{"id":19086,"date":"2022-12-01T16:59:25","date_gmt":"2022-12-01T21:59:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/?p=19086"},"modified":"2022-12-01T16:59:25","modified_gmt":"2022-12-01T21:59:25","slug":"favorite-things-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/?p=19086","title":{"rendered":"Favorite Things 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

$\"\"$ If this is your first time checking out The Magical Buffet\u2019s Favorite Things list, welcome! I started doing the list as a response to the overwhelming popularity of Oprah\u2019s Favorite Things that she does each year. I started with the argument that I\u2019m far more relatable than Oprah, with the whole me being broke as opposed to a multi-millionaire. That evolved into The List as you see it today, which is 10 things that have been featured on The Magical Buffet website since the previous year\u2019s list was published. So, although many of these items were published this year, you\u2019ll find slightly older ones too.<\/p>\n

Every year the list gets harder to make because each year I seem to gain access to more publishers, authors, and publicists, and all of them keep getting better at curating wonderful works. As I typed up last year\u2019s list, I was already dreading the 2022 list, and this time is no different. I already have books in my \u201cto read\u201d pile that I feel certain are Favorite Things worthy.<\/p>\n

With no further explainers or excuses, I present to you (in no particular order) The Magical Buffet\u2019s Favorite Things 2022.<\/p>\n

1. Lights, Camera, Witchcraft: A Critical History of Witches in American Film and Television by Heather Greene.<\/strong>
\nI started the year with a fun interview with Heather Greene about this book. The intersection of popular culture with witchcraft has always been a subject of interest to me and her work definitely did the work. It\u2019s one part academic study, one part witchy media guide. Almost anyone would enjoy this book. You can read the interview here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

2. Qabalah for Wiccans: Ceremonial Magic on the Pagan Path by Jack Chanek.<\/strong> I cannot stress how envious I am of Chanek. His intelligence, his insights, and his ability to just explain things in a way that I can understand are all what makes him one of my new favorite authors. Not only does Qabalah for Wiccans show pagans ways to incorporate ceremonial magic traditions into their spirituality, but it also finally explained Qabalah in a way that I fully understood. I would be remiss if I didn\u2019t point out that I also reviewed and loved his next book, Tarot for Real Life: Use the Cards to Find Answers to Everyday Questions, that was also featured on my site this year. You can see my review of Qabalah for Wiccans<\/em> here<\/a> and Tarot for Real Life<\/em> here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

3. King Solomon the Magus: Master of the Djinns and Occult Traditions of East & West by Claude Lecouteux.<\/strong> Anyone who has read The Magical Buffet for any length of time knows that I love Lecouteux, and when I found out he wrote about Solomon, I may have actually yelped out loud. You can read my review here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

4. The Weiser Tarot.<\/strong> Weiser took on the challenge of updating the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot, keeping it as true to its original form while attempting to update the representation. It could have been a lazy cash grab, but instead Weiser created the new traditional tarot deck. Read my review here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

5. Secrets of Santa Muerte: A Guide to the Prayers, Spells, Rituals, and Hexes\u201d by Cressida Stone.<\/strong> Stone discusses a frequently misrepresented deity that is experiencing rapid growth. Her book does an excellent job highlighting the diversity and versatility of the goddess and the ways She is worshipped. You can read my review here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

6. The Other Side of Nothing: The Zen Ethics of Time, Space, and Being by Brad Warner.<\/strong> Magical Buffet readers know that Warner is one of my favorite authors on the subject of Zen Buddhism. The Other Side of Nothing is the book I had been waiting for, where Warner takes his informal voice to explain the formal intricacies of Zen Buddhist ethics. It just might overtake Sit Down and Shut Up<\/em> as the most essential Zen Buddhist text. You can read my review here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

$\"\"$ 7. The Bavarian Illuminati: The Rise and Fall of the World\u2019s Most Secret Society by Rene Le Forestier and translated by Jon E. Graham.<\/strong> From my review, \u201cThis is 912 pages of pulse pounding intrigue and yawn inducing bureaucracy that was originally published in 1915 and hasn\u2019t been available in English until now.\u201d Yes, it is a pricey spend, but if you\u2019re interested in occult societies, this is an interesting look at the OG of societies. You can read my full review here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

8. Paganism for Prisoners: Connecting to the Magic Within by Awyn Dawn.<\/strong> This is an important work that is well past due. Frequently, Pagan authors tell me that inmates reach out to them for resources and they don\u2019t know what to say or do. Awyn Dawn\u2019s book is an excellent resource. If I had the funds, I\u2019d try to get a copy into every prison in the United States. Until then, get a copy and examine Pagan practice from a new perspective. You can read the review here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

9. Goddess Magic: A Handbook of Spells, Charms, and Rituals Divine in Origin by Aurora Kane.<\/strong> I like goddesses. This book has goddesses. Honestly, sometimes it doesn\u2019t take more than that for me to get excited about a book, however, Kane\u2019s curation of goddesses and the litany of ideas offered to work with them makes this a stand out in the collection of goddesses genre. You can read my review here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

10. The Watkins Tarot Handbook: A Practical System of Self-Discovery\u201d by Naomi Ozaniec.<\/strong> I\u2019m no stranger to books about tarot, but I\u2019ll be damned if this one did not exceed all expectations. As I said in my review, \u201cI was expecting a vaguely new age, self-help book that utilized tarot. What I got was a jaw dropping, initiatory experience.\u201d This book is not to be missed. You can read my review here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Shop my Favorite Things 2022 Here!<\/a> (This is an affiliate link to my Bookshop, which supports independent bookstores throughout the United States. If you use this link to purchase the book, I will make a small commission at no additional cost to you.)<\/p>\n

Do you enjoy The Magical Buffet? Considering supporting The Magical Buffet on Patreon! For only $5 a month you\u2019ll receive monthly tarot\/oracle forecasts, classes, and behind the scenes updates! Https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/magicalbuffet<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"