It all started innocently enough. I needed an herb to be added to a brewing process so that my werewolves could get drunk. Seriously. I was thinking about them, and how it would be kind of sad to be a generations-old pack of beer brewers who couldn’t enjoy the effects of their own wares. So that started me down a rabbit hole of gardening and herbs and lore and eventually led to me joining three witchcraft groups on Facebook, plus reading down the rabbit hole of kitchen and green witchery (the latter which was something I didn’t even know existed two weeks ago.) Luckily, there were stops along this rabbit hole all over Kindle Unlimited, and so I happily settled in, reading along, and getting gardening tips, some meditation ideas, and yes, finding just the right herb for a werewolf’s home brew.
First up, The Green Witch, by Arin Murphy-Hiscock. I think this book appealed to me because a.) it connected with me on a visceral “I like shiny rocks and plants” level, and didn’t judge me at all, and b.) it was well-organized, clearly written, and encompassed a wide range of practitioners. Murphy-Hiscock was clear that each witch practices how/where they feel comfortable, and so I didn’t feel like the book was trying to convince me to move to a shack in the woods and live off the grid (I like my computer and Kindle reader). The book did give me some ideas for the indoor plants I’ve been purchasing, as well as the indoor seeds that I started about a week ago. One of the ideas is to keep a journal as a way of tracking what you did and how it worked out. Another idea is meditation and focusing on intentions (using the aforementioned shiny rocks.) Finally, the book dovetailed nicely with another interest I have, namely herbalism, and gave me some ideas about making some sugar scrubs, lotions, and soaps.
Arin Murphy-Hiscock wrote a number of books, including The Green Witch’s Grimoire and Protection Spells, both available in KU. These two are characterized by her wry sense of humor, clear organization, well-laid-out contents, and the feeling that the content is there for those who are seeking it, but it’s not going to try to convince you to approach it one way or the other. As I read, again, I find some ideas that even a rather mundane, non-witch such as myself could find useful. And, one of the characters in a project I’m working on is starting to become clearer and clearer in my mind as I read, so I think this particular reading week is trying to tell me something.
Unfortunately, I’m way behind in my Goodreads reading challenge, so this next week, I may indulge in some horror novellas or urban fantasy series novels. We’ll see. In the meantime, I enjoyed these books and will likely keep them on my Kindle shelf.
As for which herb Rick Keller is going to add to his next batch of kolsch, well … you’ll see!
Peace and happy reading.
