Herbal Tea for the Pagan Spirit by Emerys Somerled © 2002

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Herbal Tea for the Pagan Spirit   by   Emerys Somerled        © 2002     Three Moons Media  ISBN 0-9725164-1-7    148         pages   paperback        $12.95  (U.S.)

Last year I reviewed a book (Cakes and Ale for the Pagan Soul) and stated that I hoped that others would pick up the idea (personal anecdotes and inspirational stories) and produce more in the same vein.  Little did I realize that it was not the ground-breaking idea I believed it to be.  This book predates Cakes and Ale by several years.  Whereas Cakes and Ale had the advantage of including contribution by several of the “names” in the Pagan community, this book has more of a grass roots appeal.

Emerys has said that he wants to make this a continuing series.  Well, that won’t happen unless two things occur.  First, this book must sell well enough to merit another in the series – so go to their website (http://www.threeemoonsmedia.com) or go to amazon.com and order a copy.  Second, more people must be willing to share their stories with him, so visit his website (http://www.paganculture.com) and share your experiences with him (and make sure to give him permission to publish them).

None of the experiences in this book are earth-shattering, although some are life-changing.  This is the type of book we need to see more of.  Gods know there are more than enough “101” books out there – it seems like a dozen new ones show up in bookstores every month.  Historical and scholarly books are also appearing in abundance.  There are far too few books which relate how Pagans interact with the rest of the world.

Emerys does make the obligatory nod to the “101” books.  He includes a list of 45 books for the beginner to look at.  I don’t agree with all of his choices, but a number of those books reside on my own library shelves.  He also includes some Internet resources and a very basic glossary of about 50 terms.

By far the shortest section in the book, and one that I would like to see expanded in any future volumes, is composed of a very few poems.  The more poetry we share the more we mat encourage those Pagans out there who are hesitant to write their own poetry.  The more of us who write and share our poetry, the more we can appeal to the hearts, as well as the heads, of those who are seekers.  And, since Paganism is, by its very nature, an experiential religion, I really feel that this is the way to go.

 

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