This was really good. Gonna read it a second time, got it from the library today. ( )

A journalist hangs out with practitioners of Voodoo, Hoodoo and Wicca and self-proclaimed elves, werewolves and vampires and reports her experiences. Wicker spends a great deal of time with Catherine Yronwode who owns and operates The Lucky Mojo Curio Company. Yronwode duplicated her Hoodoo shop for the shop on the set of the movie Skeleton Key starring Kate Hudson. A good read. ( )

Christine Wicker set out to investigate alternative magical religious practices in the United States. Noting that the popularity of magical belief is growing, and turning up in unlikely places, Wicker's book seeks to understand how and why magic is turning up in unlikely places. The result, Not in Kansas Anymore, is part travelogue, part personal reflection, and part religious study. Wicker takes us through Voodoo, Wicca, Vampirism, and other magical traditions currently practiced in the United States. The point of this book is not so much to come to any great conclusion about magical religions as it is to experience the journey. And for Wicker, it is indeed a journey. This book is infused with much of Wicker's personal reflections. As an experienced religious journalist (that is, journalist who covers religious topics) Wicker is used to treading in the realm of the spiritual, and she has been forced to think about her own place in the larger spiritual-paranormal world. Clearly, she's open-minded, and her own interactions with magical religious traditions are an important component of the book. Thus, we see plenty of personal interjection, when Wicker explicitly considers her own experiences and beliefs. She finds some of the traditions she observes more appealing than others, and she feels more spiritual energy surrounding some than others. Ultimatley, while I found this book engaging enough, I was dissappointed too. I was hoping that the book would be more argument-driven, and I found that that combination of personal reflection and journalistic reporting detracted from one another. I'd rather have read two books on each of the above topics, rather than trying to digest both in one book. Each could use more development. ( )

Review located at http://lupabitch.wordpress.com/2007/0... ( )

Book Summary:
This was a pretty interesting book that takes a look at those who practice the "other" religion/belief systems out there. The author takes a respectful look at those who consider themselves werewolves, elfs, magicans, vampires and other magically inclined creatures. While doing research for this book the author is forced to consider her notions of what is good and evil, what is right and wrong and whether or not these people have a few gears lose. What she finds is quite simply that if one thinks like they do then they are not crazy. Some just look at the world differently, some where raised with the traditions/beliefs that they follow and some became so disillusioned / fed up with life that the only way they could survive was to find the magic in life by becoming something else. Mostly these people are the people we deal with everyday whether at work or the neighbor across the street that always looks a little pale. Whether you belive in magic or not this book does have interesting information on various belief systems and how some of those systems came to be. Maybe the most important thing that the author touches on is that most of the misunderstandings that happen come from a lack of cultural understanding. Mostly this is touched on in the chapters on Hoodoo. The author makes the point that instead of over reacting to everything it may (is usually) be a better idea to do some research and go listen to what the pepole involved have to say. Something that can't be stressed enough in the era of talking heads that condem anything that isn't considered mainstream(ex:currently video games). As the author points out near the end of this book one may not be able to fit what someone else belives into their view of the world but it never hurts to be opened minded. To paraphrase an old story would you rather stay in the hole you fell in or let the psi vampire/werewolf/magican/wizard/elf/magic worker help you out?
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This is not a book that is in the vein of ghost stories. What I mean is that there are no stories that deal with one incident and then move on to the next. This is more of what the author experienced as she research information for the book. This book is basically a primer guide on some of the belief systems that have gotten attention over the last few years, but not the one's that have gotten the most attention such as Wicca, off shoots of major religons and ghost hunting. This book is also written by a former religious reporter that has her own solid belief system that is somtimes challenged by what she sees. The emphasis is on reporter (which the author admits) so she wants proof, which in most cases is hard to come by since what is experienced is dependent on what one felt. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in the subject matter but doesn't want anything that dives too deep or is too serious. ( )