Yet another Pagan children's book with awkward prose and didactic tone

I was curious about Let's Talk About Pagan Elements and the Wheel of the Year by Siusaidh Ceanadach since I first heard about it a year ago, but I'm disappointed yet again.

I have a library of hundreds of children's books, including classics and a great many obscure treasures that teach children about far-flung cultures, social troubles and emotional issues. I can easily tell the difference between the stories that hold the interest of my children and the children who I teach and those that don't. More importantly, it doesn't seem that long ago since I was a kid myself and I read stories hungrily, spitting out the ones that tasted of dry sawdust or cliched cough syrup and devouring those that had the ring of truth and mutual recognition.

My collection contains some of most well-known Pagan books for children and yet there are regrettably few modern Pagan books that my children want to sit through, let alone ask for. The stories of Pooka the cat and those in Circle Round are the most notable exceptions. That was why I was so excited about Let's Talk About Pagan Elements and the Wheel of the Year. It isn't supposed to be just a teaching book. It contains stories about children who modern kids can relate to, or so I was told.

The book's structure is straightforward, a very brief introduction to elements which reads like a short version of a particularly uninspired adult text. Then there is a short, Wiccan-leaning abstract of each of the eight Pagan holidays that make up the Wheel of the Year in many traditions. After each abstract there is a "story," which is in fact more like a character sketch of a modern child having something to do with the holiday. Each section ends with a list of research questions, asking kids to find details about the given holiday with an emphasis on agriculture.

The prose is the primary problem with this book. It is formal, awkward and pedantic. The tone is that of an adult speaking to a child of about the age of six or seven, while the vocabulary and content is suitable for a trivia-oriented twelve or thirteen year old. The book fails every age level. Younger children will find the content and vocabulary inaccessible, dull and out of touch with their experience. Older children will be likely to reject the book due to the combination of the abstract overviews and the condescending tone.

The "stories" which were originally the most attractive part of the book to me are not really stories at all. There is no tension, no problem to be solved, no question to be answered. Each is essentially a moralizing character sketch that Pagan parents who grew up with Christian Sunday school will recognize in tone and style. The child in each story has no dilemma but randomly comes across some information or inspiration for the holiday. That's it. The prose is again condescending and uninteresting, although somewhat smoother than the writing in the abstracts.

The last part of each section--the suggested research questions--is arguably the best part of the book. If a parent was teaching children between the ages of eight and twelve about Pagan holidays, one could take these questions and adapt them for use as a kind of scavenger hunt. They won't satisfy the interests of teenagers well but middle grade kids, especially those with some experience with farming, may find them mildly interesting. Still there are better resources available both in books and free on-line.

All in all, I am still hoping for better Pagan children's books. This one is disappointing with no good excuse. I have no specific quibble with the content. It isn't incorrect or offensive in any significant way. It leans toward Wiccan paths and has a relatively heavy focus on agriculture, making it difficult for many modern kids to relate to. The Wheel of the Year is tied closely to agriculture after all, but there are better ways of making that connection relevant to children living in cities and growing a pot of basil on their window sill.