Excellent book on animism and witchcraft from Appalachia. It's a great primer for people who are familiar enough with witchcraft, but absolute beginners in practicing this particular type of magick. Beyer was incredibly knowledgeable about the history too. I also really like how respectful Beyer was throughout, acknowledging that this type of history didn't start when European settlers came to America. Overall, one of the better books on witchcraft that I've read in recent years. Highly recommend to those interested in witchcraft because of a connection with plants, or the witch-adjacent.

Granted we aren’t far into 2022 at all, but this is the coolest book I have read this year so far, and I’m sure my feelings about that will remain for quite some time.

I will be buying this book ASAP for my collection and reference it frequently.

In Wild Witchcraft, Beyer weaves a deep love for nature and plants with history and makes it surprisingly entertaining! No textbook vibes here, at all. However, I learned so much and know I will likely learn more the next reading of this book.

My favorite section was about poisonous plants- don’t worry, there are plenty of warnings throughout this part.

I also appreciate that she put the levels where some of the herbs can grow, as I live in a tropical climate and many of the herbs I want to grow wouldn’t survive- so it helps to know what I can attempt to grow, and what I should avoid.

5/5, highly recommend to anyone interested in foraging, growing their own herbs and plants for medical/food purposes, and witchcraft in general.

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

A handy book to be sure but I feel it could cover more plant types. I also feel too much page space was given to the authors story.
All in all, you could pick this up if you’re completely new to witchcraft and herbalism.. there’s no harm in it.. for more experienced people, there may not be much benefit though

This is a great Beginner 101 Herbalist book from the perspective of a Wiccan-Animist witch. I loved the chapter on organic gardening, covered all the bases of basic herbal remedy making, and had some good notes on herbs from the garden and from foraging.
Why not 5 stars? I felt a little...baited without the follow through. The summary and the beginning of this book talk off and on about the author's background in and love of Appalachia folk medicine and yet...I didn't see it in the book. I saw a lot of basic remedies I see in other 101 books, albeit this was one of the better written ones and the inclusion of poisonous plants was relatively unique. However, as a witch born and raised and living in Appalachia, I felt...there was a lack of Appalachian herbal and folk magic present which made me ask - why bring it up so much? For example, if you're gonna have a whole chapter on poisonous plants and claim this is inspired by the author's love of the region...where is Poke? When looking at the herbal remedies, I did see a few that my Mamaw made but it still...felt like an herbalism 101 book and not like the rich regional magic that I'm sure the author is versed in.
This could be an issue with editing and publisher focus rather than the author. Like I said, it was just frustrating to see such an emphasis on the beginning and not followed through. The only other note I'd have that I'd recommend fixing is the author compares Appalachia to Colorado saying its very lush with less worry about stressing the environment with foraging. I would have been more hesitant and bring up that we do indeed have some highly endangered, overharvested plants here that are worth mentioning - lady's slipper, ginseng, etc. While the author later says that when foraging make sure you know what plants are endangered and don't overharvest, it still felt like early on the references were that somehow Appalachia was a horn of plenty with no problems in that area...which is misleading.
Otherwise I would highly recommend this book if someone was interested in herbalism as a witch and could only buy 1 book - this would likely be the one...along with a good regional wild plant guide...so two...two books lol.

What attracted me most to this book was learning from an Appalachian Witch. I love learning new tips, tricks, and rituals from around the world and this book really delivered. If you’re interested in incorporating more plants and herbs into your practice, or starting a garden, this book is for you. Recipes and others items are included, and were interesting, so you will get a lot of value out of this book.

Wild Witchcraft is a really lovely introduction to folk herbalism/witchery/foraging. I particularly enjoyed the author’s beautifully resonant perspective on witchcraft and life in general and appreciated the balance of practical and magical information, as well as historical context. Loved the variety of recipes and rituals, and that they’re organized by the wheel of the year - there are a good handful that I’ve noted to try, especially the gruitbier and mugwort soda (yum!) - and their usefulness and simplicity make them realistically achievable for even the newest of practitioners!