Books and Book Reviews
Celtic Gods, Celtic Goddessess
Author: R.J. Stewart
ISBN: 0713721138
Celtic Heritage: Ancient Tradition in Ireland and Wales
Author: Alwyn D. & Brinley Rees
ISBN: 0500270392
Celtic Myths & Legends
Author: T.W. Rolleston
ISBN: 0486265072
Principles of Druidry: The Only Introduction You'll Ever Need
Author: Emma R. Orr
ISBN: 0722536747
Essential Celtic Mythology
Author: Lindsay Clarke
ISBN: 1855384779
Walking the Maze: The Enduring Presence Of Celtic Spirit
Author: Loren Cruden
ISBN: 0892816236
The World Of The Druids
Author: Miranda Green
ISBN 0-500-05083-X
On The Edge of Dream: The Women of Celtic Myth and Legend
Author: Jennifer Heath
ISBN 0-452-27938-0
Now my books I get through BORDERS BOOK STORES, just becauase that is where all of our meetings are held and we get discounts from them. None of these books on this list are linked to the the website nor are there pictures because this is for information only. I plan on providing a book review for each one of these books before I rotate the page out and put new book references on it, so check back occassionally. Anyway, I believe Borders website is www.borders.com - they have an excellent selection of neo-pagan material.
Celtic Gods, Celtic Goddesses
This book is about exactly what it sounds like - the gods and goddesses of the celts. It is masterfully written and full of pertinent and valuable information about how the society in general viewed deity.
This book begins by breaking down the fundamental aspects of Celtic religion and culture into seven parts for the modern reader to fully ingest the weight of the celtic culture. It is also pertinent to note that it is NOT an archeological study or a linguistic study - it is a book about the author's conclusions that he has drawn from such studies; educated conjecture if you will. It also provides illustrations, images, patterns and drawings to cement his examples. Please keep in mind also that he is very well documented throughout the book!
He first goes into explanation of the Celts themselves. Then he relays the relationship the Celts had to nature and to animals, and more specificall their totem animals. He then goes into a small amount of detail about Mother Goddesses of the Celts. YES it is believed that the Celts had Mother Goddesses, that portion was very fascinating to me. He then gets into the topic of Goddesses in general - and discusses that while there were main deities, most of the godessess/gods were local. He then talks about ancestry veneration and the Son of Light and the comparisons of various gods with Son of Light qualities. He finally dedicates a chapter to the Celtic Gods and then goes into discussion regarding invasions - citing the Irish Book of Invasions and also excerpts from The Mabinogion.
I thought this was an excellent read and an excellent source - and best of all it was interesting and short. No lengthy paragraphys of archeological vernacular to decipher!! I don't know about anyone else, but personally, I love learning about my Celtic ancestry as long as I don't have to spend two hours filtering through one chapter!! Slainte!