Gypsy Magic: A Romany Book of Spells, Charms, and Fortune-Telling

Rating:
Summary: Not very in-depth, but charming
Review: I really like this book as a manual of "everyday magic." There are no deep secrets revealed here, nor is the material anything other than basic, but Cooper's writing style is warm and engaging, and everything in it is simply and matter-of-factly presented. This is a good book for beginners, and even as an advanced practitioner, I've found Cooper's Tarot card interpretations useful in reading for others who may not be familiar with the deeper meanings of the cards, or for instances when a quick-and-dirty reading is necessary.

Rating:
Summary: Not very in-depth, but charming
Review: I really like this book as a manual of "everyday magic." There are no deep secrets revealed here, nor is the material anything other than basic, but Cooper's writing style is warm and engaging, and everything in it is simply and matter-of-factly presented. This is a good book for beginners, and even as an advanced practitioner, I've found Cooper's Tarot card interpretations useful in reading for others who may not be familiar with the deeper meanings of the cards, or for instances when a quick-and-dirty reading is necessary.

Rating:
Summary: Not very in-depth, but charming
Review: I really like this book as a manual of "everyday magic." There are no deep secrets revealed here, nor is the material anything other than basic, but Cooper's writing style is warm and engaging, and everything in it is simply and matter-of-factly presented. This is a good book for beginners, and even as an advanced practitioner, I've found Cooper's Tarot card interpretations useful in reading for others who may not be familiar with the deeper meanings of the cards, or for instances when a quick-and-dirty reading is necessary.

Rating:
Summary: gypsy magic
Review: I was very pleased to find this book on the store shelves. I am researching gypsies and gypsy magic for a role I play at a Rennaisance Faire. The book is written by a Rom and gives the reader a good idea of what they are about re: magic. The book is fun but it doesn't get too detailed. Depending on what you are looking for, that could be good or bad. If you are just starting out this is a good place to start but don't think you will be getting all the gypsy "secrets" the author just skims the top of a very deep subject. Maybe there will be a part 2. If you are interested in gypsy culture, I recomend a very good book: "We Borrow the Earth" by Patrick Jasper Lee. It's a very easy read and very hard to put down.

Rating:
Summary: Basic but good
Review: It is nice to see a book written by a Romani on the shelves. This book is not very detailed but it seems acurate. I do reccomend it along with Lelands historical text, together the 2 make a good combo

Rating:
Summary: Give us what we want...
Review: Yes, another spell book. Gee... thanks. There are several Romani 'spell books' avaliable now. There is a little bit here about the philosophy behind the magic; but actually (if I'm recalling correctly) this author seems more tainted by Western Esoterica than other authors I've heard tell about. The spells are folk-loreish in their nature, which is all fine and good, I don't expect any different. What I do expect, and hope for, is an explaination of how things work. What is the driving force behind this energy. Why is the sun coming up. What am I doing. How is it different from what I've been doing? Give me something anything to hang onto here. Don't just tell me to play nice in the dirt. Yes I know I'm being a tad harsh here. But it is fustrating to try to reach into any real 'earth magick' trad (by which I mean non-Wiccan) since there is little ritual to hang onto, and the explainations are few and far inbetween. The author doesn't even seem to try.

Rating:
Summary: Give us what we want...
Review: Yes, another spell book. Gee... thanks. There are several Romani 'spell books' avaliable now. There is a little bit here about the philosophy behind the magic; but actually (if I'm recalling correctly) this author seems more tainted by Western Esoterica than other authors I've heard tell about. The spells are folk-loreish in their nature, which is all fine and good, I don't expect any different. What I do expect, and hope for, is an explaination of how things work. What is the driving force behind this energy. Why is the sun coming up. What am I doing. How is it different from what I've been doing? Give me something anything to hang onto here. Don't just tell me to play nice in the dirt. Yes I know I'm being a tad harsh here. But it is fustrating to try to reach into any real 'earth magick' trad (by which I mean non-Wiccan) since there is little ritual to hang onto, and the explainations are few and far inbetween. The author doesn't even seem to try.