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Witch, Please: A Memoir: Finding Magic in Modern Times
A touching and thought-provoking account of how a woman explored a spectrum of religions—ancient and new—and ended up, unexpectedly, becoming a bona fide witch—plus a celebration of modern Wicca and witchcraft, spell books, broomsticks, holiday recipes and recipes for the changing of the seasons, and much more. Misty Bell Stiers set out on a spiritual path to find a faith that worked for her , and accidentally became a witch. She knew the Bible well, and got to know the Torah and Koran. She studied Eastern philosophies, even the stories of the Egyptians and Greeks. Finally, after overcoming an immediate prejudice ("Um, no," she writes as her initial reaction), she found Wicca. Witch, Please reveals what makes the mysterious religion of Wicca so desirable for more than a million Americans. In her witty, direct, and heartfelt text, Misty explores spirituality, perseverance, and finding oneself. She shares what Wicca means to her and what defines her as a witch; what she uses her spell book, cauldron, and broomstick for; the significance of Wiccan holidays, many about new beginnings; the surprising history of Wicca; and what kinds of witches there are. She also shares how in her busy New York City life, as a mother and a creative director, her faith grounds and sustains her. Her uplifting, you-too-can-find-what-works-for-you voice speaks like a best relatable, honest, and encouraging. This unusual and beautifully written memoir explores what it's like to be a modern-day witch, and how it's changed Misty's outlook on life. It's candid, but it's also threaded with magic and has a warming, lightheartedness to it. Bewitching original drawings by Misty are throughout, and Misty even shares ten original recipes for her Wiccan holiday treats (including the likes of her cinnamon rolls and roasted garlic rosemary bread, sprinkled with magic and seasoned with love, laughter, and healing).
248 pages, Paperback
Published September 21, 2021
43 people are currently reading
159 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 8, 2021
Based on the first chapter, I really thought this was going to be more of a memoir than it was. Instead it turned into a basic guide to Wicca. This really did start off beautifully and go a little off the rails writing-style, too. I ended up skipping the bulk of the book and heading straight to the closing chapters.
October 10, 2019
"There is nothing in the darkness to fear- isn't the dark of the soil where the seed sprouts roots?"
Oh man, did I adore this book! I read the free eBook version through my library, but I fully intend on purchasing an actual copy, I loved it so. She easily & loosing explains Wicca, her spiritual journey from Catholicism to becoming Wiccan, & how she went about raising her children as such (which I myself have already struggled with the "how" for when I eventually start a family), & everything in between (including recipes). I whole-heatedly related to every word in this book, it was just wonderful.
"Being a witch isn't conjuring- it's connecting. It is not just invoking, it is involving , deciding to truly be a force in the world we inhabit- to be an active part of the wondrous cycle that moves us all."
Oh man, did I adore this book! I read the free eBook version through my library, but I fully intend on purchasing an actual copy, I loved it so. She easily & loosing explains Wicca, her spiritual journey from Catholicism to becoming Wiccan, & how she went about raising her children as such (which I myself have already struggled with the "how" for when I eventually start a family), & everything in between (including recipes). I whole-heatedly related to every word in this book, it was just wonderful.
"Being a witch isn't conjuring- it's connecting. It is not just invoking, it is involving , deciding to truly be a force in the world we inhabit- to be an active part of the wondrous cycle that moves us all."
September 21, 2020
It was a good read -- some areas were weaker than others, but I did enjoy learning about a different spiritual background than my own, but certain chapters of the book did drag.
March 22, 2020
Misty Bell Stiers is an atypical witch - at least amongst those I've met at Pagan events and those who are most often published by the likes of Llewellyn or who have their own blogs. She is pretty comfortably an atheist Wiccan, though she doesn't use the word "atheist" to describe herself. This memoir is a refreshing look at a worldview that uses the framing of Wicca and neopaganism to understand the world, but doesn't insist upon deities being at the head of it all.
Some of the writing within Witch, Please felt like it could have been more polished - multiple uses of the same descriptive word within the span of a few sentences, for instance -but overall I was impressed by the heart and lyricism of this memoir, which I understand to be Stiers's first book. She has many lovely turns of phrase. For example, I particularly enjoyed her description of untangling the practices of her Catholic upbringing from her adult life, on p. 68: "The connections were never straight lines; they were tendrils, threads so connected it felt impossible to pull one and not have the whole bundle fall to pieces."
Stiers does focus heavily on her children and how wonderful they've made her life. This is great, and I too would like to experience having kids one day. But fair warning to those who choose not to have children: this book is pretty heavy on the kids-are-the-greatest-thing-that-ever-happen-to-you vibe, and Stiers doesn't really ever make space for those who feel differently. It is her memoir, after all, but it's pretty unapologetically pro-having kids.
My favorite two chapters were the two at the end: The chapter on Wiccan holidays, in which Stiers walks through how her family celebrates each one, made me feel like this fringe religion could be a full, meaningful family religion complete with traditions - and recipes. Her understanding of the magic of Christmas is extremely useful to me, like I've been waiting for someone to put my feelings about Christmas into words.
Also, the last chapter, in which Stiers describes recovering from an accident through the power of her heart, and not by the grace of any god, was touchingly brave, and especially poignant to me, as she talks about some of the same struggles with religious anxiety I've experienced. I found Stiers quite relatable throughout the whole book, in fact: I too always saw magic everywhere as a child, and know that this world holds it for those who look; I too am not sure how I stand with deities; and I too want to make a home full of traditions and love and magic. As I continue to explore this pagan path, Stiers's view of an atheist, but no less magical, Paganism is highly exciting.
Some of the writing within Witch, Please felt like it could have been more polished - multiple uses of the same descriptive word within the span of a few sentences, for instance -but overall I was impressed by the heart and lyricism of this memoir, which I understand to be Stiers's first book. She has many lovely turns of phrase. For example, I particularly enjoyed her description of untangling the practices of her Catholic upbringing from her adult life, on p. 68: "The connections were never straight lines; they were tendrils, threads so connected it felt impossible to pull one and not have the whole bundle fall to pieces."
Stiers does focus heavily on her children and how wonderful they've made her life. This is great, and I too would like to experience having kids one day. But fair warning to those who choose not to have children: this book is pretty heavy on the kids-are-the-greatest-thing-that-ever-happen-to-you vibe, and Stiers doesn't really ever make space for those who feel differently. It is her memoir, after all, but it's pretty unapologetically pro-having kids.
My favorite two chapters were the two at the end: The chapter on Wiccan holidays, in which Stiers walks through how her family celebrates each one, made me feel like this fringe religion could be a full, meaningful family religion complete with traditions - and recipes. Her understanding of the magic of Christmas is extremely useful to me, like I've been waiting for someone to put my feelings about Christmas into words.
Also, the last chapter, in which Stiers describes recovering from an accident through the power of her heart, and not by the grace of any god, was touchingly brave, and especially poignant to me, as she talks about some of the same struggles with religious anxiety I've experienced. I found Stiers quite relatable throughout the whole book, in fact: I too always saw magic everywhere as a child, and know that this world holds it for those who look; I too am not sure how I stand with deities; and I too want to make a home full of traditions and love and magic. As I continue to explore this pagan path, Stiers's view of an atheist, but no less magical, Paganism is highly exciting.
October 26, 2020
This was a nice read. I'd describe the author as self assured in her faith and later in her spiritual practices/path.
There were parts of this that tended to drag. I actually skipped over most of the part about Wiccan holidays as I've read about them so often already. None of the recipes interested me either, which was odd because I usually like those.
Also, I felt that the flow of the book was disrupted by the fact that the last major event that the author talks about is an accident. I'm not sure why it was so unsettling/disappointing, but it was.
There were parts of this that tended to drag. I actually skipped over most of the part about Wiccan holidays as I've read about them so often already. None of the recipes interested me either, which was odd because I usually like those.
Also, I felt that the flow of the book was disrupted by the fact that the last major event that the author talks about is an accident. I'm not sure why it was so unsettling/disappointing, but it was.
September 22, 2025
Even now, witches often get a bad rap. But in Misty Bell Stiers’s
Witch, Please: A Memoir: Finding Magic in Modern Times
, you won’t find any warts, unfashionable hats, or deals with certain fellas sporting hoofed feet and horns. Instead, she details her exploration of world religions until she landed on what works best for her, dispelling myths and sharing Wicca wisdom along the way. Many thanks to Apollo Publishers for the advanced copy to review.
For readers who aren’t in the know, Wicca is a religion based on pre-Christian traditions of western Europe that embraces the power of nature and the preternatural. Similar to her other book—Light, Fire & Abundance, a cookbook based on the magic of mindful culinary skills—Stiers dives into Witch, Please with both the overarching principles as well as the day-to-day ins and outs of this lifestyle after an honest discussion of the other schools of thought she studied before embracing it. Her prose is conversational, inviting her audience to open their minds to her points but also allowing room for readers to come to their own conclusions and to embark on their own quests for knowledge.
Just like any conversation, though, one’s train of thought doesn’t always follow a linear pattern. Readers who pick this book up and expect a typical memoir format may be put off by the inclusion of asides like recipes that break up the author’s personal anecdotes about family life and personal evolution. This kind of organization can make it harder to keep track of the multiple narratives at play, even if they do ultimately contribute to them by underscoring the ways in which Stiers’s life changed and how these practices continue to be so important to her daily routine. It may not be every reader’s cup of tea, but for those who are actively seeking to make adjustments of their own, Witch, Please might just be the ideal guidebook.
That’s not to say that this book has to be a life-altering read for everyone. History buffs, foodies, philosophers—anyone can walk away with some fresh ideas through Stiers’s take on life and the pursuit of knowledge, or read all about it just for the fun of it. That’s the beauty of approaching a question and considering all sides of it; there will be a lot of information to swallow, but that creates an inclusive environment, even if it only exists on the page.
For fans of the knowledgeable but entertaining style of Lights, Camera, Witchcraft: A Critical History of Witches in American Film and Television, or for those who are simply looking to try something new and aren’t sure where to begin, the witticisms and insights in Witch, Please are welcoming, authentic, and proof that there could indeed be a little witch in all of us.
For readers who aren’t in the know, Wicca is a religion based on pre-Christian traditions of western Europe that embraces the power of nature and the preternatural. Similar to her other book—Light, Fire & Abundance, a cookbook based on the magic of mindful culinary skills—Stiers dives into Witch, Please with both the overarching principles as well as the day-to-day ins and outs of this lifestyle after an honest discussion of the other schools of thought she studied before embracing it. Her prose is conversational, inviting her audience to open their minds to her points but also allowing room for readers to come to their own conclusions and to embark on their own quests for knowledge.
Just like any conversation, though, one’s train of thought doesn’t always follow a linear pattern. Readers who pick this book up and expect a typical memoir format may be put off by the inclusion of asides like recipes that break up the author’s personal anecdotes about family life and personal evolution. This kind of organization can make it harder to keep track of the multiple narratives at play, even if they do ultimately contribute to them by underscoring the ways in which Stiers’s life changed and how these practices continue to be so important to her daily routine. It may not be every reader’s cup of tea, but for those who are actively seeking to make adjustments of their own, Witch, Please might just be the ideal guidebook.
That’s not to say that this book has to be a life-altering read for everyone. History buffs, foodies, philosophers—anyone can walk away with some fresh ideas through Stiers’s take on life and the pursuit of knowledge, or read all about it just for the fun of it. That’s the beauty of approaching a question and considering all sides of it; there will be a lot of information to swallow, but that creates an inclusive environment, even if it only exists on the page.
For fans of the knowledgeable but entertaining style of Lights, Camera, Witchcraft: A Critical History of Witches in American Film and Television, or for those who are simply looking to try something new and aren’t sure where to begin, the witticisms and insights in Witch, Please are welcoming, authentic, and proof that there could indeed be a little witch in all of us.
December 2, 2021
I have been searching lately. Trying to find my place in this world. Misty Bell Stiers memoir touched my soul and pointed me on my path. I highlighted so many phrases in the first half of this book. Here's a few of my favorites:
"Spells are simply prayers sent inward to our hearts instead of outward to a separate being. . . I send my hopes and fears out into the greater world so that they may come back to me with a bit of clarity."
"Living as a witch is striving to live a kind and wise life without harm to others."
"We are the divine power; we are no lesser or greater than anyone else. The divine rests in evey living thing, and so it should be honored. Each of us holds within us the creative power that set our world spinning. It is within us to live up to that power held in our hearts."
"Living as a witch is striving to live a kid and wise life without harm to others,"
"A name, of course, is not merely a word used to refer. It is the first true outward definition of who this child might be. It is the collection of sounds, the song, that will echo through space and time, holding within it the sory of a life."
I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 because I found the last two chapters dragged, and found myself skimming rather than devouring every word as I had in the first half of the book. That isn't the authors fault. This is a memoir, not an instruction manual, and she was telling her truth; which is to be praised.
I will be rereading this book for years to come.
"Spells are simply prayers sent inward to our hearts instead of outward to a separate being. . . I send my hopes and fears out into the greater world so that they may come back to me with a bit of clarity."
"Living as a witch is striving to live a kind and wise life without harm to others."
"We are the divine power; we are no lesser or greater than anyone else. The divine rests in evey living thing, and so it should be honored. Each of us holds within us the creative power that set our world spinning. It is within us to live up to that power held in our hearts."
"Living as a witch is striving to live a kid and wise life without harm to others,"
"A name, of course, is not merely a word used to refer. It is the first true outward definition of who this child might be. It is the collection of sounds, the song, that will echo through space and time, holding within it the sory of a life."
I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 because I found the last two chapters dragged, and found myself skimming rather than devouring every word as I had in the first half of the book. That isn't the authors fault. This is a memoir, not an instruction manual, and she was telling her truth; which is to be praised.
I will be rereading this book for years to come.
May 23, 2020
When I started this book I found myself relating to it greatly. Being raised with a religious background and attending catholic school, I felt torn when coming into myself later in life. When I personally found out I was a witch it was when I was 14, but had been practicing long before I new what it was to be a witch. Misty’s journey through her life and loving both being a witch and the aspects of God really spoke to me. She then moves into her adult life married and with children. Now I might not relate to that but I loved hearing about her big moves and how she chose her kid’s names and how she was able to still find ways to practice in a big city. How she celebrates each holiday with her family and the ‘weirdness’ life can bring by just using the term witch as if it’s any other word. For any witch wives and mothers out there I suggest this book. Also there are some lovely recipes in the back I can’t wait to try!
November 12, 2018
Witch, Please was very easy to read. I felt welcomed into the author's life as she told us her journey from Catholicism to Wicca, from being a young woman to getting married and starting a family of her own. I also think Stiers did a great job explaining Wicca in a way that a lot of people, including non-Wiccans, will understand. At the end of the day, Wicca is about admiring the magic in the world.
I highly recommend Witch, Please to anyone interested in learning about Wicca or to anyone who just likes a good memoir.
Full Review at Flower For Gods
I highly recommend Witch, Please to anyone interested in learning about Wicca or to anyone who just likes a good memoir.
Full Review at Flower For Gods
July 17, 2020
This book was mildly entertaining, but not particularly insightful if you are interested in how modern witches live. The author, a former Catholic, seems to follow few of the Wiccan ways beyond recognizing the witch’s calendar of sabbats and other notable days and providing a few simple recipes for common American dishes. I appreciate her array of religious knowledge and value of diversity, but this memoir is mostly about a girl from Kansas building a small family and being a housewife (with a career) in NYC.
June 26, 2018
The book is very well written in a way that explains her journey with honesty and wit. I learned quite a bit about being Wiccan and found it interesting. But mostly, it is a story about her adventurous life and how she stays true to herself and her family. Absolutely loved it!!
October 22, 2022
This was a lovely book about one woman's and (eventually) her husband and 2 kiddos' journey to finding spiritual connection.
I loved that she shared her individual practices and even some of her favorite recipes to celebrate various Wiccan holidays. I laughed out loud, I cried, I loved it!
I loved that she shared her individual practices and even some of her favorite recipes to celebrate various Wiccan holidays. I laughed out loud, I cried, I loved it!
May 31, 2018
Glad I found this memoir. It’s more a personal story of her beliefs than an in depth look at Wicca but that makes it very relatable. And an added surprise: recipes!
May 8, 2020
A super well written memoir with nuggets of inspiring self help.
May 12, 2020
An interesting look into her life and how she balances her faith with raising her family and living her life.
July 1, 2020
I had to stop reading. Couldn’t get into it at all.
August 23, 2021
Witty, smart, and a fun read! She did a good job transforming from one experience to the next to ultimately finding and accepting her full self.
July 4, 2022
Misty takes the stigma out of being a witch in the modern world and explains it clearly and beautifully. Plus, there are some really yummy recipes!
October 24, 2022
Enjoyed this, and it came to me just at the right time
July 30, 2023
I was really hoping for this to *actually* be a memoir, but instead it was sort of Wicca 101, which the market is already saturated with. Not a bad read, but not what I was after either.
February 25, 2019
This is my new favorite book. The author's story of wanting to find a spirituality that worked for her is so inspirational and relatable, and reading what she loves about Wicca really moved me. It's actually really lovely... I love how her family recipe book is her spell book, and I love how she uses her broomstick to sweep the house in order to honor the changing of the seasons. I was sad when this book came to a close. I wanted more. Now, I want to try the author's recipes!
May 11, 2019
Book Club - Laurie, April, 2019
January 29, 2019
Both a highly entertaining memoir and a very clear introduction to Wicca, this is the book I wish I'd had back when I was trying to explain my path to my parents.
March 3, 2022
This is honestly probably one of my favorite books ever now. The author comes across as very real and isn't afraid to tell personal stories that cause real emotions in the reader. Her spiritual journey from Catholic to Wiccan somewhat mirrors my own from Presbyterian to Atheist. I see a lot of the feelings I had when I left Christianity in her experiences, and while I don't feel I could ever believe in the "divinity" she feels resides in all living beings and nature, I do find myself in awe of the world around me and believe in the power and control I myself have over my own life. It was simply a great, easy read (I finished it in about two and a half days) and I found it extremely relatable. It is very informative for anyone looking for an idea of what Wicca is about and what the religion means to practitioners, but I wouldn't just recommend it to the curious or to the current Wiccan practitioner; I feel it is a great book for those struggling with not connecting with their current religion or the religion they left, and maybe even to those who don't understand or approve of those choices. Witch, Please speaks to those feelings of being lost and out of place, and it can help others understand where people in that position are at. I loved this book, and if the author ever writes another book I think I'll be one of the first to place a pre-order.
November 12, 2018
Simply magical
I bought this as I began my spiritual journey from Christianity to Wicca, and her story encouraged me throughout the first few months! I would recommend this to anyone wanting to know about Wicca or looking for a fun book to read.
I bought this as I began my spiritual journey from Christianity to Wicca, and her story encouraged me throughout the first few months! I would recommend this to anyone wanting to know about Wicca or looking for a fun book to read.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews