Practical Solitary Magic

Rating:
Summary: Great Book for Beginners!
Review: Although I have started magick way before I read this book, it sure changed my practice. It is one good book every magickal practitioner should read. Aside from the fact that it contains many information essential to magickal practice, it is also written in an easy to read format.

But I am very sad to note that there are some things she did not discuss very well. I am talking about the subject of Assuming the Godform. Although she gave an example, she did not give the step-by-step guide on how to do it. This can lead to problems with the workings.

A very good book on magick (with a big emphasis on wiccan flavored golden dawn), I recommendn it to any serious practitioner.

Rating:
Summary: Best book I've read.
Review: Everything that Nancy B. Watson teaches, WORKS! I was amazed. She displays the intelligent persepective of a true critical thinker. She is open minded to scientific explanations but does not ignorantly dismiss anything without valid evidence as many cowens do. It's the best book I've ever read on the subject of magic. This book is easy-to-read, well-written and accurate. It takes evalutates Jungian psychology without getting so bogged down in scientific jargon so as to lose the average reader. My only gripe is that she has only written this one book. I hope she writes more books of this quality.

Rating:
Summary: Best book I've read.
Review: Everything that Nancy B. Watson teaches, WORKS! I was amazed. She displays the intelligent persepective of a true critical thinker. She is open minded to scientific explanations but does not ignorantly dismiss anything without valid evidence as many cowens do. It's the best book I've ever read on the subject of magic. This book is easy-to-read, well-written and accurate. It takes evalutates Jungian psychology without getting so bogged down in scientific jargon so as to lose the average reader. My only gripe is that she has only written this one book. I hope she writes more books of this quality.

Rating:
Summary: Finally, a magical book without religious context
Review: I think that I can add to those that had reviewed this book, one person said that it wasn't for beginners or someone of youth because it was an advanced book, while two others blatently said it was a great place to begin. I think the first review that I mentioned said that it was not a book to begin with because this book is not strictly wiccan, and does not go into any religious background. Thus said this book is as advertised a beginning to magick using mostly the four realm division of Fire/Spirit/Salamander, Air/Mental/slyphs, Water/emotion/undines, Earth/physical/gnomes... in this sense she simplifies activating (I am using a simplistic aproach) the inner child/unconsiousness through exercises and use of elementals. This book is written excellently because it gives not only a simple and uncomplicated and throughly understandable place to begin with out pressure, she also writes it in a way for only spiritual growth of the reader and also writes this with deep moral considerations without beating you over the head constantly of dogma. If you are looking at understanding yourself better while becoming aquanted with elementals this would this book is a great place to begin, but it is somewhat limited in scope. This book is written so it does not rehash or go into any religion so it would be a perfect book for the dedicated of a earth religion as an "intermediate book" if you don't already understand the elemental realm then it would still be perfect since I have not found any other book to relate the elements so wonderfully close to a personal level. I could rant on and on... so I will leave off to also say that this book has a "quiz" or "questionaire" so that you can find the element you are most affinitied to. This to me was more fun then a deep personal exersize and I think should be taken as much.. but if it helps just the better. Blessed be. Now buy this book, since I have bought three over the last three years

Rating:
Summary: Very User Friendly
Review: Most books on magic suffer from being either far too esoteric and almost arrogantly mysterious for a person to make any good sense of or so watered down and too user friendly that they are completely devoid of any inspiration. I found Ms. Watson's style to be quite out of the norm. This is not the first book on magic I read but it is one of my favorites. On a practical level, I loved both this book's take on the four magical planes and also on the elements. On an aesthetic level I loved her conversational and anectdotal style. I think this book is a good read for both pagans and ceremonial magicians and while it's not the be-all end-all of magic it has become the cornerstone of my practice.

Rating:
Summary: engaging and useful
Review: Out of all of the handbook and guides to magic I've read in the past 6 years, this book is my favorite by far. The tone of the author is so so frank and sensible that she doesn't come off as pretentious like so many other occult writers tend to. Instead of making magic out to be something so ethereal, you don't feel enlightened enough to be able to do it successfully, Watson breaks down the mysteries of ritual step by step in language anyone can understand. I was really impressed by her practical outlook on how magic works and *why* it works. This book is a real resource for practitioners interested in creating their own rituals but feel intimidated by the process or not sure where to start.

I really wish this author would write more books. Her style appealed to me more than any author on this topic I've read to date!

Rating:
Summary: An Essential reading for anyone truly interested in Magick
Review: Practical Solitary Magic, is just that, Practical and easy to understand, even though it is not a beginners handbook. Nancy B. Watson touches on everything from Magic and the mind, Psychology, importants of temperament, to many levels of Ritual. She touches on personal expierence when she started along with her brillant teacher, Murry Hope. This book started my respect, not only for Nancy Watson, Murry Hope, but Dion Fortune as well.
I would have anyone, of any belief or background read this book. It certainly helped me on my journey.

Rating:
Summary: Magic without the "K"
Review: This book offers a very psycological approach to witchcraft, and really isnt for the beginner, especially teens might find it a bit advanced, so save this one for when you get past the 101 part of magick since its not really covered here.
Its a good book and Nancy writes very specifically and understandeble. She puts alot of emphasis on the Elementals like sylphs and ondines, and the book contains charts for all four elements that covers herbs, animals and gems corresponding to each of them.
Theres is also a seven day ritual for creating a prosperity bag wherein Nancy tells you to spit! That was a little surprising.
Otherwise the book is good. It gave me a new approach to
witchcraft and inspirred me to try new tecniques. Maybe it will do the same for you :o)

Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: This book will provide a new practitioner with an excellent start. Watson skips the typical and sometimes confusing Wiccan rhetoric prevalent in this genre and provides her reader with information necessary to build a stable magical foundation. Watson stresses the importance of developing spell-work on a mental, emotional, spiritual and physical level (she makes plenty of suggestions and there are several exercises to help with this). Reading this book will prepare you for the successful and thorough planning of a spell or ritual.

I'd also like to address a comment made by another reviewer. The book does contain a personality test. The test is directed to those that intend to use elementals (and those trying to find a well-suited pantheon) and are unfamiliar with their own astrological profiles. This test groups you into one of four different types of temperaments: intuitive types; thinking types; feeling types; sensate types. Translated, water, air, fire or earth, respectively. So, if you find your results to be unclear, simply work with an elemental or pantheon suited to your own zodiacal element.

If you're shopping around for your first 'how to be a witch' or 'I want to write spells' book you would benefit greatly by making this work one of the first that you consult.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing intro to magic. Highly recommended.
Review: This is *the* book that got me started in magic. I had long been interested, but had never found a book that presented magic in a way that I could believe in. Watson does so.

Her method is to use an architectural metaphor for magic, dividing it into Spiritual, Mental, Emotional, and Physical planes; Spiritual magic deals with gods, Mental with thoughts, Emotional with feelings, and Physical with physically acting out ritual. One may work on one or many levels at once.

One of the best things about this book is that Watson fills it to the brim with autobiography. One gets far more about reading how a person discovered and used a technique in their life than from reading about the technique in the abstract.

Though Watson works out of a vaguely Golden Dawn-ish tradition, she is quite eclectic and encourages her readers to be. She makes the point that magic can be extremely simple -- nothing but writing down one's goal -- or extremely complex, and that a student of the occult should find for themselves what rituals, symbols, and gods they can work comfortably with.

Once again: an excellent work; I recommend it highly. Read it and it will give you a context for all the rest of the reading on magic you do.

P.S. Watson spells it correctly: "Magic," not "Magick."