I’m interested in a variety of topics in both the occult and world religion, so when I heard about this book from a friend in the elf community, I had to pick it up. It serves as an interesting anthropological look at the 90s Neopagan festival scene. The style is fairly academic, but not to the point of being unpleasant to read; it touches both on controversial issues (cultural appropriation, sexual harassment) and on the common day to day issues of the Neopagan community (arguments about how loud drumming should be at various hours of the night.)

Overall, it’s an enjoyable read, and well-cited. I think it does a good job discussing difficult problems objectively, unlike some books, which either throw objectivity aside or try so hard to be neutral that they throw aside the actual facts of the matter. I enjoy how it talks about the construction of identity. I think it’s a good take on the topic.

My biggest complaint is that there are many spots where I feel like he repeated himself a bunch, which is annoying. It’s still worth reading, but it could probably have a good 15% of the content cut without anyone noticing.

A heads-up: this is an older book, and it shows its age in places where it uses terms that were considered polite in the 90s, but offensive today (e.g. transgendered persons in the place of transgender person). If this is a sticking point for you, it may not be the right choice.