Pagan, Shinto & Spiritual Book Reviews October 2016

Brendan Howlin, Pagan Portals – The Urban Ovate: The Handbook of Psychological Druidry

(Moon Books, released November 25, 2016)

The Urban Ovate: The Handbook of Psychological Druidry is certainly rather different to other Pagan books on the market. Most books about Paganism are written as guidebooks, with clear chapters and explanations and instructions on Pagan beliefs and practices. The Urban Ovate is more like a collection miscellaneous thoughts on Druidry. In fact, some of the thoughts aren’t even really about Druidry. Howlin talks about all kinds of subjects from lamenting the impact of socialist policies in British society to rants about people who park incorrectly outside his flat. It’s like reading a series of blog entries rather than a handbook on Druidry. That’s not to say it’s not readable – Howlin’s rather sardonic and rambling tone is actually quite funny.

Amusing as I found the writing, I’m not sure how much I learned about Druidry from this book. The Urban Ovate is apparently something of a sequel to Howlin’s The Handbook of Urban Druidry, which I haven’t read. That’s probably why I thought this book felt rather short and incomplete. I liked the chapter on deities in Druidry and how they are incarnated in modern times as characters in movies and TV, and there were certainly a lot of points of interest in the other chapters too. However, I wasn’t sure how useful this book would be for those looking to learn practical information about Druidry. If you find yourself getting bored with the standard tone and format of most other Pagan books out there, you will probably find The Urban Ovate a refreshing break. But if you’re looking for a stand-alone book on Druidry, this isn’t really it.