Member Reviews
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The enchantment of Iceland mesmerizes those who visit the seemingly barren island in the North Atlantic. Mystical symbols, elusive supernatural beings, and the haunting spirits of ancient priests all have a role in the island’s magic. However, the flora often goes unnoticed. Concealed amidst misty mountains and flourishing in the heat of geothermal streams, Iceland’s plants possess powerful magic.
In his book “Icelandic Plant Magic: Folk Herbalism of the North,” Albert Bjorn skillfully combines traditional and modern Icelandic magical practices. With a balanced approach, he incorporates both the living traditions and ancient wisdom of the island, allowing the plant spirits and practitioners to be heard. The book provides readers with guidance on utilizing Icelandic plants and staves in effective and potent spells, including invisibility, protection against different creatures, attracting love or success in games, and much more.
This was an immensely interesting book, especially for someone not overly familiar with Iceland. I found a wealth of captivating information within its pages, particularly about the language and terminology used in Icelandic plant magic. Moreover, there was a plethora of herbal knowledge shared throughout. My only disappointment was that I wished the graphics had been more eye-catching and that there had been a greater quantity of them. Nonetheless, overall, this book proved to be a valuable addition to my growing collection of folk magic books.
**ARC Via NetGalley**
I was curious because my knowledge of Icelandic plants and magic was near zero. The author did a good job and I learn more about plants and lore.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine
Thorough discussion of Magical use of plants from the Icelandic past to present. The planets and the lelements are covered. Toxicity is discussed as well as the fact that plants have spirit also. My favorite part of this very practical and well planned book is that the actual emphasis is to do things for yourself and learn. This book just feels like it has a very strong connection to the past and the ways of those that have gone before.
This book covers such a unique subject matter in such an approachable and easy to understand way. The book has a fantastic introdu tion section that really gives an incite into Iceland. Following this is a glossaries section with Icelandic pronunciations and a comprehensive section on Icelandic plants and fungi.
The next section covers the gods and their plant correspondences, tools required and accompanying spells, incense blends, magical oils and ointments, ritual baths, ritual foods, protective and healing charms, luck, money and love spells, spirit work and prayers and psalms. All in all it was a comprehensive look at a subject matter which few witchcraft books cover.
All in all, Icelandic Plant Magic was a fun and interesting read. I appreciated the variety of topics covered and detailed descriptions from the plants, charms, staves, tools, smoke blends, baths and more that is a bridge between traditional uses and modern applications.