Rating: 
Summary: 1 for the volume of information & 1 cause I'm being kind
Review: She still writes in a condesending attitude that puts out "I know all, follow me." She writes like everyone who reads this book is a child and Christianity is the big bad guy. All teens must have to hide their religion from everyone and must have no idea how to do it. Her history is inaccurate not to mention her most of her historical sources are debunked. However- the volumes of information inside is great for a quick memory jump but shouldn't be the one and only reference in your library. Many pages of information have multiple meanings or the meanings are still being debated by historians. (hint: think Runes) Her BOS is insulting to a real witch. She uses multiple gods and goddesses there by not having a true pantheon. Her format is not usually Wiccan and is for quick fixes. Her spells could take 20 minutes at most and the dedication to the divine is not there.
There is no praying in her book or how prayer could help and enrich your life more than some childish spells.
Rating: 
Summary: what's all the fuss about
Review: this is an excellent book & I really can't believe the bad reviews. a few years ago there were very few authors on this subject, maybe one shelf in a book store. Silver Ravenwolf has been writing a long time. Long before most of the other authors have jumped on this wiccan ...spiritual bandwagon, & this book covers a lot of what the other authors have not even attempted to cover. She has experience & it shows. It's soup to nuts on what to do. And not do. it explains things clearly. As a parent I understand her references to the 'teenage witch ' because I know there are alot of kids out there experimenting with the craft. And adults too. But I wouldn't let those bad reviews stop me from buying it. I paid $20 bucks last Sunday in Borders & to me it was a real bargain. It's about 10 books previously purchased in one.
Rating:
Summary: Great book!!
Review: Solitary witch, written by Silver RavenWolf, is a wonderful, clearly written book; easy to understand and full of information.
Great book!!
Rating: 
Summary: A good encyclopedia
Review: Silver has kept targeting the young audience since her first books. However that does not mean the information is childish or in any way bad. In fact in this huge book which becomes biggeer with her smaller print she has packed in TONS of information. If you can look past the silly teen anecdotes and mama silver type stuff you'll find a book filled with valuble info. I own this book and while I wouldn't say it's a must have, it's definitely taught me a lot that's missing from other 101 books
Rating: 
Summary: Love/Hate... Leaning more towards contempt...
Review: Let me start this off by tearing into it, that way we can end positively =) This was the first book I bought starting off in my Wiccan studies. I opened the page to circle casting and was dumbfounded that a topic so seemingly complex could be summed up in - what? - 3 pages?! I knew nothing about Wicca, but I went along with it anyway... since I agreed with the philosophies and needed to start somewhere, anyway. Now that I have read numerous others, I can say that this book was a complete disgrace. All right. So Ravenwolf is the most publically-established Witch around, so of course it's going to be advanced. And it's a great referrence book... But unlike other books, this one did not OFFER tips to Spellcraft. She just typed up her own personal BOS. You can NOT simply put your own spells in there! The acoutrements and the motions mean absolutely nothing when you have no idea why you're doing what you're doing or what the words you're saying mean... I feel that this book encourages the production of the "fashionable Witch" - IE: Go through the motions, get to be part of a cool subcultural "cult". Not that her intentions were poor, I'm sure. Simply put, it is unwise to print your own Book of Shadows verbatim, as many will take every word as holy writ... However, this book has been exceedingly useful to me at a later time, now that I can look back when I need a memory jog for say, the terminology for counterclockwise movement of a casted circle, runic symbols, etc... There's darned good stuff in here. I simply don't recommend it for beginners, nor the naiive (when it comes to following every word.) WICCA IS A PERSONAL RELIGION; THERE ARE NO BIBLES AND TO FOLLOW SOME ONE ELSES' RENDITION OF SPIRITUALITY WITHOUT QUESTIONING IS TO FOLLOW BLINDLY! Always remain true to your own heart. Wicca lies within yourself, not the pages of any book nomatter how well-written.
Rating: 
Summary: "The Ultimate Book of Shadows"...ABOMINATIONS, you mean....
Review: In the world of witchcraft today, it can easily be observed by the casual onlooker that such books as this are responsible for the numerous people becoming interested in pagan spirituality. Books like this present information pretaining to the topic in an easy-to-follow and easy-to-understand format. Yet, this book and other books by this author are responsible for the wide circulation of plastic, childish, horribly misleading and inaccurate teachings of a religion today called "Wicca". To you folk who have "come to the Goddess", or "became a witch", by reading this book and others like it, I must say to you that are fools. Look at the situation people: here is a system of "magick" grounded in a "religion", that is nothing more than a loose compilation of eastern and western mysticism, personal anecdotes, unfounded claims, bogus teachings, childish magicks, and other such things that are all open to the public. People, I am sorry to say, you are not witches, nor are you adherents to a faith that has been "passed down by word of mouth for centuries" with beliefs in "karmic retribution", "Wiccan redes", and a mishmashed pantheon of deities from practically every culture. You are merely victims to a kind of industry falsely based upon feminism, magick, and harmony with nature. Wicca is nonsense, having no firm roots, no organization, and where nothing is sacred. Do you think that witches of the past who were illiterate and living in isolated communities knew anything of hermeticism, or eastern philosophy, and yoga and other such things? No! And do you think that your religion is what you think it is when everything is based upon the things stated above? Wicca is a plastic fabrication, bastardized by hundreds of authors like this one over half of a century. Authors like Silver Ravenwolf have hidden people under a mantle of lies and has made more abominations to the Craft than any author of her time! The Craft is real, as much as some might not like to think, and there are those who still know the true magicks and possess the true knowledge and can still call upon the Old Ones, and they are not sharing knowledge anytime soon. Of course, except for those who have become open to the technologies of the modern era. And even with them, authenticity must still be looked for and examined closely. True witches believe that only a witch can make a witch, and that the passing on of power is much like the passing on of a title...basically, you can't do it to yourself. But this book is not true witchcraft, and any who read it and claim power and knowledge from its teachings, really has nothing. THIS BOOK IS LIES! It is not even "Wicca" as was began decades ago by Gerald Gardner, which is entirely respectable in its own right. And I don't care if "Mama Silver" is a "lineaged witch"(a title which also was fabricated, and the title 'Witch' she has no right to claim). Nothing is held sacred by these hypocrites, as they, again, bastardize the teachings of those who taught them and interbreed them with others until the have a satisfactory body of 'lore'. Simply observe every overpriced book like this pertaining to Wicca on the market, and you will see what I mean. Soon, if you deny what I say now, you'll believe it in the future when your curiosity prompts research into Wicca's authenticity. The true Craft does exist in many forms,(this means that different forms are practiced by different people, but the different forms are always kept the same by those who practice them, as tradition always is) as still practiced by few people who hold it sacred and secret, and it is completely different from the Wicca presented in this book. The true seekers will find it, and will perhaps not like what they see as some may be hopelessly dependent on the "nice" "white" cushion of Wicca. But as was said, it is there, and it is not this. This book, if it deserves a name and title, I brand an abomination. Which in truth (and you all know this, Wiccans and Witches and Seekers alike), it is.
Rating:
Summary: Well organized, Some Basics, Some new Stuff
Review: The first thing I think everyone will notice is that the book is well organized into sections. The front of the book starts with basics that might be very repetative to most of us, but will be a good place for those who are just learning about earth-baised religions and have gotten past the "look I'm a witch!" stage. The back sections of the book contains some astrological moon phase info for spell work, spells and hex magick. (Note: Hex magick does not pertain to Curses, this is where we could probably use a better definition to correct missunderstandings on the meaning) This does seem to run more along the lines of powwow magick maybe a little scandinavian in symbolism, at least that is my impression of it. Not really my cup of tea but everyone has diffrent tastes. The information that was in the middle seemed to intrest me more than the front of the book or the back. the information on the Wedjat eye was very intersting and even after cross referanceing seemed to stand up to be more accurate than not. The majority of the book is intended as referance and clearly not suggested as the only source for you to gain information. There are some areas that I find the wording used to explain some things to be a little unclear, but not intentionally so. It is not always easy to express beliefs and concepts that are clearly not well understood by mainstream society. However, a more wordy description may or may not have help in explaining things better but most readers would find it too wordy and find fault in that approach. I didn't find any conflict with the love spell as it was not directed at causing anyone in particular to love you... it was just to draw love that had potential to be lasting... couple it with more astrological information than you would find here it could be likely to have a positive results. I think that releasing love of the "it's over spell" to be suggestive that you had control over love and I think that this could be handled better. However, off hand this is the only one that I can really say I had a real problem with. Over all, I feel that this is a good referance book, not as bad as some would have you believe, Not the corner market either, just another alternative. Some new stuff not seen in other books and a collection of some basic stuff that may have required several books to get all of what is inside of this one. It can also help give you a start on ideas of other topics you would like to look deeper into. Contains more than Scott Cunnigham's "Living Wicca" and "Wicca" does and yet covers all the same ground and then some.
Rating:
Summary: A Good General Wicca Book
Review: This book is written as an encyclopedia and I use it for just that. She encourages you to look at other sources for in-depth information, but gives a solid background in many areas of Wicca. Some areas I found helpful include the sections on astrology, animal totems (very brief - but includes a variety of real and fantasy animals), scrying, dowsing, grounding and centering, and general divination tips. On the negative side, some parts, particulary the last chapter, seem too teen-oriented and full of mass-markety sort of spells. I just ignore this portion of the book. Still worth the money.
Rating:
Summary: So-So
Review: I honestly believe that paganism, religion whatever you want to call it is about bettering yourself. Not begging to diety to give you everything you want. Silver claims to belive the same thing but then provides spells for love and money. How many books does she need to publish on the same information. It seems to me that she is just trying to get her 15 minutes of fame, and make a bunch of money. There is nothing new in this book that makes it a 'must read'. If you want an introduction Paganism: An Introduction to Earth-Centered Religions by Joyce and River Higginbotham is much better.
Rating:
Summary: Eh, she's done worse
Review: I want to like Silver. I really do. I want to give every Pagan writer the benefit of the doubt, and believe that even if they are saying things that make me want to rip my hair out, they have the best interests of the community (as they understand that to mean) at heart. I just wish she'd *write* better. For someone who claims to have started out as an editor, she writes with a cloying tone, often fails to explain her terms or to present information in a logical order (here she doesn't even try), and leaves in all sorts of mistakes, both of information and of clear writing. So why three stars? Because for once, this one occasionally spits up some information that I haven't already seen everywhere else. In amongst the Christian bashing and the winking and the poems so bad I have to scream (an affliction that is hardly unique to Silver, I'm afraid) there are actually some "articles" that contain information. Particularly, there's a lot of astrological lore that is less common in other books. Unfortunately I can't take her at her word about any of it, because I've seen her make so many mistakes on things that I know more about - but at least it's a starting place. It's far from the worst thing she's written.
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