Helpful Score: 9
What a horrible book!! Silver Ravenwolf does not know how to help teens who want to explore and become wiccans. Telling them to lie to their parents and how to trick them so that you can "become" a Wiccan is not something any responsible adult, parent, or wiccan should be doing. If you want a good beginner Wiccan book, read Scott Cunningham. He won't insult your intelligence or kill your relationship with your parents.
Helpful Score: 4
Fun and informative for teens.
Helpful Score: 4
Silver Ravenwolf is one of the foremost writers of Wiccan instruction. Her views are very mild and she gives instructions with both sides of the coin. I have even heard her called "fluff bunny" because she doesn't advocate the darker arts. This is a great start for girls who are in junior high or high school who don't want to do anything other than become informed about the path of Wicca. I don't advocate all of her methods, but as with anything you read, take what you need and toss the rest. Wicca is a path for responsible people, so she tries to write to that end. I would give it to my daughter if she were interested and of the above age.
Helpful Score: 3
excellent book for beginning in wicca, it is the most reccommended book for beginners in practicing wicca
Helpful Score: 3
Kindof fun, not immensly informative. Definitely written for teens/preteens only.
Michele (luluinphilly) -
Helpful Score: 3
With permission from a parent, I gave this to one of my students. I let the parent look at it first and she thought it was fine for her 10-year-old daughter. There are charms and recipes in this book. Even a candle "spell" that my student used. She really enjoyed the book since it's mostly poems and nothing negative.
This book may seem like a good idea... but she fails to explain some things that could make a big and dangerous difference to how teens make choices about things like sex!
Early in the book she sets out what she claims to be a witch's rules for living, and these include a statement about sex, set entirely without context, that implies that witches enjoy free sex. She claims that our creed dictates that "We value sexuality as "pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of Life" and "translates" this to "teenspeak" as meaning that "we believe that having sex with another person is not a 'bad thing', though we do feel that sexual acts and interests carry a heavy responsibility." That's all she says... and for some that may be enough -- but for too many impressionable teens, that seems to open the door for teen sex without enough context. She gives no clues as to what the responsibility is...
If she's this lax about something that is as important to teens as sex, and when to have it with whom, she's likely as lax about other things as well.
Don't let your teen use this book as a guide without reading it yourself, and adding to it where judgment needs to be in play.
Early in the book she sets out what she claims to be a witch's rules for living, and these include a statement about sex, set entirely without context, that implies that witches enjoy free sex. She claims that our creed dictates that "We value sexuality as "pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of Life" and "translates" this to "teenspeak" as meaning that "we believe that having sex with another person is not a 'bad thing', though we do feel that sexual acts and interests carry a heavy responsibility." That's all she says... and for some that may be enough -- but for too many impressionable teens, that seems to open the door for teen sex without enough context. She gives no clues as to what the responsibility is...
If she's this lax about something that is as important to teens as sex, and when to have it with whom, she's likely as lax about other things as well.
Don't let your teen use this book as a guide without reading it yourself, and adding to it where judgment needs to be in play.
TEEN WITCH BY SILVER RAVENWOLF IS A GREAT BOOK. WEATHER YOU ARE A BEGINNER TO THE CRAFT OR MORE ADVANCED YOU WILL BE ABLE TO LEARN FROM THIS BOOK.IT IS VERY EASY TO READ.ON A 0-10 SCALE I WOULD GIVE IT A 12. A MUST HAVE IN ANY Witches bookcase.....
Helpful Score: 2
This book is definitely villiafied by serious practitioners but it's not as bad as it's made out to be. I would never have bought it for MY daughter, I got the Guinevere Raine ones for her but I did get it for my daughter's friend and thought it was a good match for her.
Helpful Score: 1
I bought this book when i was actually a teenager, still exploring religion. It seemed interesting and the humor in it was good. There IS a section in the very beginning for Parents to read, to dispel some of the problems most mainstream people have about Wicca/Witchcraft. (Like, "Your child is not going to sacrifice Fluffy") I let my mother read it, and it got us on the same page about where i was going, or thinking of going, religiously.
Do i want to keep it for my daughter? no, but I firmly believe she should get to make those choices herself. Do i suggest it to friends of mine who have tween/teens who are trying to rebel by using religion, yes. This DOES in fact give a positive, responsible view of the religion, which is exactly what Teens need. And Parents.
Do i want to keep it for my daughter? no, but I firmly believe she should get to make those choices herself. Do i suggest it to friends of mine who have tween/teens who are trying to rebel by using religion, yes. This DOES in fact give a positive, responsible view of the religion, which is exactly what Teens need. And Parents.
Although it is a little outdated it is a good book for a teenager interested in Wicca
This is a marvelous book for teens who want to start their studies. In no way shape or form is it an all-knowing, all-encompassing guide but it is a good place to start. My mother gave me this book for Winter Solstice the year it came out and all these years later I still have it, dog-earred and well loved. It takes many real-life principles and breaks them down into 'teen speak' in ways that are applicable to the daily life of a teen.
Yes, it is a fluff book and not very informative, but I first got the book when I was in middle school, and after reading two other books that were written for adults and used language I didn't understand, this book helped to me to understand things I would have struggled to learn on my own. With this book as my start I have now been studying for 11 years, and have moved on to much much more advanced material.
But for your preteen, who wants to basic information just to see what it's like... it's perfect, and anyone who says different is ridiculous. There was nothing in there that lead me astray, and I was not an idiot about the things she didn't clarify. Just because she said that sex isn't bad... I didn't run out and have sex, it didn't change my morals, I know sex isn't bad it's how you make children duh!
Perfect for younger pagans.
But for your preteen, who wants to basic information just to see what it's like... it's perfect, and anyone who says different is ridiculous. There was nothing in there that lead me astray, and I was not an idiot about the things she didn't clarify. Just because she said that sex isn't bad... I didn't run out and have sex, it didn't change my morals, I know sex isn't bad it's how you make children duh!
Perfect for younger pagans.
This is not a book I would ever recommend. Sadly Silver still believes it is appropriate to teach teens without their parents permission, and includes lessons on how to 'fool' them should they question them.
