ADF Recommended Books
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Celtic Culture
A Brief History of the Druids aka "The Druids"
Peter Berresford Ellis
The best modern survey of what we know and don't know about the Celtic Druids.
Celtic Heritage: Ancient Tradition in Ireland and Wales
Alwyn and Brinley Rees
The very best study of pattern and meaning in Celtic myth, with special reference to Vedic lore.
Magic of the Celtic Gods and Goddesses
Carl McColman, Kathryn Hinds
Celtic gods and goddesses are among the most popular of deities revered by today's Neo-Pagans, Witches, Wiccans, and Druids. Figures like Brigid, Cernunnos, Rhiannon, and CuChulainn are honored for their magic, their bravery, and their mythical deeds. Among Pagans, the gods and goddesses of Gaul, Ireland, Wales, and the other Celtic lands rank with the Greek, Roman, Norse, and Egyptian pantheons as the most popular and influential deities in the Neo-Pagan movement. Magic of the Celtic Gods and Goddesses is the first resource available to help Pagans, Witches, and Druids to connect specifically with the Celtic Gods and Goddesses in a truly deep, powerful, and spiritual way. This book will help you: * Learn the major Irish, Welsh, and continental Celtic deities. * Discover the major myths and lore associated with each deity. * Create rituals and magical work appropriate for each deity. * Understand the psychological archetypes of each God and Goddess. * Forge true and meaningful relationships with the deities for our time. * Relate the various gods and goddesses to the Sabbats and Holy Days.
Pagan Celtic Britain
Anne Ross
An exhaustive survey of known archaeology and lore about Celtic remains in England, Scotland and Wales.
The Celtic Heroic Age
John Koch
This book includes a large number of sources on the Celts, all included in a single place. Many of the translations are updated, and it includes many obscure texts.
The Druids
Stuart Piggott
Previously the best survey. Somewhat unfriendly to the culture it describes, but full of good data about the archeology and facts about the Druids.
The Mabinogi, and Other Medieval Welsh Tales
Patrick K. Ford
The most academically accepted translation, it also includes the Battle of the Trees, a pronunciation guide, and an index of names.
The Tain: Translated from the Irish Epic Tain Bo Cuailnge
Thomas Kinsella, Trans.
One of the main Irish Myths, the Ulster Cycle is key to understanding Irish mythology. This translation is considered standard among academics.
Indo-European Studies
A History of Pagan Europe
Nigel Pennick and Prudence Jones
A simpler review of the history of Pagan peoples and their beliefs.
Comparative Mythology
by Jaan Puhvel
Arising from almost 30 years' teaching experience and from a profound and vast scholarship, Puhvel's study represents a major contribution to his field. It begins with a detailed survey of Indo-European mythsthose of India, Iran, Greece, and Rome, of the Celtic, Germanic, Baltic, and Slavic culturesand proceeds to a cross-cultural examination of a number of themes: God and Warrior; King and Virgin; Horse and Ruler; Fire in Water; Twin and Brother.
In Search of the Indo-Europeans: Language, Archaeology, and Myth
J.P. Mallory
A summary of known scholarship on the peoples from whom the Celts, Germans, Greco-Roman, and Baltic cultures descended. This book is fairly dense and reads on an advanced level. It could also be classed as Proto-Indo-European.
The Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory: Why An Invented Past Will Not Give Women a Future
Cynthia Eller
This book takes a hard look at what evidence there is or is not for the Gimbutas assertion of a matriarchal goddess-worshipping, pan-European Neolithic society.
Modern Paganism
Being a Pagan: Druids, Wiccans, and Witches Today
Ellen Evert Hopman
This book is a set of interviews from modern Neo-Pagans. Some ADF members are interviewed for this book, as well.
Drawing Down the Moon
Margot Adler
The classic survey of American Neopaganism, including plenty on ADF, our origins and growth.
Her Hidden Children: The Rise of Wicca And Paganism in America
Chas S. Clifton
A book covering the basics of the Neo-Pagan movement today, starting with Wicca and exploring the varieties of Paganism from there.
The Idiot's Guide to Paganism
Carl McColman
A book that covers the basic forms of modern Paganism.
Triumph of the Moon:A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft
Ronald Hutton
Here is a book that brings witchcraft out of the shadows. The Triumph of the Moon is the first full-scale study of the only religion England has ever given the world--modern pagan witchcraft, otherwise known as wicca. Meticulously researched, it provides a thorough account of an ancient religion that has spread from English shores across four continents.
Roman Culture
An Introduction to Roman Religion
John Scheid; Janet Lloyd, trans.
This book comes highly recommended as an intro to the religion of this culture.
Ovid's Fasti: Roman Holidays
Ovid (Author), Betty Rose Nagle (Translator)
A poetic description of the festivals of the Roman year which unfortunately breaks off at the end of June.
The Gods of Ancient Rome
Robert Turcan
This book is a vivid account of what their gods meant to the Romans from archaic times to late antiquity, and an exploration of the rites and rituals connected with them.