“A weird and wonderful bildungsroman of sorts. “With good humor about the silliness of some of the rituals Mar encounters, and prose that can take on the quality of an incantation, Witches of America is an empathetic but clear-eyed group portrait of people many might find easy to dismiss.” - Bookforum Mar provides a sensitive, probing, and nuanced look at those who identify as pagan.” - Broadly “Mar's book takes something seemingly sinister-in this case, the occult-and renders it accessible. “ is propelled by Mar’s layered details and her rare and instinctive curiosity as well as her quiet graciousness toward her subjects.” - Oxford American 'Through chapters both captivating and amusing, Mar.assembles a fascinating exegesis on the modern state of faith.' - The Believer This is an account of the history of Paganism, its rituals, and practitioners, told without condescension or historical bias and rumor.' - BookRiot Mar spent five years researching the practice of this very real religion, which has over one million practitioners today. But not the silly pointy hat witches-the actual, practicing Pagans. “This is a wonderful, no-nonsense account of, well, witches in America. Provide illuminating answers about what witchcraft in America means' - Huffington Post Fortunately, Mar's is a deeply compelling one.' -Katie Heaney, Buzzfeed Ultimately, though, Witches of America is about the search for meaning, not its findings. Like her writing, Mar aches and stretches and yearns: she wants witchcraft to work for her-the way we all, at various points in our lives, want something seemingly fantastic to be true-and in reading her book, I wanted it for her, too. Avoiding the easy caricatures to which witchcraft often lends itself, Mar writes about her subject and its practitioners with empathy and genuine curiosity.

“Alex Mar's debut Witches of America, a fascinating exploration of Wiccan, Pagan, and occult culture in contemporary America, begins as something of an ethnography, but becomes even more captivating as Mar herself is drawn into these worlds. Some are simply more elaborate and inexplicable than others.’” -Elizabeth Hand, Los Angeles Times But what will resonate most with readers is her genuine and touching search for transcendence, which leads to a conviction that all of these strands of belief are ‘strategies for staying alive. “Mar is an often amusing guide to the household altars and henges of 21st century paganism, in which Wiccans conduct classes via Skype and online distance learning. Mar writes eloquently about the search for meaning, our pursuit of the sublime within the mundane and the invention of self.' -Merritt Tierce, The New York Times Book Review ' Witches of America is a seeker's memoir told through a quilted veil: a collection of strong, journalistic profiles of several fascinating American practitioners of the occult.

No Boundaries by Alex Mar