When you hear the word “Appalachia,” what do you think of? Mountains dense with trees in every shade of fall? Rivers that run with secrets and trout in their waters? Coal towns that are no longer towns? What about magic?
The Appalachia not shown in mainstream media is rich with oral histories, herbal medicines, living in tandem with nature, and, yes, magic! To celebrate and highlight Appalachian witchcraft, Inglenook recommends the following books to learn more about this approach to the craft (or expand upon your practice if you are an Appalachian folk healer or witch!):
Growing up in rural Appalachia, root worker and folk magic conjurer Orion Foxwood knows a thing or two about working in tandem with nature. He shares the secrets of Southern magic in this part-memoir, part-magical-guidebook with practical advice and the knowledge of his ancestors. Readers can discover how to best engage in candle magic, working with roots, blessing or cursing, faith healing and more in this 2021 edition from Weiser Books (this title was previously The Candle and the Crossroads. This new edition includes a foreword by Mat Auryn, author of Psychic Witch).
As another title published by Weiser Books, Backwoods Witchcraft (2019) beautifully blends familial lore with guidance on how to use Appalachian witchcraft tools and materials. He learned how to practice his craft from the generations of practitioners before him – including his grandfather, a “a Baptist minister who Jake remembers could ‘rid someone of a fever with an egg or stop up the blood in a wound’ ”(Weiser Books). If there is one thing you take away from Richards’ book, let it be this: Appalachian magic is inextricable from its land. Working within this sect of witchcraft means the ground you stand on is just as sacred as the words you speak in your spells and rituals.
Jake Richards continues to share his folk magic wisdom in his second book, Doctoring the Devil: Appalachian Backwoods Witchcraft for Conjuring Love, Money, Justice, and Success (2021). According to Publishers Weekly, this offering is a “great starting point for those hoping to practice Appalachian folk magic.” Richards bridges the gap between his knowledge and the beginners (and perhaps experts!) of folk magic by offering answers to common questions asked about his practice, such as: Who were the old conjurors and witches of Appalachia? What were their practices and beliefs? How can I engage in this practice myself? Richards’ answers come from conversations with local healers, instructions on root ways, and excerpts plucked from his personal collection of recipes and spellwork for love, money, justice, and success.
For Appalachian author and folk magic practitioner Ivy Mae, every season carries its own kind of magic. For witches who also feel this to be true, Inglenook recommends Ivy’s guidebook Roots and Rituals: Reclaiming Appalachian Wisdom Through Seasonal Practices to best align your spiritual life (and daily practices) with the rhythm of nature – and incorporate the wisdom and tradition of Appalachian healers into your magic. Along with detailed spells and rituals (over 60!), readers will gain access to “Rich Appalachian tales that embody the spirit of each month, providing context and connection to the land’s spirits; Seasonal rituals that guide you in living harmoniously with the earth’s cycles, enhancing personal balance and well-being; Detailed profiles of regional herbs, complete with their uses and storied pasts, empowering you with the knowledge to harness their healing properties”…. and more! A book like this is timeless for every witch.
We’d be remiss not to include The Foxfire Book in our roundup of Appalachian witchcraft books, as it set a precedent for this kind of literature. What began as a 1966 class project by Eliot Wigginton and his students to create a magazine dedicated to Southern Appalachian culture became this 1972 best-selling collection of Appalachian folklore, rituals, and faith healing. As the cover promises, this anthology covers everything an Appalachian historian or witch would need to know, from building log cabins to planting by the signs. Plain living is sometimes the most magical way of living, as demonstrated by the healers and rural mountain dwellers interviewed in this collection.
Folk Medicine in Southern Appalachia by Anthony Cavender is both an archive of Appalachian folk history and investigation into the power of living WITH nature as a medicinalist, healer, or witch. Published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2003, this book “melds folklore, medical anthropology, and Appalachian history and draws extensively on oral histories and archival sources from the nineteenth century to the present” and also includes “an appendix of botanicals and a glossary of folk medical terms.” This accessible study offers a new way to look at our health and medicine through an analytical (and Appalachian) lens.
Small Magics: Practical Secrets from an Appalachian Village Witch by H. Byron Ballard is all about getting back to the magic basics. Made to be read like you’re sitting with the author on her front porch, sipping tea and talking witchcraft, Small Magics breaks down the what, why, and how of modern magic. As a practicing witch, Ballard reveals how to engage with spiritual energy to ground, shield, and heal yourself. For those looking to live more enchantingly, Small Magics is the book for you.
If there are other books or Appalachian witches we should know, please comment them below!
Alexandra Rae is a feminist writer, editor, and revisionist from Ohio. She is a submissions reader for Narratively and editorial assistant for Brink Books. Find her on Instagram @theresonationofalexandra.
Inglenook Lit is an online literary magazine for magic enthusiasts and enchantment seekers
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