Sabbats: A Witch’s Approach to Living the Old Ways
Edain McCoy
“Celebrate the eight sacred seasons of the Witches’ year. Mark the passing of time and honor each season with sacred ritual and seasonal craftwork, ancient stories and traditional treats. Create a colorful mask for Samhain, make a honey cake for Imbolg, fashion a chaplet of flowers at Bealtaine, bake a Brigid’s Blackberry Pie for Lughnasadh, even accompany your sabbat festivities with music from eight traditional musical scores – it’s easy with Sabbats as your guide. Learn how to combine old customs with new expressions of your beliefs and your chosen tradition. Deepen your connection to the turning of the wheel as you celebrate the eight sacred seasons of the Witches’ year.” (Wiccan Way)
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McCoy’s Sabbats is full of information on history, traditions, songs, craft and recipe ideas for every sabbat. Her writing style is informal, enjoyable, and easy to read. There’s also a reference section in the back that goes into more detail about ritual construction, correspondences, pagan merchants and more.
However, one main drawback I found is that there is no verifiable data or sources/footnotes for much of what she says. I found a lot of her comments and descriptions were based on opinion or inferences, rather than fact.
I think this book would be good for a beginner or someone who would be interested in craft and recipe ideas for running your own sabbat or seasonal party, but for an in-depth and historically accurate study on the Wheel of the Year, you could probably find a more complete (and verifiable!) source elsewhere.
© A Year And A Day (2013)
West Coast Pagan 