Mystery and Magic: A Selection of Books About Witches
Witches have been a source of both fascination and fear throughout the centuries. This term often evokes many emotions, from enchantment to terror, but there is much more to their history than broomsticks and passion, especially when we consider that the epithet is used to refer to both fantasy creatures and people connected to the occult, healing, and arcane and mystical knowledge.
The origin of the word "witch" is of doubtful origin, but it is possible that its use dates back to pre-Roman times. The first documented appearance of the term appears as the Galician "bruxa" at the end of the 13th centurySince then, thousands of texts, essays, novels, and other formats have been written to describe both witchcraft and the people who practice it. These are the best books about witches.
Best books about witches
The witches and their world (2015), by Julio Caro Baroja and Francisco J. Flores Arroyuelo
This is a classic among classics about witchcraft and history of witches. The volume, essential for understanding diverse scenarios, covers several cultural periods, addressing topics such as the characteristics of true black magic in the Greco-Roman world, the context of female witchcraft among the Germanic and Slavic peoples, and the worship of the Devil in the Middle Ages.
Furthermore, Scenarios such as the spread of the Sabbat practice from the 14th century onwards and Basque witchcraft in the 16th century are discussed., and the great inquisitorial trials and witch hunts that took place from the beginning of the 17th century. This volume is a historical and cultural overview of the legacy of witches and warlocks from around the world, their practices, sufferings, and immortal legacy.
Quotes by Julio Caro Baroja
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"Manhood is a stray age for most people. Childhood is always worth something. So is adolescence. Because it's passionate and turbulent, and because it's full of contradictions, unfulfilled or latent desires, hopeless, romantic, and sometimes crazy projects."
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"The State is everything... and a man or a little man (sometimes also a psychopath) represents it. Because in our time there have been Louis XIV, communists, fascists, nationalists (usually plebeians), and the State has usually referred to a hypertrophied and hysterical ego."
We are the granddaughters of the witches you could not burn. (2019), by Ame Soler
Today, thanks especially to various feminist movements, the concept of "witch" has been reclaimed, evolving into a construct in which women of the past are viewed as wise, rebellious, healing, and free. In ancient times, many girls were burned and hanged., simply for not adapting to what society expected of them, but today, their names are seen with learning eyes.
This title, illustrated by Tres Voltes Rebel, reveals the stories of girls whose hair gets messed up with exorbitant ease, who have "bad behavior," who don't fit the perfect mold, to the oppressed and voiceless. It is a poetic, honest, and devastating manifesto created to bring visibility to a problem that still seems to have no end.
Quotes by Ame Soler
- "Now I can say with conviction
that I have decided to join
to the coven of witches who fly without a broom,
to those who bother,
to those who know more than necessary,
to those who question society
as built.
We have been attacked and persecuted
throughout history;
but be careful,
because we are learning
to control
the fire of the bonfire.
The witching hour (2014), by Anne Rice
This is the first volume of the trilogy Mayfair witches, also made up of The voice of the devil y taltosThe genesis of this story follows brilliant neurosurgeon Rowan Mayfair, who, while boating off the coast of California, comes across a drowned man. She rescues him and manages to save his life, unwittingly completing a cycle that will lead her to uncover her family's secrets.
In the company of the drowned man, Rowan travels to New Orleans to unravel the mystery of an ancient curse that has haunted the Mayfair witches. from 17th-century Scotland. In this setting, they form a dynamic duo forced to confront an entity that grows increasingly powerful, dangerous, and seductive. Can young Rowan outdo her ancestors and finally defeat the Impulsor?
Anne Rice Quotes
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"Give me a man or woman who has read a thousand books, and you'll have an interesting companion. Give me a man or woman who has read maybe three, and you'll have a very dangerous enemy."
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«Therefore, if you believe that God created Satan, you must understand that all his power comes from God, and that, therefore, Satan is simply the son of God, and that we are also children of God. In reality, there are no children of Satan.»
I, Tituba, the black witch of Salem (2022), by Maryse Condé
Maryse Condé, happy winner of the Grand Prix Littéraire de la Femme, introduces Tituba, a biracial woman who lived during the time of slavery, and that she was excellent at creating healing infusions with medicinal plants, so when she arrived in Salem, she was accused of witchcraft and locked in a cell with Hester Prynne, the iconic protagonist of The scarlet letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
This brilliant novel brings to the table themes such as violence, superstitions, and the repression of female desire., taboo, and ritual magic. Historically, it is known that Tituba was raped by the crew of a slave ship, and that she was also initiated into the occult arts by a healer on the island of Barbados. This is her tragic and wonderful life.
Quotes by Maryse Condé
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"I knew, of course, that white people didn't mix with black people. However, I attributed this, as did my parents, to their immeasurable stupidity and blindness. Hence, the white relatives of Élodie, my maternal grandmother, sat in church two pews away from us without ever turning their heads in our direction. So much the worse for them!"
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"Evil is a gift received at birth. It is not acquired. Those among us who did not come into the world armed with tooth and nail are losers in every battle."
the last witch (2017), by Mayte Navales
It has always been said that a witch's name is her most valuable possession, because it is where her essence and power reside.That's why they hide it from the world, why knowing it gives others agency over her. This book tells the story of two witches who, from opposite sides of their respective magical guises, develop the abilities of their lineage and put them to the test.
The witches in this volume, both millennia old, are a reflection of their own time, of persecution, but also of learning, wisdom, patience, and a love for the art of magic, sorcery, and witchcraft. It's a book about the importance of carrying a great name and the responsibility of making it a legacy that, in turn, protects an entire family and its descendants.
Quotes by Mayte Navales
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"From the place where wakefulness and consciousness merge, where the mind meets the beyond and time, where sleep and death meet, the owl showed the roots of reality and its ramifications."
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"Her heart was soaring with life, she breathed youth. She felt the wind hit her face. She was an eagle defying the heavens. She could almost remember what it was like to be a wild girl from the woods again, unafraid."
The book of witches (2022), by Shah Rukh Husain
This book is a tribute to all witches. According to the author, these women represent "the ultimate example of femininity in all its complexity." Thus, the title becomes "a celebration of all the rage, anger, and struggle that comes with being a witch, but also of the fun, supernatural, and extraordinary aspects of the world of magic and witchcraft."
The volume alludes to the wild woman and the defiant druid who still inhabit our world., but also to the "ordinary" women who are called witches by a society that does not understand them, who dared to cross the line: banshees, creatures of the night like Lilith, Japanese fox-witches, Greek sorceresses like Hecate and her three faces, and many more.
Shah Rukh Husain Quotes
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“I like Lilith. I will be like Lilith. I will call upon her when they tell me to be ashamed. I will do what she did, up there in Eden, when the Mighty One would not yield. I will do it. And the next time my father raises his hand to me because I have upset my little brother, I will bring Lilith inside me and bite his hand off. Lilith wouldn’t let anyone hit her.”
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"True seekers pursued their goal with such determination that they felt no need to manipulate the faith of others."
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"I won't come back. I don't mind dying. I'll make it happen just once."
