Dancing The Fire: The Ins and Outs of Neo-Pagan Festivals and Gatherings
By Marian Singer, Citadel Press, 2005
Marian presents a well-rounded, comprehensive book for the new Gatherer as well as the old. She gives equal weight to all aspects of a Pagan Festival, from the newest attendee, the lecturer, or to the organizer.
Although many of her points are what one might call “common sense”, she thoughtfully points out that common sense may not be so common. Ms. Singer takes the would-be Gatherer through what to expect at a festival and what to bring. More importantly she includes the what-not-to do and bring things as well. Her readers are gently led to choose a Gather that will be most enjoyable for them. She also discusses the mechanics of creating your own Gather; the joys and pitfalls of being a festival organizer are both considered.
Ms. Singer speaks from her own experience of being a speaker/attendee of over 200 gathers. She shares some of the more humorous events of her travels, some of which make you shake your head in wonder at the audacity of some folks. She includes numerous spells and charms meant to enhance your travel and festival experience. The spells are set out in boxes throughout the text, making them easy to find for future reference after the reader has digested the main text of each chapter.
The second half of the book contains an abridged listing of events and gatherings in the continental US and Canada. Each listing contains contact information, approximate timing of the event, facilities, service, amenities, (including wheelchair accessibility and the availability of interpretation for the deaf), and attendance costs, plus some listings have short descriptive paragraphs describing additional details.
This is where I feel a very strongly written book was somewhat weakened. I realize that trying to provide a comprehensive list of all the possible events that happen in our community is literally impossible. No one could hope to list anywhere near all the events. The author does refer readers to witchvox.com, an on-line resource for the Pagan community that has numerous listings. I found the information in the book lacking two important items. The first one was the length of each event. As an experienced event attendee, I know an event can last anywhere from a single afternoon to several weeks. Many events happen to fall on different dates each year but their length tends to be consistent.
The other bit of information I would have like to have seen was whether an event was clothing optional. As the parent of a preteen who has made her feelings know about NOT wanting to see strangers various body parts, I would hate to show up at a gather that boasts a kid track but isn’t “child-friendly”. I’m sure that there will be many other readers for whom this information would be important. Another minor point that could be added to the listings is whether a site is alcohol-free or not.
This is an excellent book and an easy read.
By Carl McColman, Elements (Thorsons) 2005
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