Rating: 
Summary: Flawed but entertaining.....
Review: Erica Jong has been the Thomas Paine of the Women's Movement, and over the years I have always known I could count on her to inspire me when I felt worn down by the forces of sexism. Although Jong has been an articulate and effective spokesperson for women's issues, she has frequently ignored important detail and left herself open to criticism. This is a pity because there are those who will throw the baby out with the bathwater. It should surprise no one that the author of THE FEAR OF FLYING would be inspired to write a book on WITCHES--who are reputed to fly and have strong sexual urges. However, these attributes alone do not a book on witches make. Ms Jong's WITCHES has many fine points and some bothersome weaknesses. On the one hand, WITCHES contains some wonderful and fantastical illustrations of witches by Joseph Smith (ironical ain't it??). In fact, WITCHES reminds me of a fairy-tale book for adults. The text type is "big" and she includes many interesting sidebars along with her pictures. On the other hand, Ms. Jong's text is less than accurate. From my reading of academic works by respected historians and anthropologists and of books by wiccans/witches acknowldged to be "experts" by their followers, I think Ms. Jong lacked both a knowledge of witchcraft and a research background. Unfortunately, her shortcomings are apparent. Jong has written a "pop" witch book. Although Jong includes a relatively impressive bibliography, most of her writing seems to be based on her interpretation of three sources: Margot Adler's DRAWING DOWN THE MOON, the MALLEUS MALEFICARUM written by two Inquistors, and the questionable works of Margaret Murray. The rest of the text is an interesting hotch-potch of factoids from a variety of sources. If she mentioned the Inquisition once, she mentioned it a hundred times. Given historical research of the past few years, it is simply not accurate to blame the Roman Catholic church for the "witch-craze" of the 16th and 17th centuries. As Candace Savage points out in her extremely well researched book WITCH, over half of the witches destroyed by Christians during the witch-craze were killed in Protestant Germany. Many more were killed in Scotland, Sweden, and Switzerland--home to northern Protestants. Jong's logic is flawed and her chronology muddled. She leaps from the 17th Century to the 14th Century, from the Scottish king James' fear of sorcerers to Barbara Tuchman's description of social brekdown during the Black Plague. She seems to have an axe to grind against "the church" i.e. the Roman Catholic Church. Well, I am a "fallen-away" Catholic myself and I certainly find many church positions difficult to swallow (although I love Mary), but I believe in historical accuracy as nearly as we can determine it. Unfortunately, Christians of both persuasions, as well as many nationalities have treated women very badly over the past 1000 years or so. Blaming the Roman Catholic Church for all these atrocities is rather like blaming Germany for all the deaths in the 20th Century -- a major player but there's plenty of blame to go around.
Rating: 
Summary: Very adorable
Review: I am a wiccan, i loved this book. it's not about wicca, but about WITCHES, there is a difference, no matter how much some wiccans want to to belive otherwise. this is a beautiful book. It can't be read like she is trying to prove andything, because she is not. She has beautiful artwork and beautful writing, thouroghly reccomended to wiccans, witches and lovers of either.
Rating:
Summary: This book changed my life
Review: Ok, ok, anti-feminists will moan, and wiccan purists will argue that this book is not the most accurate one on the market when it comes to the Old Religion... But well, for a non-pagan , Erica Jong has delivered one of the most beautiful and moving books about Witches that I've ever read. Ladies, this book will speak to your soul, reconnect you with the dreams and nightmares of your childhood, the dark powers that creep in the shadows, the heroines of the past, the goddess spirit that flows within you. It will transport you somewhere else. Whether you are a witch, a feminist or just someone who has not lost his/her ability to dream, to explore archetypes and find the Truth behind them, you MUST buy this book.
Rating:
Summary: This book started it all
Review: Over 10 years ago when i was 12 years old i read this book. it is informative and artistic and immediately i fell in love with witchcraft. not only does it cover the basics of witchcraft but also the history and beauty of the religion. the artwork is amazing and the poetry is truly inspirational.
Rating: 
Summary: Your typical Witch book written by a Non-Witch
Review: The book is beautifully illustrated and gives great detail into the hocus-pocus of some famous fictional Witches. It also gives info about the Salem Witch trials with some not-so-nice pictures of how the villagers dealt with them (I wouldn't recommend this to a child). As far as this book goes for practicing Wiccans, I'd stick to the more Scott Cunningham sort of book.
Rating:
Summary: Unique and beautiful
Review: This is a book of artwork and poetry written by someone who is using the loaded imagery of the Witch as a way to explore feminism, art, history, and the evolution of religion. It is a thoughtful book but does not pretend to delve deep into any of the issues it explores. It is a book for artists and poets who explore the world through the creative process, and as such I found it hugely successful. Whether the book fits in the current trends of Wicca/Witchcraft is a side issue that is really up to each person who reads it. I feel it is absolutely a Wiccan book because it gave me tons of the spiritual inspiration I need in my creative pursuits. As to some of the snarly comments, I don't think people should try to say in a blanket sort of way what is and is not Wicca. To me, Wicca seems more of a craft - a skill you create and develop continually. It's not some fixed set of rituals and beliefs that someone spoon feeds to you and then you practice (horrible word) "as is" for the rest of your life. Very inspirational book!
Rating:
Summary: Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous.
Review: This is probably the coolest book on Witchcraft and Goddess religion I've ever come across. It's mostly a coffee-table art tome, peppered with accurate, nonjudgemental information. The construction of the book as a whole is really beautiful -- the paintings are haunting, the text typeface is pretty, fun *and* easy on the eye, and the entire feeling of the book, though it's only paper, is very tactile. I love holding this in my lap and thumbing through it, again and again. Very highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: yuck
Review: this wasnt even written by a witch but by a feminist, i am so very disguisted she said we didnt know anything about our religion and in a poem she said we worshiped satan no we dont, satan doesnt exist, satan in hebrews translates to adivosary, not an antigod, and satan never ever had horns, i am completely fed up with these lies on the gullible people that will believe them and whats with calling the crone evil, she isnt evil she just isnt all oreo cookies, this woman has no idea what shes talking about.
Rating:
Summary: Spiritually Uplifiting
Review: When I first bought this book, I bought it for the artwork. It wasn't until I began reading it that I found it's words to touch my soul like no Silver Ravenwolf book ever could. I think the problem with a lot of the reviewers posting negative comments on this book is that they are either men or are focusing to much on the "Wiccan Aspect" of religion. We have to rememember that not EVERY witch is a Wiccan. Some may have viewpoints that are nowhere near the rede many of you follow so religiously. I realize that this book is not meant to be a teaching tool, as many of you should also realize. But, as an emotional essay on the female history of Witchcraft, this is a beautiful book.
Rating:
Summary: Spiritually Uplifiting
Review: When I first bought this book, I bought it for the artwork. It wasn't until I began reading it that I found it's words to touch my soul like no Silver Ravenwolf book ever could. I think the problem with a lot of the reviewers posting negative comments on this book is that they are either men or are focusing to much on the "Wiccan Aspect" of religion. We have to rememember that not EVERY witch is a Wiccan. Some may have viewpoints that are nowhere near the rede many of you follow so religiously. I realize that this book is not meant to be a teaching tool, as many of you should also realize. But, as an emotional essay on the female history of Witchcraft, this is a beautiful book.
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