One of our guildies made a thread some time ago asking this question:
Quote:
It seems like every book I pick up is filled with misinformation [...]. They misuse names and things like that. And even the subject matter I don't know how much I agree with anymore. [...] I don't really feel comfortable taking other cultures deities and parading them off like my own, you know? If a book has so much wrong with it, how can I take anything as good true information? And how do you tell what's right and what's not?
In short: How does one (especially someone new to witchcraft) tell a good book from a bad one?
To answer that question we have compiled this helpful list of ways to tell:
To answer that question we have compiled this helpful list of ways to tell:
How to Tell a Good Book from a Bad One:
1.) The Author's Name: If the author feels the need to write under their craft name, then I see no reason to take them seriously. Silver Ravenwolf is a prime example, anyone that sounds like that, Willow Peacedrinker or Rainbow Awesomepants or Vampyre McBadass are all examples of what a bad book's author sounds like. Joe Normalname and Susan Straightforward are good authors, by this simplified rule of thumb.
2.) Sometimes you CAN Judge a Book by Its Cover: If a book has art that would look appropriate on a horror novel or the DaVinci's Code 2: Pagan Boogaloo, then odds are its meant to make money, and nothing more. Books with very picturesque and scenic art aren't bad. The Last Sin Eater has some sunlight filtering through some trees, that kind of thing. The best ones usually have straightforward covers. On The Crystal Bible, there are pictures of stones just scattered about. Simple (and boring) usually tends to be the key (just remember that this is not always the case).
3.) Look At their Bibliographies: Look at the bibliographies in the back of the books to see where the author got their information. If the book's sources are reliable ones then chances are the book will be reliable. If you don't know or recognize any of the titles of authors listed in the bibliography then look at then general number of sources. Usually, the more sources an author takes their information from, the more likely that information will be reliable. However, that does not mean that the author wouldn't twist the information from their sources to support their own slanted opinions and views. Everyone is guilty of bias, whether we choose to admit it or not.
4.) Research the Author: Another really good thing to do, is actually research the author a bit. Do they actually have the credentials needed to be considered experts on the subject, if it says "self-taught" and the book is about something that you know requires some sort of certification, initiation, etc... then odds are they probably aren't the best person to be learning about it from. Being self-taught in general isn't always a bad thing (especially they aren't claiming to be a part of any specific tradition or path that has specific requirements), but it's still a good idea to look into what sort of experience they have, that makes them knowledgeable enough to teach it to others.
5. Agreeing With You =/= Good Book: Just because a books agrees with what you already believe and/or tells you what you want to hear does not make it a good book. Likewise, a book that implies that your previous ideas are wrong does not mean that it is a 'bad book'. As we all know, there is a great deal of misinformation out there about both witchcraft and paganism and chances are when your were first starting out you didn't automatically find the "right sort" of book right away. If you find that a book disagrees with what you've previously read/been taught, go back over suggestions one through four and ask yourself, "Does this author seem credible?" "Does this book look legitimate?" "Where is this book getting its information from? Is that a reliable source?"
