Book Review: Craft of the Wise by Vikki Bramshaw

Book Review by Dawn “Belladonna” Thomas

When I was first asked to review this book I was a bit hesitant because I thought it was going to be another Wicca 101 type book. I am happy to report that I was completely wrong on this assumption. This is an excellent book and I wouldn’t describe it a beginner’s book at all. It is full of information and the author provides the reader guidance as they read through the book. If you like an easy to read and understand reference book, this is definitely a book you should have in your library.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was very detailed and included a lot of historical information starting with ancient times and working to present day. There is a short summary of ancient civilizations that I found very interesting. It is presented in such a way that it does not come across as dry or boring. I found myself constantly writing little notes so that I could follow up on my own. She gives a brief biography of important people in the development of modern day witchcraft.

There are several meditations. The first one is a wonderful meditation to connect with our ancestors. The second is to assist with manifestation followed by a meditation to cleanse the chakras. The last meditation is to is named A Meditation of the Astral Temple.

The author gives the reader many tasks to do. One of the first tasks is an exercise to create our own Green Man. Then there are tasks and exercises to get in touch with the Elements.  There are several related tasks: to create an altar, casting a circle and cleansing magical tools. There are also tasks to help evoke the power of the Goddess and the God along with exercises to tap into feminine and masculine power. The last task is to take a self assessment quiz.

There are layouts for rituals: full moon, Sabbats, rites of passage and celebrations. There is also a section for initiation, first degree, second degree and third degree along with ritual practices. There is an entire chapter on the solar year starting with Yule and ending with Samhain.

She also included a wheel of the correspondences and how they relate with colors, symbols, elements, the moon and other astrological objects. I was glad to see a section on beginner’s astrology that wasn’t too technical. There is even a short discussion on the Law of Return. I was particularly interested in the section on the Ogham since it a major part of my tradition. She continues with herbs and incense.

Ms. Bramshaw has written an excellent book and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for an all purpose reference book.