Thank you to NetGalley for an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book serves as a beautiful reminder that magic is found in our everyday life: stepping outside to tree branches swaying, the choral of birds singing their sweet songs, and the dog happily wagging his tail on their morning walk. Happiness and magic is found in the simplicity of mindful living, as DeBlassie illustrates within this book. Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical Living is a thrilling genre combination of magic and self-help.

Practically Pagan is an alternative guide to magical living by Maria DeBlassie. This book reads almost like a self-help book, and I believe the target audience would be someone who may be drawn to a more magical or witchy lifestyle but is maybe in a rut or doesn’t know how to relax and needs a crash course in mindfulness (we all do at some point).

There is a chapter in this book called "Radical Self-Care & The Goddess Within" and that title really sums up the whole book. I loved that the subject matter that was covered in the book took a very self-care oriented tone and reframed some of the work that we all have to do from being dreadful to being truly meaningful, but overall, I didn't feel like this book offered much more than that. It was an elementary approach to magical living and, while I'm sure that it is helpful to some, I felt that it was too basic for me to really enjoy. It felt more like a really long magazine article than it did a book.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but its magic drew me in! When we think of magic, we often think of the mysterious, unexplained, or even something that is scary. However, magic is all around us everyday. The author gently reminds us that magic exists even in the most mundane of tasks, and there is beauty in those tasks. We are also reminded to just "be." Take the time and find what lights you up and makes you smile.

I would read for a bit, then set the book down to look at my surrounded and let the author's words soak in. There is a lot of wisdom within these pages.

I really enjoyed reading this book and found myself highlighting quite a lot of passages which is always a sign to me that there are important messages that will benefit me.

If 'magic' is not your thing, don't be put off by the title of this book. It is not a book of 'spells' but rather a reminder of ways to find magic in our every day lives. Maria DeBlassie describes how she moved step by step from a full-on life where she pushed herself both at work and socially to a life she loves where she takes the time she needs to recharge her batteries.

The author acknowledges that she is an introvert and explains that quiet time on her own is essential to her wellbeing. But I think the key message of the book holds true for all of us and that is a message about self care. This is not just enjoying the odd bubble bath at the end of the week, but really finding what makes our hearts sing in life - and doing it! This can be making sure we enjoy our small, daily routines, such as a morning cup of coffee, rather than doing them on autopilot and hardly noticing. But also taking a good look at the things in our diaries and maybe sometimes saying 'no' to things that don't truly bring us joy.

DeBlassie explains that once we have created a personal life that we love this will spill over into all aspects of our lives, giving us renewed energy and enthusiasm.

I took a lot from this book. I see several reviewers have recommended it for readers who are starting out on a spiritual journey. In my view, it is good for us all to be reminded how important self care is and that not being true to ourselves is an exhausting way to live.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book.

Why wait until the new year to make resolutions? You should always make taking care of yourself a priority, not just a resolution. This book is a great way to start doing just that with every day magic that makes taking care of yourself and your life. The author takes us through some things we need to remember and others we may need to forget as we pursue our quest for magical living.

I think this book will speak volumes to many people, but in different ways to each of us. Definitely worth reading and making a commitment to yourself and your life. Living is for joy and happiness and anything we can do to keep that on track, we need to commit to new rituals and self care. Enjoy this book as I did and be true to yourself and your beliefs.

This was a short and sweet book. For beginners, this would be an excellent book! It is very to the point and would not cause someone to get overwhelmed quickly.

I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I was initially drawn to this book because of the beautiful cover (always a sucker for that) and the content and idea of “everyday magic.” When I think of everyday magic, I think of ways of incorporating magic into my everyday life, perhaps 5 minute spells or meditations, or ways of connecting to nature throughout the day. However, that’s not what this book is, and I wouldn’t call it another witchcraft 101 book either (thankfully). In fact, witchcraft is mentioned a few times, and the author discusses her own type of practice, and a few mentions of divination, but it’s not really a witchcraft book at all, in my opinion.

This book reads almost like a self-help book, and I believe the target audience would be someone who may be drawn to a more magical or witchy lifestyle but is maybe in a rut, or doesn’t know how to relax and needs a crash course in mindfulness (we all do at some point). The author explains how she was once super busy in grad school with multiple jobs, and once she found free time to herself, she needed to reconnect with who she was and decided to create a blog to celebrate the “magic” of everyday. In this case, it’s not really spells, or the magic I was initially think of, but more so setting boundaries, learning how to include self care into your every day, creating a sacred space, etc- generally being mindful throughout the day and turning mundane tasks and events into positive, or even magical moments.

Though I don’t feel like I learned anything new, it was a nice reminder to be grateful for something daily, slow down, enjoy the moment and I immediately made myself a cup of tea and drew myself a bath after reading it. So even though it wasn’t what I was expecting, it was still a quick, pleasant read (which even included a short, sweet story about adopting her kitten- animal lovers always get bonus points from me!). Overall 3.5/5.

This was a good, simple, quick read that encourages you to see the beautiful magic of every day. Great for people at the begining of their spiritual journey

This book was easy to read, the steps were broken down well, and the author does well at making the content engaging!

Open your eyes and take in the wonders of our world into your life with appreciation.

This book will guide you with the advice and facts of the spiritual ways of old.

Enjoy!!!

True magic is in the everyday. When you think about it, we are constantly casting spells with our dreams and wishes. These themes run throughout this book as the author coaches us on how to become our true selves and welcome the everyday magic back into our lives.

The book begins with the author, Maria DeBlassie, taking stock of her life and determining what toxic beliefs and social constructs she needs to unlearn and then relearn. Once she (and we) do this, then we will fully know what we need to do to help ourselves. Most of this is as simple as flipping the perspective on mundane tasks and you will see that everyday magic at work. The author references going to the grocery store as a trip to gather supplies for a spell. Or the task of folding laundry as a meditative practice when you can take time for yourself.

One of the biggest takeaways I got from this book is just how important self-care is really is. It is not selfish and it is not universal for everyone. It’s important to find what form works for you because that might not work for everybody else. It was also eye opening to realize just how much “conjuring” I actually do in a given day. Every time you wish for something or look for signs- that is everyday magic. I also enjoyed the section on coming up with a daily routine that works for you.

All in all this book was more self-help than I had anticipated, but it offered the chance to reflect on the magic in everyday life. Parts were a bit repetitive and dragged on a bit longer than I thought necessary, but it was a pleasant reading experience.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for a review copy.

A note on the text - for some reason this is one of those books printed with wide margins and the words all crowded together on the middle of the page. It feels scrunched up and I just don't think it's a good choice.

This is a lovely little book about mundane "magic" (there's very little here in the way of spells and such) - largely about self care and building healthy routines. I think it's interesting that almost all these books are clearly specifically for women without ever saying so, but then most of the audience I've met is definitely female. Recommended for any general collection.

I found this book rather beautiful. Maria create a friendly, cosy intimate reminder to reconnect with your senses and find the magic in the everyday and mundane. Whilst i'm not pagan the lesson contained within the pages to slow down, be more mindful and curious are immensely valuable to everyone who feels life is happening to them rather than them experiencing it. As someone in desperate need of a refresh and regroup this gentle book has provided that perfectly.

I found this to be a nice book that reminds us to open our eyes, to stop and listen, to feel....basically to use our senses to experience the magic that is already right here in front of us. The book is not heavy on ingredient specific spells and instructions. It doesn’t so much tell you how to get more magic into your life, it reminds you the magic is there right now and will be there always.
One doesn’t need to be Pagan to appreciate this book. I know that I needed the reminders and lessons I found In these pages to get off of my own hamster wheel, slow down, notice, breathe, see, feel. Thank you #netgalley for the opportunity to read and review #PracticallyPagan. I enjoyed it.

This is a lovely little self-help, self-care guide, couched in paganism and mysticism, which does add a little bit of flair to the otherwise standard "take care of yourself" guides that have flooded the market. I do appreciate that this was written by a woman from a marginalized group, providing a different perspective to the overwhelming white, suburban self-improvement movement.

This is one of those "witchy" books that go beyond what you would normally read now. I loved how this book was informative and fun to read; I feel like I really took some things from this book. This is one that I will recommend and buy a physical copy of to keep!

Practically Pagan by Maria DeBlassie felt like a quick, comforting overview of what to expect if you open your lifestyle up to bringing mindful magic into your everyday. While the opening introduction was beautifully welcoming, the writing very quickly became overly autobiographical as opposed to informative. Quite a lot of the content felt repetitive, with many points being brought up across multiple chapters reframed in slightly different angles (a fact pointed out several times by the author herself, eg "As I've mentioned before ..."), and at times the suggestions for mindfulness felt quite dated and overdone in 2021.

On the whole, however, the book serves as a reminder to enjoy the simply joys in life and find magic in normalcy.

It starts out alright with the author introducing herself, her background and her roots in magic. It was nice to read about self care and appreciating ones life. I just feel like this is more a self help book focust on mindfulness than a book about magic. To each their own definition of magic I guess.

The introduction to this book is beautifully written and reminds me of the quote "Those who don't believe in magic will never find it". The reader is invited into the book as a lost friend. My personal reasons for clicking on this book is that paganism intrigues me, it is a religion as old as time and I am lucky enough to be one of those people who see the beauty all around me and in simple things. already. After living in a world with covid for the last 2 years, I just feel like I need a re-fresh and I had hoped this book would help me start do that.

However, I am not sure this book is really a guide to magical living, it is more an autobiographical book about the authors journey into magic, about her experiences with self love, self care, about slowing down and taking time to notice what is around you. As a beginner into the subject I had expected something a little more instructional.

That being said I really enjoyed her approach into the subject it has been insightful as was her cultural background and believes, it is just not what I was looking for at this particular time. To me personally some of the steps are quite basic and common sense. There was a tendency for the book to get a little repetitive, the same antidotes were told throughout, and again for me personally most of this I already practice.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.