal birth control. She is talking about her own experiences with it and her PCOS. Granted the line talking about her natural magick being stunted by hormonal birth control either should have been omitted or changed. I also feel like she should’ve stated that what works for her can be different from what works for other people. But she is talking about her personal experiences.
Closed Practices/Other cultures
Just because it is a different culture does not mean it is a closed practice or appropriation. Alden talks about using elements from other religions and specifically an ingredient that is used in Santeria. While Santeria is a closed practice, not everything used in Santeria is closed. If you are worried about someone appropriating another culture, please look to the people of those cultures. They will let us know if it is in fact an issue. Another reviewer is Cuban and states that Alden using cascarilla is not appropriation.
There also seems to be some confusion about the term Judeo-Christian. It’s a phrase that includes both Christianity and Judaism. Both religions share a history and thus they share a lot in common.
Gender
One person stated that this book borders on trans exclusionary. Please note that referring to the divine feminine or masculine is not trans exclusionary. Being trans does not exclude you from being feminine or masculine. The divine deminine/masculine is a part of the history of witchcraft and is still used to this day. Alden even mentioned divine other energies when talking about the element of Spirit and refers to it as a gender neutral element.
I left my star rating at 5 stars in hopes that this will reach those who are trying to decide if this is a book for them. In reality, I give this a 4 star rating. It's good, great in some places, but it is a beginner book and I don't think a full reread is necessary to use it.
*2021 Review*
I really enjoyed this book
I'm a big fan of when witchy books help you find your own path. I also really loved how this book has a big focus on science and how that can effect your practice and the earth as a whole. I literally had just watched a youtube video that comprehensively explains how climate change is happening in relation to the natural cycles of the earth and how humans have influenced those cycles. This book also goes over those natural cycles in a way that I enjoyed.
I'm thinking about my wheel of the year and how I want to celebrate. I did listen to the audio book and really enjoyed it. I can't wait to get my own copy
My original review is below, but I feel like a more in depth review for my reread is necessary.
I am also going to take this space to remind people to do their own research. If something feels iffy or icky, do a quick google search before declaring something as racist or intolerable. It might just be something you've never heard about.
I want to address several things in my review. The first of which is that I do not know this author personally nor do I feel like I need to defend her, but there have been a lot of negative reviews that are focusing on specific sections of this book, sometimes even down to a single sentence. There is a lot of disinformation in these reviews.
Other reviewers have made these points as well, but as someone who reads reviews (both positive and negative) I want to add my review to the mix. I personally feel like Alden has not deserved the review bombing she has gotten. I get that you can’t please everyone, especially as an author and social media presence, but the intensity in which people have taken to bash on small sections of her book is insane.
All of these are issues people have found with sections of her book. I have not touched on everything, as I don't know enough about some topics to feel comfortable with adding my input.
Climate Change:
What Alden is talking about in her book is not the Climate Change we as humans are causing to the earth. She is talking about the natural cycle, that science has proven, that has happened over the millions of years that the earth has been around for. Climate change is not just the big scary increase in global warming we are currently experiencing. Alden is not denying that Climate Change is happening because she doesn’t talk about it in her book. The earth has natural fluctuations in warm and colder climates.
Birth Control:
Alden is not shaming others for using hormonal birth control. She is talking about her own experiences with it and her PCOS. Granted the line talking about her natural magick being stunted by hormonal birth control either should have been omitted or changed. I also feel like she should’ve stated that what works for her can be different from what works for other people. But she is talking about her personal experiences.
Closed Practices/Other cultures
Just because it is a different culture does not mean it is a closed practice or appropriation. Alden talks about using elements from other religions and specifically an ingredient that is used in Santeria. While Santeria is a closed practice, not everything used in Santeria is closed. If you are worried about someone appropriating another culture, please look to the people of those cultures. They will let us know if it is in fact an issue. Another reviewer is Cuban and states that Alden using cascarilla is not appropriation.
There also seems to be some confusion about the term Judeo-Christian. It’s a phrase that includes both Christianity and Judaism. Both religions share a history and thus they share a lot in common.
Gender
One person stated that this book borders on trans exclusionary. Please note that referring to the divine feminine or masculine is not trans exclusionary. Being trans does not exclude you from being feminine or masculine. The divine deminine/masculine is a part of the history of witchcraft and is still used to this day. Alden even mentioned divine other energies when talking about the element of Spirit and refers to it as a gender neutral element.
I left my star rating at 5 stars in hopes that this will reach those who are trying to decide if this is a book for them. In reality, I give this a 4 star rating. It's good, great in some places, but it is a beginner book and I don't think a full reread is necessary to use it.
*2021 Review*
I really enjoyed this book
I'm a big fan of when witchy books help you find your own path. I also really loved how this book has a big focus on science and how that can effect your practice and the earth as a whole. I literally had just watched a youtube video that comprehensively explains how climate change is happening in relation to the natural cycles of the earth and how humans have influenced those cycles. This book also goes over those natural cycles in a way that I enjoyed.
I'm thinking about my wheel of the year and how I want to celebrate. I did listen to the audio book and really enjoyed it. I can't wait to get my own copy
moonphos's review against another edition
3.0
This book is, as other people have said in their reviews, kind of very targeted to a specific circle. You can feel it in the way it's written, and the overall tone of the book. I've read this after having a general idea about the Wheel of the Year, the eight sabbats and having been around different pagan circles for a while, so it wasn't very hard to follow. If you're a complete beginner aka you have No Idea about any of this, I would say this wouldn't be the best place to start.
Despite it not being a proper research source at all, in my opinion, this is a book that gives you the point of view and experiences of another person, which I personally find pretty useful when we talk about paganism, witchcraft, and spirituality. If you pick this book up with that in mind, I'm certain you will be able to get something out of it. There was stuff I didn't really ''vibe'' with or I outright disagreed with but overall I don't regret this read.
Despite it not being a proper research source at all, in my opinion, this is a book that gives you the point of view and experiences of another person, which I personally find pretty useful when we talk about paganism, witchcraft, and spirituality. If you pick this book up with that in mind, I'm certain you will be able to get something out of it. There was stuff I didn't really ''vibe'' with or I outright disagreed with but overall I don't regret this read.