Book Review - Sticks, Stones, Roots, and Bones

Book Review of 'Sticks, Stones, Roots, and Bones' by Stephanie Rose Bird

Book Title: Sticks, Stones, Roots, and Bones: Hoodoo, Mojo, and Conjuring with Herbs

Author: Stephanie Rose Bird

Publisher: Llewellyn

Rating: 2/5

Before I start this review, I want to say that this was one of the hardest books to rate. I constantly wavered between 2/5 and 4/5. Why? I found myself in a moral conundrum. If you remember my post 'Decolonizing my Craft', I stated that I hadn't purchased a book about African-rooted traditions because, as a white woman, those practices are not open to me. But I want to support marginalised authors and their practices, so I made it a point to purchase a Hoodoo book written by a black female author this year. I saw the beautiful cover of 'Sticks, Stones, Roots & Bones' by Stephanie Rose Bird and was drawn in by the design. (Yes, I'm a graphic designer, so I'm a sucker for a good book cover.)

According to the website I bought the book from, it was published in 2024. That was an extra point in its favor. I try to avoid anything published before 2018 because that's when authors and publishers started being more careful about appropriation. However, it only took a few chapters for me to squint my eyes at the book. I flipped to the copyright page to read that yes, my copy had been published in 2024; however, that was its twentieth printing. The original had been published in 2004. Ouch! The 90s and early 2000s were the height of New Age religion and appropriation culture. And buddy, this book reeks of it!

Comparing the two different covers of 'Sticks, Stones, Roots and Bones' by Stephanie Rose Bird

We'll get to that in a moment. First, I want to take a moment to discuss the things that I liked. 'Sticks, Stones, Roots & Bones' is written by a black American, for black Americans. It was wonderful to see an author trace back many traditions and beliefs to their African counterpart instead of just the European. I learned a lot about African spirits, and also about the wide range of cultural differences across Africa.

While I did not read this book in an attempt to become a Hoodoo practitioner, I was interested in seeing if any of the traditions crossed my Appalachian/Celtic practices. Not only did I learn a lot about Hoodoo's roots, but I was pleased to see the incorporation of the Appalachian magic. I learned a lot about the herbs that hoodoo rootworkers used that my family in the Appalachians also used. Just an FYI for anyone unfamiliar with Appalachian magic, it is also referred to as Root Work or Granny Magic. So when you hear someone call themselves a rootworker, that could mean Hoodoo or Granny Magic. If you're interested in learning more about Appalachian witchcraft and my book recommendations, I have a YouTube video where I discuss my top 10 witchcraft books.

With that said, there were many things that I did not like about this book. First, Bird states that anyone can practice Hoodoo because it's not a religion. While yes, it is not a religion, it is also based on African traditions, so it's best not to try that if you're a white American. Instead, I would suggest looking into Appalachian magic. It was developed in the same regional area and uses many of the same herbs and superstitions; however, Appalachian magic was a merging of German, Dutch, Scottish, Irish, Native American, and African magic. So this makes it a more open and inclusive magical path.

And I know there are going to be arguments on both sides. I've read the Reddit chats and many journal articles. Some say 'Yes, white people can practice Hoodoo' while others vehemently say 'No, that is not open to white people.' Just the fact that we can't all agree on a clear and concise answer means it's best to step away. As I stated before, Appalachian magic is similar (since Hoodoo was created alongside it) and is drama-free for the average white practitioner.

Next, the appropriation is off the charts in this book. Bird walks you through how to make a Mexican ofrenda and what plants are native to Mexico. Then she goes into Feng Shui. Neither of those things was ever traditionally incorporated in southern root work because those cultures weren't original in the area. That's a New Age addition. It makes sense because it was written so early, but there's a particular quote that really struck a bad chord for me. I don't want to take anything out of context, so I'm going to write out the entire thing.

"We have always looked to our neighbors for inspiration and commonalities in our magickal traditions. It is difficult to hear someone say 'Oh, that's Native American,' when speaking of sage smudge sticks, or 'That's from Japan, really, isn't it?' when speaking about specific resins and incenses, because very few cultures have lived for extensive periods of time in complete isolation. Monolithic culture is more of an ideal that supports racism than a reality based on fact." - Ch. 5, pg. 88

From this quote, she's letting the reader know that people have been calling out her appropriation. Instead of reflecting on herself, she doubles down and infers that if you don't appropriate, you're supporting racism. What the F? I can respect another culture without immediately incorporating it into my witchcraft and writing a book teaching others how to do it. I think that's the point that hurts this book so much. She KNEW it was wrong. People pointed out that it was wrong, yet she still wrote a book with that in it.

So, when it came time to rate this book, I already knew I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, which is a shame since I was so excited for it. It has many good recipes and covers African history. However, the New Age appropriation was too large to ignore. Before anyone tries to say that I rated her book poorly because she's black and the book is about African heritage, remember, I bought this book because she is black and it was about African heritage. I truly wanted to love this book. I considered ignoring the appropriation and giving this book a 4/5 for its historical aspects. I was worried that people would be cruel to me because I gave a bad review for a black author. But I gave House Magic a 2/5 because the author mentioned a couple of appropriated topics. This book is drenched in it.

Perhaps if I knew this book was written in 2004, I would never have purchased it, thus never given this review. But the fact is, I did buy it, and here we are. If Stephanie Rose Bird rewrote this book and removed the appropriation, I could see this being an excellent resource that I would happily promote. But as it is today, that book needs to be left behind with the rest of the New Age corner. If anyone has any recommendations for black or POC authors who do NOT appropriate, please leave them in the comments below. I really would like to expand my knowledge while respecting each other's cultures.