#Taylor ellwood

[jasper-pagan-witch]

Energy Store-House Entities (ESHEs)

Have you ever wished that you had just a bit more magickal energy during a working? Have you ever wished that you could tap into an energy reserve to help out with a healing? Well now you can, if you create an Energy Store-House Entity (ESHE). An ESHE's sole purpose is to collect, store, and distribute energy on demand. This type of entity is created to store energy that is given to it at times when you feel full of energy or power, but have nothing to do with it. It then collects this energy and stores it, waiting for you to call upon it to deliver the energy back to you. Even if you feed negative energy to it after you have been in an argument, your ESHE could have been instructed, during creation, to remove all emotion from the energy and to store only the pure, raw energy for your use.

You can adapt an ESHE to collect neutral forms of energy, like the light from a lamp being left on when it is not needed, to add to your energy to increase the power available to you. If you do this, it may be a good idea to be very specific as to what type of energy it collects, and how it collects it. There have been some ill prepared magi that have accidentally created energy "vampires" that would collect any type of energy they can, even from people.

You can also use this sort of entity to send energy to other people. If, for example, a friend of yours was just in an accident, you cannot be there for them and you do not have the time or ability to do a full magickal ritual for them, you could, however, send your ESHE to deliver energy to them - it sure "one ups" the typically "I'll light a candle for you" cliche spewed by so many.

~Creating Magickal Entities: A Complete Guide to Entity Creation, by David Michael Cunningham with contributions by Taylor Ellwood and T. Amanda R. Wagener, pages 90 to 91

[jasper-book-stash]

If you ever want to read terrible opinions from the worst fucking people, I recommend getting into occultism. I read Creating Magickal Entities by David Michael Cunningham with contributions by Taylor Ellwood and T Amanda R Wagener and I want to strangle all three of them.

One of my notes in the margins is just "I'm going to steal something from your house." and I feel like that summarizes my thoughts on this book. It made me retroactively go back and give better scores to the other books on chaos magic I've read recently.

It has everything. Weird occult racism. Unsafe usage of essential oils. Thinly-veiled menstruation kink. Appropriation of Judaism in the context of """Qabalah""". Giving a rule and then promptly breaking it because they can't be bothered to rewrite their explanations. Shitty editing.

Above all, it just took so long to get to the point in each section. I genuinely believe that this could have been better if you trimmed the fat (most of this bullshit) and made it a blog post instead.

[teriel]

I discuss how game creation can teach us principles of magic that can be applied to pop culture magic workings as well as magical workings in general. I also share a couple of ideas on how to use game creation to construct magical workings that are executed when a game is played.

[maddiviner]

Today, I’ll be interviewing Taylor Ellwood! A well-known magical iconoclast, Ellwood (known here as @teriel) authored several books on pop culture magic. He’s also written many more on other postmodern magical topics. You can visit his website here. I recommend his recent revised book, Pop Culture Magic 2.0 to any magical practitioner who might want to integrate their love of stories and popular culture into their magical practice.

E: In the past few years, I’ve seen many magical practitioners criticizing the role of consumerism in the occult and culture at large. Given that popular culture sometimes has to take cues from what’s profitable, what do you think about the role consumerism plays, for better or worse?

T: I think consumerism is an inevitable reality of culture. It’s something that has been part of human history from at least the beginning of recorded history. It has evolved and is continuing to evolve (cryptocurrency seems to be the next evolution) but it isn’t going away. Pop culture will always be influenced by consumerism because what people buy, watch, etc., is what keeps a given pop culture in circulation. My perspective is to accept the reality of consumerism but also focus on what I genuinely like and enjoy, both in terms of magical work and in terms of creating art, writing etc. If you want to work with a given pop culture embrace the reality that consumerism does play a role in that pop culture…what makes something popular is dictated by what people are willing to spend and invest money on, to some degree.

E: In Pop Culture Magic 2.0, you talk about the practice of “experience taking” in work with pop culture characters. You describe how this can work as a kind of mediumship. You, of course, give safety advice in your books about not allowing the character’s spirit (so to speak) to pervade your entire life. That is usually the major criticism or fear people have about this kind of experiment. Is this a risky practice compared to other forms of spiritwork?

T: It’s no riskier than any other type of spirit work technique or practice. It’s using the same methodology and practices. When you invoke a traditional spirit you are also experience taking. Experience taking provides another frame of reference for working with spirits that may make it easier to connect with spirits because it provides a modern context for the connection, and in particular with pop culture characters it provides a frame of reference around the experiences that are relevant to the pop culture. The reason I included experience taking in Pop culture Magic 2.0 is because it provided a great example of how we unknowingly end up invoking pop culture spirits in us when we are into the pop culture that we’re enjoying. We do this with other people as well. We take on the traits and activities because we mirror what we’re observing. What magic allows us to do is do it on a conscious level and that may provide more control of the experience taking as a result.

E: I’ve heard some pop culture mages suggest that fictional characters might be real in their own right, albeit not in our universe. Usually, this relates to the “many worlds'' hypothesis. That perspective contrasts with the idea that we’re creating our characters as thoughtforms, using our own will and creativity. As someone with a lot of pop culture magic experience, what’s your perspective on this - created, discovered, a secret third thing…?

T: I’ve taken the perspective that fictional characters can be real in their own right and that what authors and other creators have done is channeled that pop culture. I don’t see it as being any less viable than other spirits being real. What makes a spirit real isn’t a question of tradition or age, but rather a question of whether we have encountered something we can’t conventionally explain or understand that may have an objective existence. Pop culture spirits could fit that and so I’ve always taken that stance.

E: In recent years, the term “reality shifting” gets thrown around a lot on TikTok and other sites. People claiming to practice this say that they’re able to “shift” into alternate (often fictional) universes. For example, they might “shift” to Middle Earth or the Marvel Universe, only to return bodily to ours. Initially I thought this was just the younger generation’s phrase for astral projection, but it seems to involve more intense, complicated claims. What’s your take on this? Is it all daydreams? Is it something else?

T: My take on this is that it’s a combination of day dreaming and wish fulfillment. This isn’t to say they aren’t connecting with an alternate universe or having meaningful experiences. In fact, we could see this as an extension of experience taking, where they are taking on the experiences of an alternate universe. In the end the real question does it serve their spiritual work and life in a meaningful way.

E: In Pop Culture Magic 2.0, you talk about setting boundaries when channeling pop culture entities. Do you have any thoughts on those who, for whatever reason, identify wholly with a character? Sometimes the term fictionkin gets used. They say that they don’t choose such identities, but rather “awaken” to them, and often believe they were a version of the character in a past life.

T: My thought on this is that it's an escape fantasy of sorts, like a method actor overly identifying with the character. You can take on too much of something, but does that mean you’re really that identity or are you trying to escape the identity you occupy in your regular life? People may not want to answer that question, but its worth asking and answering, especially in terms of developing a grounded practice that supports your life as opposed to helping you escape from your life. Pop culture magic and spirits ought to empower us, not become an escape fantasy.

E: Pop culture magical systems remain somewhat controversial , even within the magical community. You (alongside Felix Warren’s addition) address many common criticisms of the concept in your book. Do you think the occult community will become more accepting of this form of magical practice? Why or why not? What do you think the future holds for pop culture magic?

T: When I wrote Pop Culture Magick there was a lot less acceptance. Two decades later there is a lot more acceptance. I think as time goes on the occult community will become more accepting or quieter in the disagreement that is expressed. I also think as more people practice pop culture magic and develop systems of their own this will help with the overall acceptance and it’ll become a more mainstreamed version of magic that some people practice.

E: This is perhaps a bit tangential, but I think it’d be interesting to talk about. With things like those infamous algorithms and advanced artificial intelligences becoming more commonplace, do you think high technology will change magic?

T: I already think technology has changed magic. We see more technomancy occurring already. There’s some interesting work already available about AI and magic, so as with anything else the evolution of technology will also change how some people practice and think about and explore magic. It won’t replace what’s already there, but it will add its own cultural stream to the current of magic and provide different and novel ways to explore magic. It’s not an area of magic I’m all that interested in, but there are plenty of people already working on combining technology and magic.

E: You’ve worked with many pop culture paradigms over the years. I’ve worked quite a fair share of them myself. Some were easy for me, some were hard. Do you believe that certain narratives are more conducive to magic, or is it merely a matter of personal resonance?

T: I do think certain narratives are more conducive than other narratives. For example, if you have a system of magic in place within a narrative or something to the equivalent effect, this does make it easier to develop a pop culture system or a one off working. If that’s not present, I think its harder to develop a real fit that can be worked with. That’s just my opinion based on what I’ve tried and what I’ve observed.

E: I’m asking everyone this. How did the pandemic change your personal perspective and practice?

T: The pandemic turned everything upside down in my life. I’ve gone through a lot of life changes including a divorce and moving to a new city. Those life changes have spilled over to my magical life. My magical practice is currently focused around exploring sacred masculinity, both in terms of mythology and sacred sexuality, as well as focused around embodied and somatic practices for internal work and inner alchemy. I’m also continuing to develop an approach to magic that is an alternate to the will based approach espoused in the overall occult community. The pandemic really made me question the paradigms of power and focused me on continuing to develop more collaborative and cooperative relationships.

This is all pretty interesting stuff! I’d like to thank Mr. Ellwood for this interview and food for thought!

[mspi]

Fun read

OMG I'm able to read and understand at 5am. I didn't mean to be up or break my rule on closing 📚 by midnight.

🧠 it's a very lazy rule

👩‍💻 no it's not. you're just lazy

🧠 that's harsh. why can't i take breaks

👩‍💻 because you might quiet quit.

🧠 ugh, we're sorta one person.

👩‍💻 Can you tell I used to be on phones?

"I’ll head back to my workstation in a bit, but I need to clear my head and get into the right head space if I’m going to get back on to phones and help customers survive."

👩‍💻 BTW, that would be Tier 1 customer support. Don't try jumping over that level. The agent on the phone with you should know when calls need to be escalated. Ohh if you think that no one is in a rush to take care of kicking outages away, there are generally teams having at the problems.

-- dnagirl

06.11.2023

[regmonchou]

just found out that here on tumblr is full of people who loved In Memoriam how much as i did so i thought about sharing this edit i made for this beautiful book. the author liked it too

[motions1ckn3ss]

'soon i will have to go back. i am terrified. i wish to God i could see you again before i die.'

[chaoticmiserablelover]

The Great War by Taylor Swift 🤝 In Memoriam by Alice Winn

[gentlebeardsbarngrill]

06/09/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR: Rhys Darby; Taika Waititi; Rachel House; Taika & Samba; Gypsy Taylor; Watch Parties; SOFMD Crew Fibre Arts Auction; AOC: Raffle Update; Articles; Fan Spotlight; Cast Cards; Our Flag Means Fanfiction Podcast; Big Gay Energy Podcast; Love Notes; Daily Darby/Tonight's Taika

== Rhys Darby ==

More photos of Rhys from To 29 and Beyond!

Source: The Girl Blogger's Instagram

Also Rhys shared this on his instagram stories-- don't worry Rhys, we're way ahead of you! Round 2 is closed! On to Round 3!

Source: Rhys Darby's Instagram Stories

== Taika & Samba ==

Taika was found responding to Samba's post yesterday, nice to see him making comments on social media again!

Source: Samba Schutte's Instagram

Taika was out with Sterlin Harjo! (Creator of Resevoir Dogs)

Source: Sterlin Harjo's Instagram

== Rachel House ==

Rachel has been out attending the Sydney Film Festival, and was interviewed on TheProjectTV about her movie The Mountain.

Source: Temaungafilm Instagram

Source: TheProjectTV's Instagram

Source: SydFilmFestival Instagram

== Gypsy Taylor ==

Some very fun looking outfits with Gypsy Taylor!

Source: PainterByNumbers / Gypsy Taylor's Instagram

== Watch Parties ==

Good Omens Season 2

Dates: June 10-14, 2024

Times: 3:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm ET, 11:30 pm BST

Episodes: M-Th: 1-4, F: 5-6

Where: RhysDarbyFaction Discord Server

Need access? Reach out to @gentlebeardsbarngrill on tumblr or @aspirantabby42 on twitter.

== Teal Oranges & Garlic Soup Week ==

TealOranges & Garlic Soup Week is still coming up on June 23 - 29! Wanna learn more of the prompts? Please visit their Tumblr!

Source: TealOranges & GarlicSoupWeek Twitter

== SOFMD Crew: Fibre Arts Auction ==

SaveOFMD Crew has announced their auction items! Lots of folks in the fandom have donated fibre-arts prizes to help benefit our Queer Elders at SAGE USA! You can check out the prizes on the saveofmdcrew website. The auction will be opening in a few days!

Source: SaveOFMD Crew Instagram

== AOC: Our Flag Means Pride Raffle ==

Raffle Update on #OurFlagMeansPride! 40 Charities already benefited! Raffle tickets are still available! You can enter on their page!

Source: AdoptOurCrew Tumblr

== Articles ==

Heyyyy, Tokyo Vice Also Cancelled on HBO Max :(

After Max Raised Its Subscription Prices, The Streamer Confirmed Another One Of Its Shows Is Canceled

10 Best Period Drama Shows of the Last 5 Years, Ranked

== Taika 2048 ==

Okay, who was going to tell me there was a Taika Waititi 2048? Thank you to @lisahafey for posting on Twitter so I can finally lose myself in this for the next many many hours.

Source: Lisa Hafey's Twitter

== Fan Spotlight / News =

= Cast Cards =

First up tonight from @melvisik is another member of the Red Flag Crew, Kathleen S. ! Second is another one of awesome directors - Katie Ellwood!

Source: @melvisik's Twitter

== Our Flag Means Fanfiction ==

Next up on Our Flag Means Fanfiction is The Dark Episode (hurt/comfort, whump, angst)! Find somewhere to listen on Our Flag Means Fanfiction Linktr.ee.

Source: Our Flag Means Fanfiction Instagram

== Big Gay Energy Podcast ==

New episode of Big Gay Energy Pod! They're talking These Thems this time around! Check them out on your favorite podcast platform!

Source: Big Gay Energy Podcast Instagram

== Love Notes ==

Hey there lovelies. Another weekend has come to an end, and we're starting another work week. Whether you got some rest, or just got some stuff done, I hope you are in a place where you feel you can face the next few days-- and if not, I hope you get some rest and get a chance to recoup. I've been hearing several folks running into some struggles--struggles brought on by others. Whether those who cause it intend to or not, I want you to know my friends, you don't deserve to be treated badly. You really don't. Don't let those people make you feel like you deserve that. You deserve to be happy, to feel safe, to feel comfortable, to feel like you, in your own skin, whatever that means for you.

I know you probably already know, but sometimes it's good to hear it from an outside source too-- you are not what other people think you are or expect of you. You are you. The ever wonderful, kind, unique, beautiful you. On hard days I know it's hard to see, but you're still there, and things will look up again. Be kind to yourself lovelies, you deserve the best, no matter what anyone says. Rest Well, I hope the start to your week turns out calm and kind to you <3

== Daily Darby / Tonight's Taika ==

Tonight's theme is...thoughtful with glasses. Gifs courtesy of kind @eaion and the fantastic @celluloidbroomcloset!

[prettyqueerwitch]

My Spiritual Book TBR's

This is mainly for me to have a comprehensive list but also might help others in finding books to read!

Marked ♡ means I own the book

Read

• Witchery by Juliet Diaz

• The Green Witch by Arin Murphy-Hiscock

• Witch, Please by Victoria Maxwell

Currently Reading

To Be Read

♡ The Altar Within by Juliet Diaz

♡ Plant Witchery by Juliet Diaz

♡ Encyclopedia of Spirits by Judika Illes

• Encyclopedia of Witchcraft by Judika Illes

• Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints, & Sages by Judika Illes

• Moon Magic by Diane Ahlquist

♡ The Moon Book by Sarah Faith Gottesdiener

♡ Magical Healing by Hexe Claire

• The Long Lost Friend by John George Hohman

• Hex and Spellwork by Karl Herr

♡ Witchcraft Medicine by Claudia Müller-Ebeling, Christian Rätsch, and Wolf-Dieter Storl

• How to Study Magic by Sarah Lyons

• Love is In The Earth by Melody

• Radical Remedies by Brittany Ducham

♡ Spiritual Ecology by Multiple People (Llewellyn)

♡ A Witch's Shadow Magic Compendium by Raven Digitalis

• The Witch at The Forests Edge by Christine Grace

• Six Ways by Aidan Wachter

♡ Honoring Your Ancestors by Mallorie Vaudoise

• Year of The Witch by Temperance Alden

♡ Weave The Liminal by Laura Tempest Zakroff

♡ The Book of Candle Magic by Madame Pamita and Judika Illes

• The Triumph of the Moon by Ronald Hutton

♡ Folk Witchcraft by Roger J. Horne

♡ Wild Witchcraft by Rebecca Beyer

♡ The Spiral Dance by Starhawk

• Spells for Change by Frankie Castanea

• Utterly Wicked by Dorothy Morrison

♡ Of Blood and Bones by Kate Freuler

♡ The Little Work by Durgadas Allon Duriel

• Entering Hekates Garden by Cyndi Brannen

• Entering Hekates Cave by Cyndi Brannen

• Nordic Runes by Paul Rhys Mountfort

• The Book of Spells by Ella Harrison

• Plants of the Devil by Corinne Boyer

♡ Besom, Stang, and Sword by Christopher Orapello, Tara-Love Maguire

♡ Inner Witch by Gabriela Herstik

♡ Psychic Witch by Mat Auryn

♡ The Black Arts by Richard Cavendish

• Blackthorn's Botanical Magic by Amy Blackthorn

• Astrology for Real Life by Theresa Reed

♡ Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom

• The Trotula by Monica H. Green

• Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

• Bringing Race to the Table: Exploring Racism in the Pagan Community by Crystal Blanton, Taylor Ellwood, and Brandy Williams

• God Against the Gods by Jonathan Kirsch

• Pure Magic by Judika Illes

• Folk Magic by Mari Silva

• Witches Herbal Primer by Amy Cesari

♡ New World Witchery by Cory Thomas Hutcherson

•Magical Folk Healing by DJ Conway

• The Pagan Book of Days by Nigel Pennick

♡ Lady of The Night by Edain McCoy

♡ Spellcraft for a Magical Year by Sarah Bartlett

♡ The Complete Lenormand Oracle Handbook by Catlín Matthews

♡ Natural Magic by Pamela Ball

♡ Rebel Witch by Kelly-Ann Maddox

♡ The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need by Joanna Martine Woolfolk

♡ Mastering Magick by Mat Auryn

♡ In-focus Crystals by Bernice Cockram

♡ The Complete Grimoire by Lidia Pradas

• The Element Encyclopedia of 5000 Spells by Judika Illes

And that took a while but we're done! Will probably update this as I go <3

[cavorta]

July 27, 2024 16 very recommendable books with witchcraft and pagan topics which I have read since 2019. Some of them feature witchcraft/pagan 101 content, but many of them focus on rather specific topics for advanced witches and pagans.

List of the books:

„Mastering Magick: A Course in Spellcasting for the Psychic Witch“ by Mat Auryn

„The Way of Fire and Ice: The Living Tradition of Norse Paganism“ by Ryan Smith

„Magic for the Resistance: Rituals and Spells for Change“ by Michael M. Hughes

„Psychic Witch: A Metaphysical Guide to Meditation, Magick & Manifestation“ by Mat Auryn

„Rebel Witch: Carve the Craft That's Yours Alone“ by Kelly-Ann Maddox

„Death Walkers: Shamanic Psychopomps, Earthbound Ghosts, and Helping Spirits in the Afterlife Realm“ by David Kowalewski

„Outside the Charmed Circle: Exploring Gender & Sexuality in Magical Practice“ by Misha Magdalene

„The Path of Paganism: An Experience-Based Guide to Modern Pagan Practice“ by John Beckett

„Intuitive Witchcraft: How to Use Intuition to Elevate Your Craft“ by Astrea Taylor

„A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Herbs & Plants“ by Rachel Patterson

„A Kitchen Witch's World of Magical Food“ by Rachel Patterson

„Sigil Witchery: A Witch's Guide to Crafting Magick Symbols“ by Laura Tempest Zakroff

„Inspiring Creativity Through Magick: How to Ritualize Your Art and Attract the Creative Spirit“ by Astrea Taylor

„The Witch's Guide to the Paranormal: How to Investigate, Communicate, and Clear Spirits“ by J Allen Cross

„Hex Twisting: Counter-Magick Spells for the Irritated Witch“ by Diana Rajchel

„Bringing Race to the Table: Exploring Racism in the Pagan Community“ by Crystal Blanton, Brandy Williams, Taylor Ellwood

I have reviewed all of these (and more) books. If you are on The StoryGraph, you can read my reviews here: https://app.thestorygraph.com/user_reviews/andreag23

[jasper-pagan-witch]

Servitors as Links

If you have a desire to work with a commonly known spirit, deity, or entity, you can create a personal entity to act as a link with it by developing a name, image, and symbol based on the characteristics of the inspirational subject. You can even decide upon a specific realm of influence based on the general realm of influence of the original spirit or deity. By doing this, you are personalizing a link with the original subject through the creation of a personal entity. From that point on, you can call upon the spirit or deity through the name and symbol that you have designated to elicit a direct response from the desired entity. It is important to remember that you are working with an entity that serves as a link to the spirit or deity and not the spirit or deity itself. After continuous workings, you can, if you so desire, have the entity you created evolve away from the original spirit or deity to become its own independent entity. Then when you work with your entity, you will be working with your entity alone, though it will have gained knowledge and experience through the old link with the spirit or deity.

The same idea can be used to make an entity based on the aspects of a living or dead person. By taking the person's name and personal attributes, a very powerful and viable entity can be formed. This new entity will be linked to both the person and to you, in a similar fashion to an entity providing a link to a deity or spirit. This type of entity, when linked to a living person, can have great and powerful affects upon them. With such a link, an entity can be very useful for works of healing and protection directed at the person to whom it is linked. Of course, you can also use this sort of entity to inflict many dire things upon a person, should you so desire.

~Creating Magickal Entities: A Complete Guide to Entity Creation, by David Michael Cunningham with contributions by Taylor Ellwood and T. Amanda R. Wagener, pages 91 to 92

[jasper-book-stash]

So based on what I've read so far for primers on chaos magic, I recommend starting with Condensed Chaos: An Introduction To Chaos Magic by Phil Hine, THEN getting the updated and revised and expanded editions of Liber Null and Psychonaut and also Liber Kaos by Peter J Carroll.

Caveats for Condensed Chaos:

misuse of "shaman" and similar terms (none of what is brought up relates to Tungusic peoples)

written by a neurotypical white English bisexual cisgender man, and boy howdy is the neurotypical part obvious in several areas

inconsistent capitalization for concepts, and also inconsistent comma usage

definitely a product of its time and not decolonized, which is a larger problem in chaos magic as a whole

Recommended Audience for Condensed Chaos:

pop culture mages/pagans

those interested in servitors, sigils, or chaos magic more broadly

technology mages

those who want to explore Jungian psychology in magic

As for Peter J Carroll's works... Basically the same as the above, yet also way more difficult to read if you're not used to old grimoire-esque language and writing styles.

I'd still genuinely recommend all three of these, just with the reminder to raise an eyebrow at some of the claims made.

The books I still have to read on chaos magic that I currently own are Hands-On Chaos Magic: Reality Manipulation Through The Ovayki Current by Andrieh Vitimus; Creating Magickal Entities: A Complete Guide to Entity Creation by David Michael Cunningham, Taylor Ellwood, and T Amanda R Wagener; and Magickal Servitors: Create Your Own Spirits To Attract Pleasure, Power and Prosperity by Damon Brand.

Plenty of reading left for me to do on this subject.

[teriel]

Different magical traditions and systems and practices are actually more alike than different and why a lot of times the differences have more to do with our own subjective opinions than the actual substance of what is practiced. I also share why its continually important to learn other systems and traditions of magic, even when your practice is mainly oriented around one system or tradition.

[thosesillylittlegayghosts]

Gnawing at the bars of my enclosure whilst listening to the lakes by Taylor Swift and thinking of Sidney ellwood

[yourbestbuddie]

I could go on and on about how they fit Champagne Problems so perfectly.

I could go on about how The Great War was written for them.

I could go on and on how they reminded me of Remus (Gaunt) and Sirius (Ellwood) and the utter tragedy that had befallen them.

I could also go on about how fucking depressing this book was.

*SPOILERS AHEAD ANOTHER MARKER WHEN SPOILERS ARE OVER*

They started in 1914, happy and optimistic, Ellwood recited poetry and Gaunt pretended to hate it.

They made do in 1916 and they’d lost so much of themselves, nothing like who they’d been at the start. Ellwood was unrecognizable and bitter and angry and Gaunt just gave up.

“‘I’ve decided it doesn’t matter whether you love me back,’ said Gaunt.

Some long-dead poet must have written the lines with which to answer, but Ellwood no longer knew them.”

<<I’ve put stickies on the pages with quotes I like or find horribly depressing>>

They ended in 1919 and it shattered me but not because they went separate ways but because of the uncertainty of it all. They were happy — or pretended to be for the others sake — but the war utterly destroyed them both.

“Gaunt knew Ellwood would probably never love him again. He’d accepted it long ago.”

*SPOILERS OVER*

There was so much fucking death. It was so fucking depressing all 374 pages.

Just, fuck, this book took a lot out of me.

It was a very good book, if you like historial fiction. It portrayed the war with the emotion and gore and felt so real.

It started out in boarding school and everyone was eager to enlist just like we’d learned in history class (they had no idea of the true horrors of the frontlines)

I highly recommend if you like depressing books and angst and adventure and lots and lots of death.

Like a LOT of death, people — friends they’d known for years — dying right in front of their eyes and they barely have enough emotion left to give any care to the corpse lying on the ground where their lively friend had been but moments before.

The name is ‘In Memoriam’ by Alice Winn.

Thank you for reading my rant if you did— I needed to get some of that shit off my chest after finishing the book not even fifteen minutes ago. (Half the time since then I’ve been sitting on the couch sulking)