Wisdom of the Darktide

Thank you to everyone who entered! (I've also been receiving all the email entries via the contact button as well - not to worry!) The folks who will be getting some holiday mail are:

Ask Baba Yaga - Book #1 - Maria O. 

Ask Baba Yaga - Book #2 - MrsDuncanMahogany

Literary Witches Book - dustbunny8

Literary Witches Oracle - eli mari

What Would Frida Do - Cartermaryd

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As we stride deeper into the darkest weeks of the year, it is prudent to be aware of the beings that reside in the shadows. Our own goblins lurk there, of course, though it is in our best interest to get to know them. But there are also those shades and spirits that slink alongside us, their interest in us piqued (for good or for mischief). There are numerous tales of things that live in the dark, or hunt in the bitterest months, and so it is shrewd to take precautions and arm ourselves with safeguards, including a healthy dose of cleverness and discernment. That is, after all, how most fairy tale protagonists get out of their predicaments.

As of today my province has tightened up some of the Covid precautions after our case numbers rose dramatically in the past weeks. We are not wholly quarantined again (for now) but we are not to gather anymore, and we must be masked in all buildings. There is a drawing-in that happens naturally this time of year, and so I've decided to weave these new restrictions into my own cold-weather enchantments. I see being masked as a form of invisibility work. A way to move about swiftly and purposefully, without being noticed or recognized (for the most part). Though I enjoy gathering with others, there is a stream of protection magic to tap into when you are forced to keep those who don't live in your home, away. I see the magic of the darktide as a solid ally to these difficult times. And it's always good to have someone, or something, in your corner.

This next giveaway features sage advice and guidance from literary and artistic women, as well as a good amount of advisement from a witch who rolls through the forest in a chicken-legged hut.

Taisia Kitaiskaia is a Russian-American writer who became widely lauded as the present-day voice of the oracle Baba Yaga in her column for The Hairpin. Two collections of those helpful and mysterious responses are now available in paperback, beautifully illustrated by Brenna Thummler: Ask Baba Yaga: Otherworldly Advice for Everyday Troubles and Ask Baba Yaga: Poetic Remedies for Troubled Times.

"Voices are ; noise, humanly noise — but what knows best in you is not of human shape or sound but of a stranger, Wilder beast. )Now it turns in your stomach, now it rends yr chest. Tell the voices to shut up & listen for the growl."

Kitaiskaia also dove into the world of historical and contemporary authors and resurfaced with the wonderful insights contained in Literary Witches: A Celebration of Magical Women Writers, and The Literary Witches Oracle, which is a deck containing the women mentioned in her book as well as cards inked with symbols and sigils created by illustrator Katy Horan.

The book reimagines 30 female authors as true witches: not hook-nosed creatures riding on brooms, but figures of radical creativity, originality, and empowerment. Each witch is celebrated with a surreal vignette by Taisia Kitaiskaia and a full-color portrait by artist Katy Horan. Brief biographies and recommended reading lists round out each entry, and a foreword by author, podcast host, and practicing witch Pam Grossman contextualizes the figure of the witch and her connection to language.

Next, I have a gorgeous tome by Arianna Davis, a brilliant Afro-Latinx author, and an adjunct professor at New York University. What Would Frida Do? A Guide to Living Boldly

What Would Frida Do? explores the feminist icon’s signature style, outspoken politics, and boldness in love and art, even in the face of pain and heartbreak. The book celebrates her larger than life persona as a woman who loved passionately and lived ambitiously, refusing to remain in her husband’s shadow. Each chapter shares intimate stories from her life, revealing how she overcame obstacles by embracing her own ideals.

In this charming read, author Arianna Davis conjures Frida’s brave spirit, encouraging women to persevere, to create fearlessly, and to stand by their own truths.

Think of these books and cards as having your own badass fairy godmother to chat with. I know you'll enjoy reading them in the dark nights to come.

I have one copy of each of these enlightening items to give away. I'll draw five names on November 25th at 9pm Pacific, and then you can wander into the woods outfitted with sharp insight from wild and wise women. 

Your comment counts as your entry. Please leave an email address or a linked comment so I can contact you if your name is drawn. If you'd like to share this giveaway on social media, that would be lovely - just pop back and let me know you did and I'll enter your name a second time. If you have a preference as far as which item you'd like to have next to you on a cold winter's night, let me know in your comment. I try as much as possible to match folks with their wishes.

Legal Bits:

* This giveaway (or "sweepstakes") is open to all residents of Canada, (exluding Quebec residents) the USA, Great Britain, Europe, South America,  who are 18 years of age or older. This giveaway is void where prohitibited by law.  Please be aware of the contest/sweepstakes laws in your area.

*  Canadian residents will be subject to a skill testing question before being able to claim their prize (this is standard law in Canada).  The skill testing question will be in a form similar to: 1 + 2 - 1 =

*  This giveaway is not for profit and no purchase is necessary to enter.

*  This giveaway is sponsored/administrated solely by this blog/blog author and is not affilitated with or sponsored by Blogger, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or any other entity, nor can they be held liable.

* By leaving a comment intending to enter into the draw for the giveaway (or "sweepstakes") you are knowingly agreeing to these rules/conditions.

I have chosen all the books/cards featured this month myself.  I have not been paid to feature a book, nor have I been asked to advertise for anyone.  This giveaway is not endorsed or sponsored by anyone other than Rue and Hyssop.

The Great October Book Giveaway - Magic in Overlooked Places

The lucky book winners, this round, are:

Johanna L - The Wiccan Wheel Mysteries

Bella S. - pair of poetry books

kgkathands - The Lost Kitchen cookbook

I’ll be in contact with you shortly!

There seem to be some gremilins causing mischief...I’m having some difficulty with my laptop tonight, so the next giveaway will be posted tomorrow (Friday, October 11th). Thank you for your patience!





One of the things I love about magic, is that if you have your finger on the pulse of it - if you recognize that it bubbles up in unexpected places and threads itself through areas commonly overlooked - then you can find enchantment anywhere.

Normally this yearly giveaway is entirely populated with non-fiction books on magic and herbalism, with the occasional sway into witch-art of some form, and a few of the newest tarot or oracle decks I've found. I almost never include fiction or other genres, not because I don't read them or they aren't excellent sorts of books, but the bulk of my writing here at Rue and Hyssop is about my journey through the year in gardens, woods, and witchcraft, and so I generally stick to those themes. This year, however, there were a few authors/books from outside the usual non-fiction fare I offer that made a big impression on me, and I wanted to share them with you. They conjured the feeling that magic was afoot. That the authors were people who noticed the threads weaving the world together, who had touched the live wire of magic in one way or another (even if that's not what they would call it). Each of these books/authors gave me a thrill in some way and I know you'll adore them too.

It was early in the year when I heard about The Lost Kitchen and read the tale of a woman who had her heart broken and her dream crushed, who then found a way to rebuild. I was immediately enraptured by Erin French's journey. I set to searching out her restaurant and how someone might make a reservation (I'd long wanted to visit Maine, where she is located). It turns out that The Lost Kitchen hadn't just enchanted me. They were constantly booked up and still fielding calls for reservations, so they decided to hold a lottery for table seating. Last year twenty thousand postcards arrived on Erin's doorstep - each one a hopeful entry for a chance to eat one of her beautiful meals. (I'll be sending a postcard of my own next year!)

There is something extraordinary about a person who has seemingly lost out on the future they were building, only to discover that they could re-form or re-imagine it and it would unfold in even bigger ways than they could have anticipated. Erin began her 'secret dinners' in her apartment, expanded to a small retail location, was locked out of her dream only to move it into an Airstream trailer, and now cooks with friends for thousands of people each year in an historic mill in Freedom, Maine. Reading her gorgeous cookbook (with her amazing story included) is not just perusing a stack of tantalizing recipes, it's like curling up for tea with a friend that inspires you.

This summer was hard on me. I was knocked down in May and spent much of the following three months trying to keep my spirit light in the midst of heartbreak, funerals, and whatever hellish planetary bullshittery was swirling overhead. My salvation in the scorching months was a lawn chair in the shade in the late afternoon, a cold beverage, and a stack of books. I had a variety of poetry with me at all times, plus folk and fairy tales of every sort. They were what transported me to a quieter place where my mind and heart could find respite.

I was nearing the end of a pile of library books when I found myself thinking, "I need some fun, witchy fiction books to read." And just like magic an email popped into my inbox from Jennifer Hesse introducing herself and her books. I've already grabbed a few of her Wiccan Wheel Mysteries series for myself and I picked up one for you, too. Plus, Jennifer has been kind enough to send along a book for you as well! The series follows Keli Milanni, lawyer and practicing witch, while she navigates her way through assorted mysteries, messes, romances, and her own journey with magic. They were perfect summer reads and I know the two autumn-themed books I've got for you, Autumn Alibi and Samhain Secrets will be excellent for curling up under a blanket with in these cooler nights ahead.

Breakage - Mary Oliver

I go down to the edge of the sea.

How everything shines in the morning light!

The cusp of the whelk,

the broken cupboard of the clam,

the opened, blue mussels,

moon snails, pale pink and barnacle scarred—

and nothing at all whole or shut, but tattered, split,

dropped by the gulls onto the gray rocks and all the moisture gone.

It's like a schoolhouse

of little words,

thousands of words.

First you figure out what each one means by itself,

the jingle, the periwinkle, the scallop

       full of moonlight.

Then you begin, slowly, to read the whole story.

I couldn't pass up the opportunity to show some love to the poetry that kept my heart beating this summer. We sadly lost the beloved Mary Oliver in January, but her words live on in her thirty-plus published works. It was the opening lines of "Wild Geese" that completely shifted things for me fifteen years ago, and she still has the ability to make me gasp and sigh "yes!" to her observations of nature and the world. I'm passing along her collection of poems, "Why I Wake Early."

Along with Oliver's book you'll receive a book I brought home from Sleepy Hollow - a collection of captivating poetry from assorted authors, entitled "Poems Bewitched and Haunted."

From the publisher:

From Homer to Horace, Pope to Poe, Randall Jarrell to James Merrill, Poems Bewitched and Haunted draws on three thousand years of poetic forays into the supernatural. Ovid conjures the witch Medea, Virgil channels Aeneas’s wife from the afterlife, Baudelaire lays bare the wiles of the incubus, and Emily Dickinson records two souls conversing in a crypt, in poems that call out to be read aloud, whether around the campfire or the Ouija board. From ballads and odes, to spells and chants, to dialogues and incantations, here is a veritable witches’ brew of poems from the spirit world.

You can see both poetry books on the left side of the first photo in this post.

These three prizes: one amazing cookbook, a pair of fab fiction tomes, and bundle of two dreamy poetry books, contain their own variety of magic and I believe they will find homes with folks who know a thing or two about enchantment. They will be up for grabs until Thursday, October 10th, when I'll draw the names of the winners. Your comment is your entry, and if you should like another chance to win then simply share this post around however you wish and then swing back and let me know. I'll make sure your name goes into the hat again. Alternately, if you are having issues with leaving a comment, or if you'd prefer to enter privately, then you can send your entry via the "make contact" button at the top of the page. (Please note that if your name is drawn, I will be posting it at the top of the giveaway.) Feel free to let me know which prize you'd prefer. I try to match winners and books up, whenever possible.

Legal Bits:

* This giveaway (or "sweepstakes") is open to all residents of Canada, (exluding Quebec residents) the USA, Great Britain, Europe, South America,  who are 18 years of age or older. This giveaway is void where prohitibited by law.  Please be aware of the contest/sweepstakes laws in your area.

*  Canadian residents will be subject to a skill testing question before being able to claim their prize (this is standard law in Canada).  The skill testing question will be in a form similar to: 1 + 2 - 1 =

*  This giveaway is not for profit and no purchase is necessary to enter.

*  This giveaway is sponsored/administrated solely by this blog/blog author and is not affilitated with or sponsored by Blogger, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or any other entity, nor can they be held liable.

* By leaving a comment intending to enter into the draw for the giveaway (or "sweepstakes") you are knowingly agreeing to these rules/conditions.

I have chosen all the books/cards featured this month myself.  I have not been paid to feature a book, nor have I been asked to advertise for anyone.  This giveaway is not endorsed or sponsored by anyone other than Rue and Hyssop.

Autumnal Sun

I Am The Autumnal Sun ~ by Henry David Thoreau

Sometimes a mortal feels in himself Nature
-- not his Father but his Mother stirs
within him, and he becomes immortal with her
immortality. From time to time she claims
kindredship with us, and some globule
from her veins steals up into our own.


I am the autumnal sun,
With autumn gales my race is run;
When will the hazel put forth its flowers,
Or the grape ripen under my bowers?
When will the harvest or the hunter's moon
Turn my midnight into mid-noon?
I am all sere and yellow,
And to my core mellow.
The mast is dropping within my woods,
The winter is lurking within my moods,
And the rustling of the withered leaf
Is the constant music of my grief....



Lady Autumn

Lady Autumn  ~ by Deirdre Akins

Lady Autumn, Queen of the Harvest,
I have seen You in the setting Sun
with Your long auburn tresses
blowing in the cool air that surrounds You.

Your crown of golden leaves is jewelled
with amber, amethyst, and rubies.
Your long, flowing purple robe stretches across the horizon.
In Your hands You hold the ripened fruits.
At Your feet the squirrels gather acorns.
Black crows perch on Your outstretched arms.
All around You the leaves are falling.

You sit upon Your throne and watch
the dying fires of the setting Sun
shine forth its final colors in the sky.
The purple and orange lingers
and glows like burning embers.
Then all colors fade into the twilight.

Lady Autumn, You are here at last.
We thank You for Your rewards.
We have worked hard for these gifts.
Lady Autumn, now grant us peace and rest.

"With a Faery, Hand in Hand..."

The Stolen Child by William Butler Yeats

Where dips the rocky highland
Of Sleuth Wood in the lake,
There lies a leafy island
Where flapping herons wake
The drowsy water rats;
There we've hid our faery vats,
Full of berrys
And of reddest stolen cherries.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.

Where the wave of moonlight glosses
The dim gray sands with light,
Far off by furthest Rosses
We foot it all the night,
Weaving olden dances
Mingling hands and mingling glances
Till the moon has taken flight;
To and fro we leap
And chase the frothy bubbles,
While the world is full of troubles
And anxious in its sleep.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.

Where the wandering water gushes
From the hills above Glen-Car,
In pools among the rushes
That scarce could bathe a star,
We seek for slumbering trout
And whispering in their ears
Give them unquiet dreams;
Leaning softly out
From ferns that drop their tears
Over the young streams.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand.

Away with us he's going,
The solemn-eyed:
He'll hear no more the lowing
Of the calves on the warm hillside
Or the kettle on the hob
Sing peace into his breast,
Or see the brown mice bob
Round and round the oatmeal chest.
For he comes, the human child,
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping than he can understand.