The Book of Altars and Sacred Spaces

A nice beginner book. I think at a quick glance, it looks like the other million basic or introductory witchcraft books out there, but it really does quite a lovely job of focusing specifically on ritual and altar, and doing that away from particular traditions or sects. The pagan "history" is brief but a decent summation of what most modern practice is based on and the photos are just gorgeous. It's perfect for folks who are starting to step into their spirituality and are drawn to the idea of ritual, practice and altar-making, and that's why I love it. It's quite detailed in ways to set up altars for different sabbats and rituals to practice at those times. It's a refreshing take on how to start building a practice that's tied to the seasons -- which we all experience -- and is accessible to just about anyone, which as a bookseller, I really like.

Thank you to NetGalley for gifting me a free digital ARC (e-book) of this title. I loved it! The Book of Altars and Sacred Spaces by Anjou Kiernan was an amazing read. I love books about the occult and I am proud to add this to my collection. This book explores the importance of an altar space and does a great job of explaining meaning and providing examples. I appreciate the focus on the different sabbats, with each space being personalized to fit every important time of year. This is a perfect read for novice and advanced practitioners of the craft; I think everyone could learn something from this book!

Anjou Kiernan fills The Book of Altars and Sacred spaces with a multitude of beautiful pictures of not only altars, but also table top arrangements as well as nooks and crannies. This is a book bursting with inspirational ideas for wonderfully witchy decor. I love how she integrates items that many people might already have. Her arrangements are eclectic and leave plenty of room for personalization. For example her list of materials for the Yule Reading Nook include a comfortable chair, blankets, dim lights, candles or twinkle lights, floor pillows, a quartz crystal, shelves, and books and with a Yuletide theme. She shows how to arrange everything and tie it together with colors. The book is structured around the year’s calendar beginning with the Midwinter Solstice and ending with Samhain. Each of the eight sections contains a number of projects. The Litha chapter includes ideas for a Litha altar, an outdoor shrine, a solar charging altar with crystals and candles, a healing altar, a witch beach bottle, and a wake for the sun table arrangement. In some instances the decor is inspired by ritual and in others, a simple ritual, which she shares, has inspired by decor.  In addition to ideas for home beautification, Kiernan concerns herself with combining functionality and spirituality with spaces for spellwork and spaces for sacred baking. She also  includes associations for candle colors, crystals and lists correspondences for each altar. Reading this book caused me to look at my space, my possessions, and how I can coordinate the two in a more harmonious, soul-satisfying way than I’ve done in the past.

Anjou Kiernan's "The Book of Altars and Sacred Spaces: How to Create Magical Spaces in Your Home for Ritual and Intention" is a valuable introduction to and reference for those individuals who embrace the "magickal" path of spirituality including Wicca, Paganism, and other earth-centered spiritual paths.

I must confess that I didn't quite realize when I first opted to request an Advanced Reader's Copy, though looking back the introduction and marketing material certainly suffices and I was simply caught up in the idea of a book related to home-based altars/sacred spaces.

My bad.

While I wouldn't describe myself as the target population for "The Book of Altars and Sacred Spaces," I'm familiar enough with the topic to appreciate the author's knowledge of the subject, splendid photographs, and journey through the seasonal Sabbats and holidays.

The mission of the book is to teach how to create altars and sacred spaces based upon the Wheel of the Year. Kiernan takes us through the main dates and seasons of the year and offers concrete ideas for building of such altars and sacred spaces utilizing a variety of elements, spices, herbs, plants, foods, items, and many other things. She's precise, yet many of her ideas are fluid and easy to individualize.

Even as someone outside the realm of the target market for this book, I found much of the information shared to be familiar knowledge yet it's nicely organized and thorough in presentation. This is a beautifully produced, simply written book that could easily be a table book and would look beautiful within one's home.

Kiernan is creator of the Light of Anjou online witchery shop and apothecary and was named “One of the Magical Women on Instagram You Should Be Following” by Refinery 29. You can simply feel from each page in the book that Kiernan lives these teachings and that gives "The Book of Altars and Spaces" a warmth and intimacy to be valued.

Cover over 50 different magical spaces, "The Book of Altars and Sacred Spaces: How to Create Magical Spaces in Your Home for Ritual & Intention" is due for release on June 16th by Fair Winds Press.

It's an excellent book for beginners or for getting new ideas about your altars.
It's well written and recommended to beginners.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Book Review: The Book of Altars and Sacred Spaces: How to create magical spaces in your home for ritual and intention. By Anjou Kiernan
Genre: Religion and Spirituality / Health, Mind and Body
Publisher: Quarto Publishing Group - Fair Winds Press
Release Date: 16th June, 2020

I loved this book!

As soon as I saw that it was by Anjou Kiernan I knew I would enjoy it. I follow Anjou (lightofanjou) on instagram and her profile has a beautiful aesthetic. She also creates amazing witchy products for her online store. If you don't already know about her then I recommend looking her up, even just for her witchy words of wisdom.

The title of the book sums up nicely what you can expect to find within its pages; how to create an altar and sacred space in your home. However, this book is so much more than that...

Each chapter explores a festival from the Wheel of the Year. The idea being that in Wicca and Witchcraft you decorate your altar, sacred space or home in accordance with the time of year. Kiernan faithfully explores the Witchcraft Wheel of the Year by providing the history, traditions, customs surrounding each festival and Sabbat. This is especially useful for people new to the practice as it provides reasoning behind the altar correspondences and reasons for the different celebrations. 

One thing I found really useful within each chapter is the a 'quick guide' box to the Sabbat and things you may include on an altar or within your home. For example: colours, candles, crystals, flowers and herbs that all suit the time of year. As well as decorating an altar or space, Kiernan provides beautifully detailed ways of commemorating and celebrating each season. Therefore I can definitely see myself using this as a reference book that I will keep coming back to throughout the year. 

As soon as I started reading I felt a connection with the words. Kiernan has a lovely way with words and she captures beautifully what Witchcraft and the role of an altar is to me. Even though I already have an altar set up at home, I still felt like I had something to learn from this book. I don't believe it's just for people new to the world of Wicca and Witchcraft. It has helped me to consider the role my altar currently serves and how I can use it more within my practice as a constant, never-ending ritual. 

After reading the book I know now that I want to bring more purpose to my altar so that it better serves my intentions. As well as decorating an altar for the current season I want it to signify my current rituals and intentions.

As I received an EARC of this book the images were not included in full colour as they would be in the physical copy of the book. Following lightofanjou on instagram I know that the images will be stunning and an integral part of the book. They illustrate a lot of the ideas and concepts that the book discusses; offering a source of inspiration. Overall I think this book would be a fantastic addition to any witchy bookshelf.

3.5
Although very instructive and full of creative activities, I was a bit weighed down by the flowery descriptions at the beginning of each altar. However, it gives you a very good idea of how to work with each of the festivities, how to set up an altar for certain purposes and gives many correspondences for each date. There are both economic and slightly more expensive options, but there is something for everyone, and the photos are beautiful, very evocative and I think I liked them much more than the illustrations.

How to understand the honouring involved in Altars and Sacred Spaces.

How to approach them and learn about the rituals, the why's, where's and when's of what to do and what not to do, and the ancient history of these practices.

This book is absolutely gorgeous and does a fantastic job going over what an altar is and how to set one up with regards to use and time of the year.  I love the art in this book and how it sets out to be more than just a guidebook.  Altars can be quite scary or intimidating but I feel like this book can really help you see the usefulness and beauty of an altar.

I got this for use as a reference book and for a friend to look over, and it was informative without being creepy. Some books out there are darker, but this was an excellent addition to my books for writing about witchcraft with respect and details.