Witches of America

Witches are gathering Although a self proclaimed skeptic, Alex Mar has secretly longed for revelation, envying people with unshakable beliefs And so when she set out to direct the documentary American Mystic, she was drawn deep into the world of present day witchcraft Most people hear witches and think of horror films and Halloween, but to the one million Americans who practice Paganism, it s a nature worshipping, polytheistic, and very real religion Witches of America follows Mar on her trip into Paganism and the occult, from its roots in 1950s England to its current American mecca in the Bay Area from a gathering of than a thousand witches in the Illinois woods to the New Orleans branch of one of the world s most influential magical societies She takes part in dozens of rituals, some vast and some intimate, alongside all sorts of people single mothers, programmers, veterans, and one California priestess who becomes a close friend This world gives Mar the freedom to confront what she believes is possible or hopes might be.With the wit of Susan Orlean and the insight of Leslie Jamison, Mar provides a fresh, unexpected take on faith in America Whether evangelical, pagan priestess, or atheist, each of us craves a system of meaning to give structure to our lives, and we sometimes find it in unexpected places Witches of America asks the central question Why do we choose to believe in anything at all Best Read Witches of America [ author ] Alex Mar [ Kindle ePUB or eBook ] – kino-fada.fr This book could quite easily be renamed Eat, Prey, Learn Magic Alex Mar writes the sort of exploitative, voyeuristic narrative usually seen in 1950 s era anthropological works Particularly telling are her multiple admissions that she refuses vulnerability with the communities she later exploits, denigrates the living situations of some characters, reduces many of the women in the book to mere symbol Her description of a woman dancing shirtless is quite informative One very obese woman has This book could quite easily be renamed Eat, Prey, Learn Magic Alex Mar writes the sort of exploitative, voyeuristic narrative usually seen in 1950 s era anthropological works Particularly tell...I came to this thinking it could be an update to Margot Adler s pivotal Drawing Down the Moon I wasn t aware of the pagan community s strongly negative responses while reading, but it turns out that Mar is reviled by many pagans I just didn t think the book was that bad It s not Adler, and it s kind of silly in parts, but the subject matter and many of these contemporary witches easily tip into silliness no, I mean they re deadly serious, butWhen I was an undergraduate religious studi I came to this thinking it could be an...There are some people who are upset by this book I can understand and respect that Here s what I think For the most part, I enjoyed the book It wasn t what I thought it would be, and that is a look into the practices and beliefs of modern witches, without interference from the author Instead, the author, Alex, takes center stage She s on a journey, despite being an admitted skeptic What Alex misses along the way is how many times she says she feels embarrassed by the ex...Tis the season This is a wonderful, no nonsense account of, well, witches in America But not the silly pointy hat witches the actual, practicing Pagans Mar spent five years researching the practice of this very real religion, which has over one million practitioners today This is an account of the history of Paganism, its rituals, and practitioners, told without condescension or historical bias and rumor This is a great book to go with the new Stacy Schiff book out next week about the Sal Tis the season This is a wonderful, no nonsense account of, well, witches in America But not the silly pointy hat witches the actual, practicing Pagans Mar spent five years researching the practice of this very real religion, which has over one million practitioners today This is an account of the history of Paganism, its rituals, and practitioners, told without condescension or historical bias and rumor This is a great book to go with the new Stacy Schiff book out ...I ve just started reading this today, but I ve read a lot of one star reviews on , most of which complain about the book being either exploitative, insensitive, inaccurate, voyeuristic, or otherwise culturally insensitive or culturally innappropriative.An exploitative, insensitive, inaccurate, voyeuristic, and otherwise culturally insensitive and culturally innappropriative depiction of an overwhelmingly white, North American nouveau religion pieced together from a mishmash of religious I ve just started reading this today, but I ve read a lot of one star reviews on , most of which complain about the book being either exploitative, insensitive, inaccurate, voyeuristic, or otherwise culturally insensitive or culturally innappropriative.An exploitative, insensitive, inaccurate, voyeuristic, and otherwise culturally insensitive and culturally innappropriative depiction of an overwhelmingly white, North American nouveau religion pieced together from a mishmash of religious and cultural elements appropriated from multiple religions, creeds and cul...The most interesting parts of this book are the explanations of various sects of witchcraft and occult beliefs and the descriptions of their practices The least interesting parts are the author sharing her own half hearted attempts to follow a few of these paths It seems like the book isn t sure whether it wants to be straight nonfiction or personal memoir, so it falls short of both A...Narcissistic drivel.I feel super conflicted about this book From an anthropological and sociological standpoint, this is a fascinating read From a moral standpoint, this feels like an abuse of trust and just exploitative I feel like sometimes she is looking down her nose at some of the people she has spoken to In one instance, she talks about how some things are oathbound, then proceeds to talk about them, violating the trust placed in her by the oaths she swore to.I was really disappointed I expected , be I feel super conflicted about this book From an anthropological and sociological standpoint,...Before I read this, I d heard that some Pagans took offense to it because it portrayed their religion in a bad light This didn t end up being as ruthless as I was imagining Mar is just very skeptical most of the time, as frankly most people are I appreciate her gently pointing out how interesting it is that an ancient Celtic goddess of war would show up at a DoubleTree in San Jose, California Still, I didn t like how much Mar waffled on everything and how uncomfortable she always felt I g Before I read this, I d heard that some Pagans took offense to it because it portrayed their religion in a bad light This didn t end up being as ruthless as I was imagining Mar is just very skeptical most of the time, as frankly most people are I appreciate her gently pointing out how interesting it is that an ancient Celtic goddess of war would show up at a DoubleTree in San Jose, California Still, I didn t like how much Mar waffled on everything and how uncomfortable she always felt I get it, jumping into Pagan rituals probably feels weird But she spent years with all these people Surely at some point you just have to roll with it She was constantly embarrassed by her own admission and this discomfort made me uncomfortable I wish this had been written by Jon Ronson instead So really, I m not here for Mar s...I really enjoyed this book, but I can see why others didn t like it This is a very honest perspective on modern white American neopagans, and at times it s so honest it s not very flattering As a former neopagan and woman of color, from a culture often appropriated by white neopagans, I felt that was a refreshing and badly needed perspective I also really liked how personalized this story was, I struggle with how people pretend that absolute impartiality is possible when a human person is inv I really enjoyed this book, but I can see why others didn t like it This is a very hones...

• English
• 05 July 2017
Alex Mar
• Hardcover
• 288 pages
• 0374291373
• Alex Mar
• Witches of America