Practical Magic (Practical Magic, #1)

by Alice Hoffman

Witches are outsiders, and those among us who have been bullied and ostracized can relate to their plight. Part of our fascination with witches is that they are the only female mythic figures with power. These are women who don’t need to be rescued by a prince or a king but, instead, can save themselves—sometimes with the help of a sister. They are wise and fearless women of courage. In short, they are everything little girls wish to grow up to become.

For every evil under the sun, There is a remedy, or there is none. If there be one, seek till you find it; If there be none, never mind it. MOTHER GOOSE

the moon is always jealous of the heat of the day, just as the sun always longs for something dark and deep.

Lately, she’s been wondering if perhaps when the living become the dead they leave an empty space behind, a hollow that no one else can fill.

It’s so easy to ignore what grows in one’s own garden; look away for too long and anything can turn up—a vine, a weed, a hedge of thorns.

Lightning, like love, is never ruled by logic. Accidents happen, and they always will.

When Sally swings the door open, Gary looks into her eyes and sees himself upside down. He finds himself in a pool of gray light, drowning, going down for the third time, and there’s not a damn thing he can do about it. His grandfather told him once that witches caught you in this way—they knew how much most men love themselves and how deeply they’ll let themselves be drawn in, just for a glimpse of their own image.

They believe that every problem has a solution, although it may not be the outcome that was originally hoped for or expected.

Although she’d never believe it, those lines in Gillian’s face are the most beautiful part about her. They reveal what she’s gone through and what she’s survived and who exactly she is, deep inside.