Well this is a bit embarrassing. I bought a book to review because I thought it was brand new and it wasn’t until I went to the publisher’s website that I realized it was published in 2013. 2013! But the book is good, it’s still available to purchase, and it was new to me, so I’m sharing it with you! We’re going to be talking about “Supermarket Magic: Creating Spells, Brews, Potions, & Powders from Everyday Ingredients” by Michael Furie.
I love food, as my ever widening ass can attest to. Which is why I love books that let me look at food in different ways. I also liked the idea of using a supermarket to do your magical shopping. It reminds me of all the times I would buy supplies at the local dollar store. I guess what I’m saying is that it was inevitable that I would end up reading this book, and it didn’t disappoint.
Now when I picked up “Supermarket Magic” I expected it to be wholly focused on what kind of magic you can work when your local supermarket is the closest thing you have to a magical supply shop. I was pleasantly surprised to see that Furie discussed a lot of magical basics and ethics. He then divides the book up into the most frequently used categories of magic: clearing and cleansing, harmony, healing, love, lust, and beauty, luck, money, protection, and psychic ability and divination. He also includes a section about Sabbats.
In each chapter Furie discusses what is involved in the category. Items that are associated with that type of magic, and several spells and/or recipes to use. There is a shopping list at the end of each chapter listing all the items he mentioned in the chapter. I found that particularly clever. He stresses that “Supermarket Magic” isn’t a cookbook, however there are a lot of recipes for brews and potions that sound…..magically delicious. (I couldn’t help myself!) Seriously, if something is tasty AND can have potential magical benefits, why wouldn’t you want to give it a go?
With its blend of beginner and advanced ideas “Supermarket Magic” is a great addition to any magic user’s library, whether you’re just starting out, or have been working with magic for years.
You can learn more here.
And by the way, “Supermarket Sabbats”, also by Michael Furie comes out this October! You can learn more, and preorder it here.
There are two amazing things about this book. One, it’s 135 pages long and doesn’t seem that long at all. Two, authors Cass and Janie Jackson crammed a lot if information in this book. Way more than 135 pages worth of info. They do a wonderful job of covering more bases than I was expecting. They guide you through shopping for crystals, how to clean and care for your crystals, and how to store them. You’ll also learn about prominent crystals from history and folklore. Then you get to the main event which is exploring individual crystals: their characteristics, their uses, and assorted correspondences. 
The history of magic in Iceland is interesting as their magical and religious interactions with the influx of Christianity were more intermingling than in other regions. It makes their magical practice come across as a pragmatic, get the job done, kind of school. The first section also discusses lore and legends of Iceland’s magicians, which I loved! I adore reading about magic users and this was hands down my favorite part of the book for me. Before you get into the nitty gritty of the second half of the book, Flowers gives you a rundown of equipment you’ll probably want or need and the basic ritual format.
She starts with some historical background about astronomy and astrology, getting started with stargazing, and using star energy for magic and ritual. Using star energy for magic was inspired. Somehow for all the books I’ve read on using nature energies, until “Star Magic” I had never encountered a book suggesting using star energies. The moon? All the time. The stars? Not until now. She discusses using the stars for astral travel, dream work, and ritual.
Choose the best essential oils for your creative and magical mixing with this straightforward, hands-on guide. Through step-by-step instruction on how to measure, mix, and assess blends, you’ll move beyond following others’ recipes and into creating your own oil combinations.
“A Spell A Day: For Health, Wealth, Love, and More” by Cassandra Eason is an amazingly diverse book of spells that quite literally has a spell for every occasion. First off, there are 366 spells in case of it being a leap year. Good catch Eason! Second, her introduction mentions that idea of opening the book for a spell at random. Suggesting that perhaps the spell you need will find you. I love that kind of thing. Third, it has a great index. With spell books, you want a good index because at some point you’re going to want to find some spell you read and you are NOT going to remember what day it was on.
