Engaging the Spirit World by Lupa

Engaging the Spirit World Reviews

• 
  Shelby Fullington

  Overall, I found the different perspectives interesting and thought provoking. The focus was not on Core Shamanism, which I see a lot of, making this book refreshing in sorts and, again, thought provoking.
  
  I like Lupa's articles the most. The articles by Raven Kaldera, Jaymi Elford, Andrich Vitimus, and a few others were also interesting. The article by Jaymi Elford, although good, seemed almost out of place as it was less about ideas and theology and was about creating travel shines.
  
  Books with collective works are not generally my favorite. I just don't think some authors are interesting at all and I would have avoided them if they were not included. I guess it could be considered a good thing though because it exposes the reader to different authors and perspectives.
  
  I loved that at the end of each article was a work cited section, about the author, and other works by the author. I really liked that there were citations and that I could easily find out where and who they were from. I found books in these sections and within the articles, that I would like to read.
  
  One of the things I didn't like, besides it being a collective, is some of the terms used may not be the best terms. I have heard that the words "shaman" and "totem" have been singled out as appropriation. I am not from either of the cultures these words come from, and thus I have no input on them. Addressing these concerns and providing stand in terms for the rest of the book, or maybe another solution, would have been a better idea. But that is just my opinion.
  
  Overall though, it was an interesting read and serves as a sort of jumping off point.
• 
  Luke

  The works in this collection that are good are really really good. I loved Lupa’s piece on ecopsych, though I wished it was longer, and I liked her other piece too; Kin to the Lightning, Kitchen Animism, and Embodying the Sacred made this worth picking up.
  
  On the other hand, I didn’t enjoy either of Kaldera’s essays in the slightest, and the piece on Miyazaki’s works, though interesting, felt more like literary analysis than anything. There were some other stinkers too.
  
  Overall, ups and downs, but I’m glad I bought it. I don’t approve of the broad use of terms like totemism and shamanism for neo-Animistic practice, but I understand it was more common seven years ago when this was written. Even so, not my favorite - from a cultural sensitivity or accuracy perspective.