All over the world, women are discovering the power of sitting in sacred circles together. New Zealand woman Lucy AitkenRead is one such woman, and in Moon Circle she shares her journey of connecting with herself, the earth, and fellow sisters.
The book came to be after AitkenRead realised that for almost every week for a year she felt she wanted to respond to various women in a hundred different circumstances, 'Oh! You need a moon circle!". Moon Circle is part practical advice, part history book, as AikenRead demystifies the process of setting up a circle whilst keeping alive the magic and mysticism that pervades these gatherings of women.
AitkenRead emigrated to New Zealand with her young family recently, and describes herself as a "typical modern hippy". She has written two books on living without shampoo and body products, while her third is about raising a family that loves the earth.
Her fourth book is an extensively researched one, while also being deeply personal. AitkenRead pours her heart out into the pages of Moon Circle, and it's hard not to get caught up in her enthusiasm and desire for a better world.
The book is broken down into chapters to act as a sort of manual for any woman keen to start her own circle. AitkenRead offers practical tips and ideas for rituals, drawing on her own experiences. Of particular importance is the way she refers to women, and all those who identify as women. Notes at the back of the book direct readers to other sources for more information.
While the idea of a moon circle might be too 'far out' or hippy for some, AitkenRead writes in a non-judgemental, open and gentle way. She writes without coming across aggressive or 'holy-than-thou', and her respect for the reader is refreshing.
Her writing is poetic, yet straight to the point, making it an easy, enjoyable read. She writes with humour, while also managing to keep things serious. Her writing is inclusive and empowering, and as such, this book allows other women to feel they can, and should, start or join their own moon circle.
While I'm not sure I have the courage to join or start a moon circle, this book definitely made me examine the type of world, and sisterhood, that I am raising my two young girls in. It is an inspiring, thought-provoking read that will spur women to make a change in their lives, whether by joining the moon circle movement, or simply by sparking the idea of self-improvement.
REVIEWER: Rebekah Fraser
Available from Amazon Kindle or Lulastic.co.uk/books-i-have-written/