Exploring Celtic Druidism

My first book review isn't a book I thought I'd be reviewing at all. At first I was hesitant to even read the book. I'm glad I did though, as there's some interesting concepts within its pages. Just to give a little background, I've recently been exploring Celtic paths. This book was one of the first I picked up, and it was an alright place to start. What made me pick this book was the simple fact it involved Druidism, which I've wanted to study too. I thought I'd try an introduction to both concepts at once, and I wouldn't recommend it. Anyway, the book's official title is Exploring Celtic Druidism: Ancient Magick and Rituals for Personal Empowerment.

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One of the things I really enjoyed about this book is the simplicity of the information. Having just started out, it was necessary to learn the differences between the Celts and the Druids. The introduction to the two was quite nice, and made me think about a few things. After that, the book goes into details at the heart of the Celtic Druid Traditions. The information ranges from a bit more complex to simple. All the basic information is there though, and I didn't feel in the least bit lost or overwhelmed. Once the information concluded however, there's a nice chapter about the future of Druidism. I found that chapter to be one of the most interesting, and I haven't seen too many books touch on such subjects.

Having said all that, I think this book would be one most would find helpful. The author does practice the Celtic Gwyddonic Druid Tradition though, which was confusing at first, as I practice solitary. The inclusion though of the initiation ritual was, I think, important to anyone on a Celtic path solitary or otherwise. Some of the information is centered however on that particular tradition, which was a little hard to get around. I didn't have any interest in that path, though I have been introduced to it on many levels outside of this book. In all, it's a good read. I would definitely recommend reading more books on the subject however, and taking what you like or don't like from it.  

The book has some nice resources however, and those can be invaluable. There's a good three pages of where the author got their information, and I intend on reading some of the books listed. There is also a glossary and index within the book. The glossary was a nice inclusion, as some of the terms may be new to many. A person who has been practicing for awhile shouldn't really need the glossary, but I admit I did use it a couple times myself. Overall, I would recommend going through the index, if anything is of interest the book is probably worth the reading, as its not too much to begin with.