Introduction

Over the years White Dragon has reviewed hundreds of books – some excellent, some good and reliable without being outstandingly original, some OK or so-so, some unreliable and misleading and some downright crap. This list of recommended books has been compiled from a number sources:

* Books reviewed as excellent or generally good in WD;

* Books highly recommended by specialists in the relevant field by people who know what they’re talking about;

* Books on subjects of some controversy (eg Traditional Witchcraft) whose reliability is questionable in some respects but which may be the best available on the subject, or which provide a cross-section of writing on it; and

* Books which Rowan has been happy to personally recommend over the years for various reasons.

* Books by Margaret Murray, Frazer, Charles Leland et al (except in the Caveat section at the bottom) which are out of date or otherwise academically discredited but which for unaccountable reasons still appear on the recommended reading lists of the ignorant;

* Books from the best-seller lists of new age mass-market publishers such as Llewellyn or Capall Bann except where a specific book is good enough to warrant inclusion despite the publisher.

Contents

See also under Book Reviews

History of Witchcraft and Magic
Sacred Landscapes and Earth Mysteries
Folklore and Fairies
Classical
Egypt and the Middle East
Germanic
Celtic
Mythology
Archaeology
Wicca and Neo-Paganism
History of Wicca
Traditional Witchcraft
Shamanism
Qabalah (Kabbalah), Crowley and Chaos
Science
Green Stuff
Tourist Guides
If you Must and With Reservations and Caveats

History of Witchcraft and Magic

Witches, Druids and King Arthur – Ronald Hutton (Hambledon & London)

Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft – Ronald Hutton (Oxford University Press)

Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain  – Ronald Hutton (Oxford University Press)

The Rise and Fall of Merry England: The Ritual Year 1400-1700 – Ronald Hutton (Oxford University Press)

The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles: Their Nature and Legacy – Ronald Hutton (Blackwell)

The Malleus Maleficarum and the Construction of Witchcraft: Theology and popular belief – Hans Peter Broedel (Manchester University Press)

Entertaining Satan: Witchcraft and the Culture of Early New England – John Putnam Demos (Oxford University Press)

Witches and Neighbours: The Social and Cultural Context of European Witchcraft – Robin Briggs (Blackwell)

The Wonderfvll Discoverie of Witches in the Covntie of Lancaster – Thomas Potts (Carnegie Publishing)

The Lancashire Witch-Craze: Jennet Preston and the Lancashire Witches, 1612 – Jonathan Lumby (Carnegie Publishing)

The Real Middle Ages: Discovering the Real Medieval World – Malcolm Jones (Sutton Publishing)

Heresy, Magic and Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe – Gary K Waite (Palgrave Macmillan)

The Magical Universe : Everyday Ritual and Magic in Pre-Modern Europe – Stephen Wilson (Hambledon & London)

Cunning -Folk : Popular Magic in English History – Owen Davies (Hambledon & London)

Male Witches in Early Modern Europe – Lara Apps & Andrew Gow (Manchester University Press)

The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Volume 1: Biblical and Pagan Societies – Cryer & Thomsen (eds) (Athlone Press)

The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Volume 2: Ancient Greece and Rome – Ankarloo & Clark (eds) (Athlone Press)

The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Volume 3: The Middle Ages – Jolly, Raudvere and Peters (eds) (Athlone Press)

The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Volume 4: The Early Modern Period – Ankarloo & Clark (eds) (Athlone Press)

The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Volume 5: The 18 th and 19 th Centuries – Ankarloo & Clark (eds) (Athlone Press)

The Athlone History of Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Volume 6: The 20 th Century – Ankarloo & Clark (eds) (Athlone Press)

The Scottish Witch Hunt in Context – Julian Goodare (ed) – Manchester University Press

The Lancashire Witches : Histories and Stories – Robert Poole (Manchester University Press)

Hellish Nell: The Last of Britain's Witches – Malcolm Gaskell (4 th Estate)

The History of Witchcraft – Lois Martin (Pocket Essentials)

Witch, Wicce and Mother Goose: The Rise and Fall of the Witch Hunts in North America – Robert Thurston (Longman)

A Case of Witchcraft : The Trial of Urbain Grandier – Robert Rapley (Manchester University Press)

Spirituality and the Occult : From the Renaissance to the Modern World – B J Gibson (Routledge)

Witchcraft in Early Modern Scotland: James VI's Demonology and the North Berwick Witches – Normand & Roberts (Exeter University Press)

Agnes Bowker's Cat: Travesties and Transgressions in Tudor and Stuart England – David Cressey (Oxford University Press)

The Devil in Early Modern England – Darren Oldridge (Sutton Publishing)

Thinking With Demons: The idea of Witchcraft in Early Modern England – Stuart Clark (Oxford University Press)

The Pagan Dream of the Renaissance – Joscelyn Goodwin (Thames & Hudson)

A History of Terror : Fear and Dread Through the Ages – Paul Newman (Sutton Publishing)

The Herbalist: Nicholas Culpeper and the Fight for Medical Freedom – Benjamin Woolley (Harper Perennial)

The Bath House at Midnight : Magic in Russia – W F Ryan (Sutton Publishing)

Ancient Christian Magic: Coptic Texts of Ritual Power – Meyer and Smith (HarperCollins)

Conjuring Spirits - Texts and Traditions of Late Medieval Ritual Magic – Professor Claire Fanger (ed) –(Sutton Publishing)

Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition – Frances Yates (Routledge)

The Occult Philosophy in the Elizabethan Age - Frances Yates (Routledge)

The Queen's Conjuror: The Life and Magic of John Dee – Benjamin Woolley (Flamingo/Harper Collins)

Ritual Magic – Elizabeth M Butler (Sutton Publishing)

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Sacred Landscapes and Earth Mysteries

Landscapes and Desire: Revealing Britain's sexually inspired sites – Catherine E Tuck (Sutton Publishing)

Prehistoric Cheshire – Victoria and Paul Morgan (Landmark Publishing)

Stonehenge Complete – Christopher Chippindale (Thames & Hudson)

The Mind in the Cave : Consciousness and the Origins of Art – David Lewis-Williams (Thames & Hudson)

Stonehenge: Celebration and Subversion – Andy Worthington (Alternative Albion/Heart of Albion Press)

Stukeley Illustrated : William Stukeley's Rediscovery of Britain's Ancient Sites – Neil Mortimer (Green Magic)

This Enchanted Isle : The Neo-Romantic Vision from William Blake to the New Visionaries – Peter Woodcock (Gothic Image)

Mysterious Ancient America – Paul Devereux (Vega)

Shamanism and the Mystery Lines – Paul Devereux (Quantum)

Fairy Paths and Spirit Roads – Paul Devereux (Vega)

Stone Age Soundtracks : The Acoustic Archaeology of Ancient Sites – Paul Devereux (Vega)

Haunted Land : Investigations into Ancient Mysteries and Modern Day Phenomena – Paul Devereux (Piatkus)

The Magic and Mystery of Holy Wells – Edna Whelan (Capall Bann)

The Subterranean Kingdom – Nigel Pennick (Capall Bann)

Celtic Sacred Landscapes – Nigel Pennick (Thames & Hudson)

Worcestershire Ghosts and Hauntings – Anne Bradford (Hunt End Books)

Music and the Earth Spirit – Bob Dickinson (Capall Bann)

Sun, Moon and Stonehenge: Proof of High Culture in Ancient Britain – Robin Heath (Bluestone Press)

The Living Stream – James Rattue (Boydell & Brewer)

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Folklore and Fairies

Explore Fairy Traditions – Jeremy Harte (Explore Books/Heart of Albion Press)

Footprints in Stone: The significance of foot- and hand-prints and other imprints left by early men, giants, heroes, devils, saints, animals, ghosts, witches, fairies and monsters – Janet Bord (Heart of Albion Press)

Leicestershire Legends Retold by Black Anis (Heart of Albion Press)

The Folklore of Shropshire – Roy Palmer (Logaston Press)

The Folklore of Old Monmouthshire – Roy Palmer (Logaston Press)

Meeting the Other Crowd – Eddie Lenihan, Eve Green (ed) (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin)

Explore Green Men – Mercia MacDermott (Explore Books/Heart of Albion Press)

Explore Folklore – Bob Trubshaw (Explore Books/Heart of Albion Press)

A Companion to the Folklore, Myths and Customs of Britain – Marc Alexander (Sutton Publishing)

Troublesome Things: A History of Fairies and Fairy Stories – Diane Purkiss (Allen Lane)

The Jack-in-the-Green – Roy Judge (The Folklore Society)

Mayday in England: A Bibliography – Roy Judge (The Folklore Society)

The English Mumming Play: A Bibliography – Cass, Preston and Smith (eds) (The Folklore Society)

A Dictionary of English Folklore – Simpson and Roud (Oxford University Press)

The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales: The Western fairy tale tradition from medieval to modern – Jack Zipes (Oxford University Press)

Images of Lust : Sexual Carvings on Medieval Churches – Weir and Jerman (Routledge)

Sacred Waters – Janet and Colin Bord (Granada)

Earth Rites - Janet and Colin Bord (Paladin)

Ancient Mysteries of Britain - Janet and Colin Bord (Paladin)

Folk Tales from Armorica - original collected by F M Luzel, selection edited by Derek Bryce (Llanerch)

Icelandic Legends - Arnason, Powell & Magnusson (Llanerch)

Folklore of Scottish Lochs and Springs – James M Macinlay (Llanerch)

The Folklore of Plants – T F Thiselton-Dyer (Llanerch)

Folk- Lore of West and Mid-Wales – Jonathan Caredig Davies (Llanerch)

Lost Cities and Sunken Lands – Nigel Pennick (Capall Bann)

Stony Gaze: Investigating Celtic and Other Stone Heads - John Billingsley (Capall Bann)

Mirrors of Magic: Evoking the Spirit of Dewponds – Philip Heselton (Capall Bann)

The Cult of the Black Virgin - Ean Begg (Penguin Arkana)

Folklore of Wales – Anne Ross (Tempus Publishing)

Folklore of the Cotswolds – June Lewis-Jones (Tempus Publishing)

Dragons of the West – Nigel Pennick (Capall Bann)

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Classical

An Introduction to Roman Religion – John Scheid (Edinburgh University Press)

The Gods of Ancient Rome : Religion in Everyday Life from Archaic to Imperial Times – Robert Turcan (Edinburgh University Press)

Bacchus : A Biography – Andrew Dalby (British Museum Company)

Greek Religion: Archaic and Classical – Walter Burkert (trans John Raffan) (Blackwell)

Mysteries of Demeter: Rebirth of the Pagan Way – Jennifer Reif (Weiser)

Magic, Witchcraft and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Sourcebook – Daniel Odgen (ed) – Oxford University Press

Star Myths of the Greeks and Romans – Theony Condos (Phanes Press)

Greek Myths – Lucilla Burn (British Museum Company)

The Story of Venus – Andrew Dalby (British Museum Company)

The Greek Myths – Robert Graves (Penguin)

The Golden Ass – Apuleius

The Illiad - Homer

The Odyssey - Homer

The Aeneid – Virgil

Metamorphoses – Ovid

Theogony and Works and Days – Hesiod

The Homeric Hymns

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Egypt and the Middle East

The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt – Ian Shaw (ed) – (Oxford University Press)

Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt – John H Taylor (British Museum Company)

Egyptian Myth: A Very Short Introduction – Geraldine Pinch (Oxford University Press)

The Cat in Ancient Egypt – Jaromir Malek (British Museum Company)

Magic in Ancient Egypt – Geraldine Pinch (British Museum Company)

Women in Ancient Egypt – Gay Robins (British Museum Company)

An Ancient Egyptian Herbal – Lise Manniche (British Museum Company)

Tiamat's Brood: An Investigation into the Dragons of Ancient Mesopotamia  – Alastair McBeath (Dragon's Head Press)

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Germanic

The Northern World: The History and Heritage of Northern Europe AD400-1100 – David M Wilson (Thames & Hudson)

Introduction to English Runes – R I Page (Boydell & Co)

Nine Worlds of Seið Magic: Ecstasy and Neo-Shamanism in North European Paganism   - Jenny Blain (Routledge)

Aspects of Anglo-Saxon Magic – Bill Griffiths (Anglo-Saxon Books)

Helrunar: A Manual of Rune Magic – Jan Fries (Mandrake of Oxford)

Sutton Hoo: Burial Ground of Kings ? – Martin Carver (British Museum Company)

Nordic Religions in the Viking Age - Thomas Dubois (University of Pennsylvania Press)

The Viking Way: Religion and War in Late Iron Age Scandinavia - Neil Price, Uppsala

History of the Danes, Books 1 to 9 – Saxo Grammaticus (Various)

Leechcraft: Early English Charms, Plant-lore and Healing - Stephen Pollington (Anglo-Saxon Books)

Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs - John Lindow (OUP)

The Ecclesiastical History of the English People – Bede (Penguin)

(The Penguin Book of) Norse Myths - Kevin Crossley-Holland (Penguin)

Beowulf

The Elder or Poetic Edda - Snorri Sturluson , tr. Carolyne Larrington (OUP)

The Younger or Prose Edda - Snorri Sturluson

Heimskringla: History of the Kings of Norway – Snorri Sturluson

The Complete Sagas of Icelanders Including 49 Tales (Five Volume Set in a Presentation Box) – ed. Vidar Hreinsson ( Leifur Eiriksson Publishing Ltd)

The Sagas of Icelanders , ed. Jane Smiley (Penguin)

Burnt Njal's Saga

Egil's Saga

Laxdaela Saga

Orkneyinga Saga

The Saga of the Volsungs

The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki

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Celtic

The Celts: A Very Short Introduction – Barry Cunliffe (Oxford University Press)

The Atlantic Celts: Ancient People or Modern Invention? – Simon James (British Museum Press)

Gods of the Celts – Miranda J Green (Sutton Publishing)

Celtic Goddesses: Warriors, Virgins and Mothers – Miranda J Green (British Museum Press)

The Ancient Celts - Barry Cunliffe (Penguin)

The Celtic Cross : An Illustrated History and Celebration – Nigel Pennick (Blandford)

The Celtic Legend of the Beyond – Anatole le Braz, Derek Bryce (trans) (Llanerch)

Celtic Legends of Glamorgan – Anthony Rees (Llanerch)

The Celts: Origins, Myths and Inventions – John Collis (Tempus Publishing)

The Sacred Isle: Belief and Religion in Pre-Christian Ireland- Dáithí Ó hÓgáin

The Celts: A History - Dáithí Ó hÓgáin

Pre-Christian Ireland: From the First Settlers to the Early Celts - Peter Harbison

The Celtic World – ed Miranda J Green

Mythic Ireland - Michael Dames

The Mabinogion

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Mythology

Fantastic Metamorphoses , Other Worlds: Ways of Telling the Self – Marina Warner (Oxford University Press)

Myths and Legends of the British Isles – Richard Barber (Boydell & Brewer)

Explore Mythology – Bob Trubshaw (Explore Books/Heart of Albion Press)

Persian Myths – Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis (British Museum Company)

The Mythology of the Mermaid and Her Kin – Marc Potts (Capall Bann)

Eclipse of the Sun – Janet McCrickard (Gothic Image)

The Sun Goddess: Myth, Legend and History – Sheena McGrath (Blandford)

Myth: A Very Short Introduction – Robert A Segal (Oxford University Press)

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Archaeology

Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice – Colin Renfrew and Paul Bahn (Thames & Hudson)

Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction – Paul Bahn (Oxford University Press)

Prehistoric Wales – Lynch, Davies and Aldhouse-Green (Sutton Publishing)

Dying for the Gods: Human Sacrifice in Iron Age and Roman Europe – Miranda J. Green (Tempus Publishing)

Ancient Goddesses: The Myths and Evidence – Goodison and Morris (eds) (British Museum Company)

Pagan Celtic Ireland: The Enigma of the Irish Iron Age – Barry Raftery (Thames & Hudson)

Prehistoric Europe: An Illustrated History – Barry Cunliffe (ed) (Oxford University Press)

Prehistoric Cooking – Jacqui Wood (Tempus Publishing)

In Search of the Indo-Europeans: languages, archaeology and myth – J P Mallory (Thames & Hudson)

Archaeology and Language: The Puzzle of Indo-European Origins  – Colin Renfrew (Pimlico)

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Wicca and Neo-Paganism

Heart of Wicca – Ellen Cannon Reed (Weiser)

Witchcraft for Tomorrow - Doreen Valiente (Hale)

Charge of the Goddess: The Mother of Modern Witchcraft   - Doreen Valiente (Hexagon Publications)

Wicca: A Comprehensive Guide to the Old Religion in the Modern World – Vivianne Crowley (Element)

The Witches' God – Stewart and Janet Farrar (Hale)

The Witches' Goddess - Stewart and Janet Farrar (Hale)

Wild Witchcraft: A Guide to Natural, Herbal and Earth Magic – Marian Green (Thorsons)

A Witch Alone: Thirteen Moons to Master Natural Magic – Marian Green (HarperCollins)

Sacred Celebrations : A Sourcebook – Glennie Kindred (Gothic Image)

A Harvest of Festivals - Marian Green (Element)

The Elements of Natural Magic – Marian Green (Element)

The Underworld Initiation - R J Stewart - (Aquarian)

Earth Light - R J Stewart (Element)

Power Within the Land - R J Stewart (Element)

Castings : The Creation of Sacred Space – Ivo Dominquez Jr (SapFire Publications Inc)

Magical Guardians: Exploring the Spirit and Nature of Trees  – Philip Heselton (Capall Bann)

Secret Places of the Goddess – Philip Heselton (Capall Bann)

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History of Wicca

Note: Some of the books listed below predate recent research into the origins of Wicca and therefore do not necessarily reflect what is now known or reasonably believed. They still have, nevertheless, some historical value and can usefully be read on that basis. In addition, the writings of Bourne and Crowther tend to be tedious and egotistical.

Fifty Years of Wicca – Fred Lamond (Green Magic)

Wiccan Roots: Gerald Gardner and the Modern Witchcraft Revival – Philip Heselton (Capall Bann)

Gerald Gardner and the Cauldron of Inspiration: An Investigation into the Sources of Gardnerian Witchcraft - Philip Heselton (Capall Bann)

Witch Amongst Us: The Autobiography of a Witch – Lois Bourne (Hale)

Lid off the Cauldron – Patricia Crowther (various)

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Traditional Witchcraft

Note: All books in this section, which represents a reasonable cross-section of the better material available, should be treated with caution. While I don't doubt that the books present useful and workable magical systems and a real alternative to Wicca, I am highly sceptical of the claims of antiquity and origins made for the material. In fact I suspect most of it was made up on a wet Saturday in Wigan and hence find it difficult to genuinely recommend any of these books. I have excluded both the trashiest material and the well-regarded works of the late Andrew Chumbley as the latter are changing hands for large sums of money (around £400) on the second hand market – Rowan.

Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed - Evan John Jones with Doreen Valiente (Hale)

Call of the Horned Piper - Nigel Jackson (Capall Bann)

Masks of Misrule : The Horned God and his Cult in Europe – Nigel Jackson (Capall Bann)

Pillars of Tubal Cain – Nigel Jackson and Michael Howard (Capall Bann)

Light from the Shadows: A Mythos of Modern Traditional Witchcraft  - “Gwyn” (Capall Bann)

The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of the Robert Cochrane Tradition – Jones, Cochrane and Howard (Capall Bann)

The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into Modern Traditional Witchcraft  – Jones, Cochrane and Howard (Capall Bann)

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Shamanism

Explore Shamanism – Alby Stone (Explore Books/Heart of Albion Press)

Shamans: Siberian Spirituality and the Western Imagination  - Ronald Hutton (Hambledon & London)

Shamans/Neo-Shamans - Robert J. Wallis (Routledge)

Shamanic Performance on the Urban Scene: Neo-shamanism in Contemporary Sweden - Galina Lindquist ( Stockholm Studies in Social Anthropology )

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Qabalah (Kabbalah), Crowley and Chaos

S.S.O.T.B.M.E: An Essay on Magic – Ramsey Dukes (The Mouse That Spins)

Alchemists and Alchemy – Sean Martin (Pocket Essentials)

Prime Chaos: Adventures in Chaos Magick – Phil Hine (Falcon Publications)

Three Books of Occult Philosophy – Cornelius Agrippa (Llewellyn)

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Science

Astronomy Before the Telescope – Christopher Walker (ed) (British Museum Company)

Echoes of the Ancient Skies - E C Krupp (Oxford University Press)

A History of Astronomy : A Very Short Introduction – Michael Hoskin (Oxford University Press)

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Green Stuff

The Charmed Garden: Sacred and Enchanting Plants for the Magically Inclined Herbalist – Diane Morgan (Findhorn Press)

Natural Dyes – Gwen Fereday (British Museum Company)

Pharmako-Dynamis – Dale Pendell (Mercury House)

Dangerous Tastes: The Story of Spices – Andrew Dalby (British Museum Company)

Wolf : Spirit of the Wild: A Celebration of Wolves in Word and Image – Diane Landaw (ed) (Sterling Publishing Co Inc)

Tree : Essence, Spirit and Teacher – Simon and Sue Lilly (Capall Bann)

Flora Britannica - Richard Mabey (Sinclair Stephenson)

Wylundt's Book of Incense: A Magical Primer (Weiser)

The Master Book of Herbalism – Paul Beyerl (Hale)

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Tourist Guides

Celtic Wales: A Pocket Guide – Miranda Aldhouse Green (University of Wales Press)

The Traveller's Guide to Sacred Ireland: A guide to the sacred places of Ireland, her legends, folklore and people – Cary Meehan (Gothic Image)

The Traveller's Guide to Sacred England : A guide to the legends, lore and landscapes of England's sacred places – John Michell (Gothic Image)

The Traveller's Guide to Fairy Sites: The Landscape and Folklore of Fairyland in England, Wales and Scotland – Janet Bord (Gothic Image)

England : An Archaeological Guide – Darville, Stamper and Timby (Oxford University Press)

A Guide to the Stone Circles of Britain, Ireland and Brittany – Aubrey Burl (Yale University Press)

Ancient and Holy Wells of Cornwall – M & L Quiller-Couch (Tamara Publications)

The Holy Wells of Wales - Francis Jones (University of Wales Press)

A Guide to Britain's Pagan Heritage – David Clarke (Hale)

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If You Must and With Reservations and Caveats

Please read this very carefully. The following books are not recommended as reliable texts for various scholarly and academic reasons. Basically they are crap. In most, indeed in almost all, cases they were slated by historians, anthropologists and other experts at the time they were published but nevertheless became (undeservedly) highly influential and very popular.

As such many pagans insist on having them on their shelves. If you really must buy them please do so in such a way as to provide a small commission to WD. It may help your karma.

The Golden Bough – J G Frazer (various)

The Witch Cult in Western Europe – Margaret Murray (Oxford)

The God of the Witches – Margaret Murray (various)

The Divine King in England – Margaret Murray (Faber & Faber)

Aradia: The Gospel of the Witches – C G Leland (various)

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