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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Angela Packard

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have never really been drawn to “magic” books, but this book kept calling to me. I love how the author tells us that books come into our lives when they are needed, and I need this book. One of the things I am working on in therapy is self-awareness and self-care. I liked the twist that no experience or special supplies needed, the world around us is magical. It was not what I think of when I think of magic, I still think of witches, spells, cauldrons, and black cats. What I think of magic now, is different, life around me is magical and I need to take care of it.

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Practically Pagan An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria Deblassie – Review by Jennifer Murray

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Practically Pagan An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria Deblassie

I readily admit that a covers holds some major weight to whether or not I even pick up a book to see if it will hold interest to me, so when mere sentences into this book, Declassified touches on the very topic: “ …This book is magic. All books are. So much so that they are picky about who picks them up and reads them. They only want people ready to hear their message, kindred spirits eager to soak up their specific brand of magic.”
Thus begins our journey of gentle reminders that magic is not just something we read about or watch via our various sized screens but daily life, be it the magic of a sunset, a peaceful moment of self reflection and grounding ourselves in the simple moments of life. Deblassie reminds us that we are deserving of “pleasure magic” no matter how often society attempts to make us feel guilty to taking time to “tune into what soothes the soul and refreshes the senses without guilt, without shame, without comparing your journey to others.” A bit of a gut punch reality in this world of social “achievements”

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Carrie Reed

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 stars!

This is not my usual genre, most of the time I don’t really put too much credence into thoughts like this, but throughout this whole book I really starting seeing things in a new light. I am officially on board to finding my magic! There are so many different ways to finding the magic within yourself and implementing it in your everyday life. What really stuck out to me was, “Do one thing each day that makes you happy.” and “That’s how magic works: dream it up, then work towards it.” Both are very simple and easy tasks that I can handle and make work for me in my life. One thing that really opened my eyes was the story of the ladybug stuck in the spider web. I would have never thought of the “synchronicity” of the situation like the author did and it really made me start to think about the little signals or signs I receive in my life. I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend giving it a read, it will seriously change your outlook on creating magic in your life.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Erica Fish

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you are looking to add a little magic into your life, this book will guide you on that path. It is a guide for you to connect with your surroundings. It shows you how your behaviors really do shape your life choices. There are hints to make your life more interesting and engaging and really show you the little miracles all around you. I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to everyone who would love to add a little more magic to everything you do.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Tamisha Janay

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I am an avid reader. I picked this book because I wanted to learn about everyday ‘magic’ and how I could learn to bring more positivity into my life. I will say that the author definitely knows how to weave her own personal stories into life lessons for others. If you are looking for inspiration, a self-care guide, or are interested in learning more about the everyday wonders around you, this is one of the top ten books out there for that purpose. My three-star review is actually more of a 3.5 – while I enjoyed the bits and pieces of the book that spoke to me personally, I found it a bit lacking in the areas that I was hoping would explode off the page. There was history sprinkled in and some difficult subjects (for some), but that wasn’t what I was looking for or expecting when I decided to read. Just because it wasn’t necessarily for me doesn’t mean that it won’t be the perfect fit for someone else. Try for yourself and see – even if it’s not exactly what you were looking for, chances are there are some positive things you will take from it.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Liz Vrchota

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Okay I normally don’t pick up self help guru type books as a typical go to read, especially during the holiday season, but the moment I saw this author was putting one out especially centered around Pagan practices I knew that this was one I could not pass up. I am glad I didn’t hesitate and have since been ruminating on the wonderful contents that are between the covers of this gorgeous read. I have been reading this one slowly and taking notes, really taking in the lessons and the notes that I read along the way to heart. I look forward to purchasing a hard copy to make and even mark up in the future for a long time to come as well. This is one of those that I have a feeling will grace my bedside and be something to be enjoyed slowly and over time over and over again much like a journal. I can’t wait to see what we will get next!

Review by @lizaileen
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Practically Pagan-An Alternative Guide To Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie-Review by Elena Tobar

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is like a close friend and a casual conversation. I really love the vibe of this book. It has inspiration for any practitioner new and old alike. Her advice is like a good friend sitting down and having a casual conversation with you over a warm cup of cocoa. There are stories of the authors own personal experiences sprinkled throughout which makes the book more relatable. A lot of her tips are great for everyday life as well and can help to usher out some of the everyday toxicity that is unfortunately so prevalent in society. This is a must read for any pagan looking to strengthen their relationship with divinity and improve their personal practice.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Rachel Moss

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The name for this book was very fitting, because this was a very practical guide! This was immersive and knowledgeable and the author did a great job of making it feel like she was right there talking to me personally. It was interesting reading a guide that had information that felt like things I actually feel myself. It’s nice knowing I’m not the only one. I highly recommend this guide for everyone who’s wanting to get closer to their inner selves and get their magic back.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Mikaela Insinger

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Practically Pagan- An Alternative Guide to Magical Living offers an opportunity to explore real world magic in a wonderfully written self-care manor that is accessible to anyone wishing to use magic in their life. As someone who is interested in magic, but not sure where to start, I found this guide to be a helpful start. It’s a reminder that we all need to break down the societal rules we take on everyday and unlearn the trauma that we have experienced, to find the spark within us. Although there were some spots of repetition, I found it useful and a great reminder as I worked my way through the guide. Easy steps for each portion of the guide helped to make learning everyday magic do-able and less daunting, especially as a newbie. I truly enjoyed this book and am always excited for new releases from the author, so I definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in the joy of everyday magic.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Megan Brasington

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book gave me so much self care inspiration. Rituals and meditation all basically root down to knowing yourself and your body. This book is no exception, it helps you realize “a cheesy as it sounds” the magic is within. You are only as powerful and strong as you believe and with practice and self care and love it will help your Pagan beliefs and magic grow.

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Practically Pagan-An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria Deblassie – Review by Jules Herbert

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have to say reading the title and blurb I thought I knew what this book would offer me, I think that is the right word, and I was excited to read it as it was subject matter I have always wanted to look into more. Anyway I was so surprised to find it really offered so much more than I originally expected. I now have a lot of things to think about and process.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Jade Thomson

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Anyone who knows me- knows this isn’t a book i would typically pick up. I’m one of those that is always reading romance or thriller books. Nothing else. But I’m really glad I gave this book a read! The cover is beautiful- and the way the author starts the book really made me feel like I was being invited into the book. Previous to this book I knew nothing of paganism or magic (minus fantasy novels/movies). I enjoyed learning about finding magic in our everyday lives and enjoying the beauty of life around us. It was really cool and I’m interested in looking at it more!

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Lauren Schnoebelen

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5⭐️

Modern society keeps us rushing from one thing to the next until we finally get home and crash on our beds. The constant moving doesn’t give us a second to think let alone reflect on how we are feeling and really get a chance to check in with ourselves. Magical living provides simple says of slowing down and enjoying the little moments in our day to day lives which can turn into magical experiences. Set up as a simple guide to bringing more magic into your life while striving for happiness and joy every day, magical living has something for everyone.

I’m really happy I picked this up when I did because it felt like something I really needed with everything going on in my life. This short guide packs a punch and almost each page has a concept, question, or thought for you to reflect on and how it relates to your own life. I liked that this book does embrace magic but views it as finding magic in your day to day activities rather than listing out actual spells and things for that magical feeling. I appreciate that the focus was on embracing what’s already going on in your life and changing your mindset on those items to create these routines into enjoyable rituals which can bring you joy in the long run. There was a lot for me to process in this book so I decided to buy a physical copy as well for me to easy flip through and reflect more on as I incorporate a lot of the selfcare practices into my day to day.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Rayne East

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Practical, personal, and plentiful
This was a journey through self-reflection and discovery. Absolutely resonated with me about how quickly we can forget about basic self-care and get caught up in the guise of busyness. This cuts to the basic roots of nature and magic and reminds us all that we have our own magic that needs to be acknowledged and nourished. So much is held within the pages of this book and it is so eloquently delivered. A very worthy read.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Dani Dando

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a very interesting read always do love DeBlassie she has this way of writing that is honestly otherworldly and is always a mad pleasure to read. DeBlassie always tackles the wonderful and mystical of everyday life and this book is no different. It delves so brilliantly into all the magic of life and living and loving yourself and the world around you. DeBlassie makes you feel as though you can sparkle. Never tire of reading her stuff, and will continue to read as long as she continues to write.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Kayla Kearney

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Upon discovering another book by the author of Weep, Woman, Weep that talked about magic, I knew this was the book for me. As someone who has been looking into fitting more magical living into my life, there were so many insights I gained by reading this book, even if my first impression about what the book was going to be about was wrong. I especially loved her talking about her own cultural experience as a mestiza from the American Southwest, as I’ve always enjoyed learning about different cultural practices, and I definitely wish she would have talked about it a bit more.

I think the chapter that struck a cord with me the most was when she was talking about taking the time to make your routine a ritual. I especially enjoyed her going into the differences between the two, as I believe that it will help in things outside of practicing magic, which was one of the things she talks a lot about during the book. Overall, I learned a lot of really helpful things that I plan to start incorporating into my life in the future. I also look forward to seeing what the next book by her I fall in love with!

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Carrie Rowland

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Self-help meets witchy vibes: I love it! While not a guide to paganism, it is a really warm approach to everyday magic. I enjoyed learning about the author’s journey with her own self-reconnection. From one cat-lover to another, thank you!

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Dawn Daughenbaugh

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 Stars
Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie

I absolutely loved this book. Going in I wasn’t really sure what to expect. As with any book I’ve read by this author I’m simply amazed by her style of writing and her attention to detail. She’s also really good at giving you what you didn’t realize you needed. That’s exactly what I got with this book. From the beginning to end I was hooked and had a hard time putting it down. Sometimes we need to add a little magic into our lives and this book will show you how. I highly recommend reading this book. It helped to lighten my mood and put a smile on my face. I can’t wait to read more from this Author.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Lianne Probert

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The author begins this book by saying that all books are magical, I most definitely agree, and as you can guess this one is absolutely brimming with magic.

I picked up this book looking for something different to slightly challenge the normal, and this book certainly achieved that. It can be slightly repetitive at times, although I do think the messages are important ones.
I would say that this book might not be for everyone, you need to have an open mind and a curiosity for finding the magic within your own life. If that’s the case, you will really enjoy this book. This is my first time reading anything of this style or genre, but I will certainly be open to reading and learning more.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Kristy Nelson

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have been trying to branch out lately and read books that are very different than my typical go to genre of psychological thrillers. I am not a religious or particularly spiritual person, so I went into this book with very minimal background knowledge. Reading this book for me was purely out of interest, not necessarily to follow the practices. That all said it was very enjoyable! It’s fun to look into a different way of life and I assume those more knowledgeable than myself would find it to be a great read as well.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Allyson Ware

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was not what I was expecting, but I was not disappointed. I love the author’s writing style. It is incredibly easy to follow along, and even though the author repeated quite frequently throughout, it is well written. Repetition is not necessarily a bad thing in my opinion, because I need reminded of certain things and the author does a great job of doing just that.

There are a plethora of individuals that I would recommend this book to. Introverts would benefit greatly from reading it, extroverts would learn something from it, and anyone seeking magic in their day to day life will love this book.

Review by @aware

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Nakyshia Leger

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a book that I never knew I needed! This isn’t my usual type of read but this book called to me so I had to give it a shot. This is a book of self reflection, self exploration and self growth. The reader is guided in a journey of exploring the world they live in to cleanse it of negativity and clutter and create a more magical world for themselves. Magic is everywhere around us in our day to day lives, we just need to know where and how to find it. The simplicity of being surrounded in everyday magic is achievable thanks to this guided journey with personal experience shared by the author. I love the positive vibe from this book and I am thankful it chose me to read it!

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Review by @nrl0522

 

Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Erica Banes

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found it to be like most self help books and trying to help you have a more positive/ productive life. I was hoping for a little more and it just didn’t hit my hopes I guess. If your looking for a book to help remind you why it’s so important to have a positive outlook and someways to do it, this book is for you. it wasn’t a bad book or anything, I dont know how to explain it but for me the title and everything made me think one way but it went the opposite direction.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Jasmin Marie

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was very excited to read this, especially after reading another book from this author and loving it! Even though she discusses her ways of practicing, this book did not read “witchcraft” to me. To me, it reads more like a self-help book. I appreciated the way the author introduced her form of magic, brujeria, and connected it to her cultural background which, historically, often contradicted each other’s practices. I enjoyed the author’s guidance in regards to letting go of toxicity and being open to my intuition but I felt some of the information was repetitive.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Jaclyn DeTullio

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Was this book what I was expecting? No. Was it exactly what I needed? YES. Yes, it was. The last nearly two years have been rough. Sometimes the heaviness in the world weighs me down, and this book reminded me how important it is to still take care of myself. Self care is so important! So while I didn’t really learn new things, it was a lovely read and a wonderful reminder to put my self care on the to-do list. Magic is wherever you take the time to see it, feel it. Slow down and enjoy it in all the little things.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Debi Kircher

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4 Stars

I only picked this book up for 2 reasons. The first reason is that I really love reading this author’s writings. Her words just flow together and read so easily and smoothly. The second was pure curiosity. I find myself curious about other people’s beliefs often, and instead of just shaking my head and walking away because it isn’t what I believe, I find myself needing to know more so I can come up with some sort of understanding.

While I still don’t believe in magic, I found myself believing in many things in this book. I found that while reading if I just replaced the word magic with happiness and contentment, that is pretty much what was being talked about. It all made sense when I did that. There are so many things in this book I have struggled with throughout the years, and her steps to ridding yourself of that pressure and stress were spot on. So for this reason I can say I really enjoyed reading this book. The writing was exactly what I’m used to from this author and although it felt in places like things were being repeated too much, I worked my way through that without any issues.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Brittany Porter

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

While I was hoping to get a different experience from this book, I did enjoy the journey this author takes the reader on. There are no actual spells or conjuring taught, which I was really hoping for, this book prepares the reader to get into the right headspace to be open to living a more magical lifestyle. I’d be open to reading more from this author, as she seems to be very knowledgeable in the subject.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Shelly Kittell

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

An original book filled with very original and informative information. A self-help book that may help some. I found it to be helpful on some levels while still leaving me wanting to more. It was very easy to read.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Kerry Baker

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is a great example of finding the beauty in everyday, simple things. I thought the author did a great job of reminding the reader that it isn’t always about the big things in life that make special, but rather the smaller more inconsequential aspects.
The author really takes you on her journey with this book. She makes it all seem.so relatable while also showing you how you can adjust your own way of thinking to do the same. I thought this whole book was such an interesting read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

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Practically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie – Review by Katie Matthews

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Practically Pagan - An Alternative Guide to Magical LivingPractically Pagan – An Alternative Guide to Magical Living by Maria DeBlassie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

 

I always wonder what I’m going to be reading when I pick up a book by this author, I’ve read a few books by her now and each one is so unique but equally though-provoking. I really like her writing, it’s so easy to read and the way she writes really does make you stop and think about things from her perspective at times. I think there’s definitely some things I took from the book that made me want to look into further and adapt to suit my lifestyle.
Overall, a really interesting and though-provoking read!

@katiem
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