The Witches and Wizards of Oberin

Rating:
Summary: Extremely Unique
Review: Before I start, I must say that this book is not meant to be considered a reference in any way. It is simply a beautifully photographed story greatly spiced up with mythology and spirituality. I would reccomend it to anyone looking for a really unique coffee table book.

Rating:
Summary: Not worth buying, sorry author
Review: I expected the artwork to be similar to Tom Cross, but this ended up being a bunch of poems that don't even rhyme. Nice pics but the best image is on the cover which is the one we see here on amazon. The rest are not what I expected at all.

Rating:
Summary: Eye candy for my kids and myself
Review: I home school and am always looking for exciting and creative material to present to my daughters. This is a wonderful short story that is long on creative presentation and imagination.
It is a mystery that unfolds its secret in the form of a message that is woven throughout the full page, full color, whimsical pictures of the witches and wizards. The words and phrases are later tied together at the end when the text of the message is written again in a spiral pattern.
The mystery begins with a newspaper clipping (shown as such) setting the stage for the story and offering the first clue. The mystery ends with another clipping that leaves the child to draw the obvious conclusion on their own. A thought provoking childrens story. There are precious few of these.
Throughout the story, the witches and wizards are described in poetic form with changes in font and artistic style to more elaborately express the mood and meaning of the words.
I absolutely LOVE this book, as do my daughters. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderfully creative children's story
Review: I home school and am always looking for exciting and creative material to present to my daughters. This is a wonderful short story that is long on creative presentation and imagination.
It is a mystery that unfolds its secret in the form of a message that is woven throughout the full page, full color, whimsical pictures of the witches and wizards. The words and phrases are later tied together at the end when the text of the message is written again in a spiral pattern.
The mystery begins with a newspaper clipping (shown as such) setting the stage for the story and offering the first clue. The mystery ends with another clipping that leaves the child to draw the obvious conclusion on their own. A thought provoking childrens story. There are precious few of these.
Throughout the story, the witches and wizards are described in poetic form with changes in font and artistic style to more elaborately express the mood and meaning of the words.
I absolutely LOVE this book, as do my daughters. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: The best book in the world!!!
Review: I really loved the pictures in this book.All of the witches look so beautiful .They all look like they know magic.I think that they are very pretty.

Rating:
Summary: Eye candy for my kids and myself
Review: The Fairies and The Witches Wizards of Oberin has been a great help in getting my four kids into reading, and away from the tv. The authors photo's in both books are pure eye candy to them. And has lead my oldest into Francesca Lia Block books.

Rating:
Summary: Delightful! Pure Eye Candy
Review: This book is amazing! I have Suza Scalora's first book, The Fairies, which I love! But this new book about witches and wizards is so beautiful and imaginative. I love the story that the Spirit Keeper tells of his clan of mysterious witches and wizards that travel the world casting spells. The color photographs are gorgeous! Can't wait for the next one.

Rating:
Summary: Lovely photographs
Review: This is just a really nice book all around. Besides the beautiful photographs, the layout and glossy pages really make this book a treat to read.

The different pictures are held together rather loosely by a short story. While it does help to tie the book together, I found it almost unnecessary. The pictures are enough on their own.

After enjoying this book immensely, I went in search of Scalora's other picture book, The Fairies. It too is wonderful to look at, and either book would make a great gift for anyone who is intrigued by the idea of fairies and magic.

Rating:
Summary: nice picture book
Review: To start off, at 20+ years I probably skew a bit older than the target market for this book. And yes, I did buy it for myself.

The best part of the book is the photographs (it is mainly a picture book after all). The witches and wizards in the book are grouped into the four elements, and each shot is heavily themed. The makeup, costuming, and sets are all very complete and otherworldly. Nearly everything has some sort of glow, sheen, or sparkle to it. The only visual element I disliked was the rather heavy use of motion blur. It does add an ethereal element to the shots, but I would have preferred it been used less.

The story and writing were tolerable at best, most often saccharine, and in a word, tacky. I can see the possible appeal for younger readers, but you can find better. But then you don't buy a picture book for the text. Still, I felt the text distracted from the overall quality, and is the reason I took a star off.

Overall a very pretty and stylized book.

Rating:
Summary: Suza, you did it again
Review: Up to today, I did not believe anything could top the photography of Suza Scalora's "The Fairies." I purchased a copy of "The Witches and Wizards of Oberin" today and it is even more stirring. The photos are exceptional and the story line is great. The whole book blends together in a wonderful and magicial way that is great reading for both young and those more mature. But the colors, the figures, the expressions of the characters, that cannot be described in the space allowed here. One must see this book. It is great. Hope to see another one soon.