Grimoire for The Apprentice Wizard

Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard is an encyclopedia of information and resources, ostensibly written for the adolescent. An ambitious project, this book sets out to assemble a textbook of material covering as many aspects of Pagan education that a child could want or need. With contributors such as Raymond Buckland, Trish Telesco, Raven Grimassi, Ellen Evert Hopman, Morning Glory Zell-Ravenheart, and Abby Willowroot, the material is well-written and well-researched. At times, however, the sheer wealth of information can overwhelm the reader, no matter what his or her age.

Subjects covered include such areas as history, tools, rituals, animals and mythical creatures, laws and ethics, mythology, seasons, deities, elements, working with Nature, and more. These are not addressed superficially, either; care has been taken to explain the subject clearly and in some depth. The material is also broken down into "lessons" which purport to make the subjects easier to understand. In fact, the fragmented delivery of the various subjects can make it slightly more difficult to use to book as anything other than a text to be read from cover to cover. An excellent index, along with a chapter-by-chapter resource bibliography, help the reader locate information quickly. However, the double-column layout of the text and the size of the print make the book slightly difficult to read. Plenty of small illustrations scattered throughout the book provide visual interest, but also distract from the text at times. Reference tables are clearly laid out and large enough to save the reader from squinting at the information held therein.

A problem often encountered in books such as the Grimoire is the lack of clearly defined audience, which influences the tone and style in which the information is delivered. In the Grimoire of the Apprentice Wizard, although the material purports to be aimed at teens, the reading level is too advanced for a child under twelve or fourteen, and challenging for fourteen or fifteen. It is, however, an excellent resource for a new practitioner from sixteen to twenty years of age, and for beginner adults who enjoy a casual approach to the information they read, as well.

The ultimate crime concerning this otherwise excellent book is the attempt made to model the delivery of information after a fictional school of magic. The Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard is strong enough to stand on its own without comparing itself to Harry Potter, or by creating a fictional Grey Council to lend a false validity to the contributors. Overall, however, the information contained within the book overcomes this affectation, and it is a text which can rest respectably on any Pagan practitioner's shelf.

(c) 2004 A. Murphy-Hiscock. Originally published in Wyntergreene, Yule (December) 2004.