a.k.a. How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Instagram and Teen Vogue’s Witchcraft Column
It may have been a harbinger of things to come, but back when I was a kid, at a middle school book fair, I bought a copy of E. W. Hildick’s “ The Active Enzyme Lemon-Freshened Junior High School Witch.” The book is a YA comedic romp where the main character, Allison, finds a book on witchcraft in her attic and begins experimenting with the spells inside. Hilarity ensues as spells work in unintended ways, and while Allison ultimately doesn’t stick with the Craft, she does grow from her adventure.
First published in 1973, the book is now out of print. It was clearly a product of its time, when the counterculture of the 1960’s began to awaken second wave feminists and witchcraft and interest in the occult was higher than it had ever been. The fact that I loved the book was probably a good indicator of my eventual decision to take up the mantle of witch and priestess.
We are again in such a time. Between Harry Potter, television shows like “Sabrina the Teenage Witch” and “Charmed,” and witches hexing politicians making the news, interest in the Craft is high once again. And with the most current wave of feminists feeling affinity for all things witchy, it’s no surprise that even Teen Vogue has started a regular feature extolling the virtues of magic as a tool to…
