Ellen Evert Hopman - Reviews

Review of "Gifts from the Healing Earth, Volumes 1 & 2"

Ellen Evert Hopman, M. Ed. Is a member of the American Herbalist Guild, a lay homeopath, and a member of Keltria, an international Druid fellowship. She has written Tree Medicine - Tree Magic; A Druid's Herbal, People of the Earth, and A Children's Herbal. She is also a teacher and has been teaching classes on the use of herbs since 1983.

This video alternates between New England forest in spring and Hopman's own kitchen. She takes the viewers on a stroll through the woods, describing various plants she comes across, shows how to identify and collect them, and explains their uses. We then go back to her kitchen for a lesson and demonstration on the creation of various herbal preparations. In this video, Hopman makes an herbal salve, a comfrey poultice, birch beer, heart wine, lavender wine, dandelion salad, arabic um powder, vegetable tonic, and a cedar smudge stick. Between each preparation, she shows us how to identify each plant in its natural setting.

This video is as hands-on as you can get without actually being there. Being able to see the plants and the process of preparing them is worlds above reading about it or even seeing pictures in a book. Ellen Hopman is wellspring of knowledge and she presents it exceedingly well. Not only do you get nine useful recipes, you also get several different methods of preparation and use.

As if this weren't enough, Hopman also gives a fascinating little discourse on the Doctrine of Signatures, which is an old method of identifying a plant's uses by its physical appearance. I was delighted to get the opportunity to see this video and look forward to watching it again. This video missed getting 5 stars for only one reason...the production. It is surprisingly well done for a low-budget film, but it is obvious that it IS a tad low budget. Not that I'm complaining, it does keep the price down, which is a good thing because I think you should all buy a copy.

Again we return to New England and the world of Ellen Hopman, Master Herbalist. This time, she is leading a group of holistic nurses. She teaches them to identify a variety of plants including, elderberry, jewelweed, plantain, staghorn sumac, sweet fern, and more. She also points out poison ivy and prepares a remedy to use against it.

As in Volume 1, Hopman discusses the Doctrine of Signatures. This time, however, she adds some discussion of the chinese Five Element Theory of plant identification. And again, she explains the preparation of a number of herbal remedies.

As I mentioned earlier, this video includes a group of holistic nurses. Volume 2 breaks up the nature walks with a sort of round table talk between Hopman and the nurses. During these pieces, they discuss Healing Touch, Reiki, guided imagery and energy work. The nurses share some of their opinions and hopes for the future of medical care. Interestingly, the nurses draw a marked distinction between "healing" and "curing." In their opinion, healing is more important. A patient may not need to be cured. If they are helped to be whole within themselves, mind, body, and spirit, then they are healed, whether or not the illness is "cured." It is a refreshing "whole person" view of medical care.

This "Field Guide to Herbalism" is informative, entertaining, useful and interesting. It also includes some video clips af actual Healing Touch and Reiki healing sessions. The video goes one step further and tells you where you can find more information about the topics covered. All in all, it is an excellent video and well worth having.

Review of "Pagans: The Wheel of the Sacred Year"

I'm recovering from knee surgery, and my mobility is still a bit limited (although, I am doing very well!). I wasn't able to go out and celebrate the Solstice yesterday outdoors, and I was home by myself when the Solstice occurred at 4:22.

I hadn't planned anything for the Solstice, but ont he spur of the moment I took out the "Pagans" VHS tape ythat ou sent me way back (I have enjoyed it immensely) and wound it to the beginning "Yule" section. I turned all of the lights in the house off, set a small fire in the fireplace, and prepared myself 4 candles-- for the solstices and equinoxes. I then watched the Yule section of the tape, and sort of "participated" along with all of you in the program. When you lit your candles and put them in the snow, I lit mine, setting them in a circle around me. When the section of tape ended, I spent some time meditating on the meaning of the Solstice. By then, it was about 4:30, and already getting dark. I kindled the pre-set fire in the fireplace, and then went around my house, turning on the strings of holiday lights that decorate my tree, windows, and the miniature house displays that I have set up in the rooms. I turned on some Celtic holiday music and sat amidst the glowing lights, enjoying a cup of eggnog and feeling very much at peace and quite festive!

I wanted to let you know that the tape gave me a way to create a spontaneous feeling not only of ritual, but of community. It was really quite lovely.

BB, Moonwriter

Walking The World In Wonder: A Children's Herbal

Walking The World In Wonder: A Children's Herbal by Ellen Evert Hopman is an inspiring, full-color primer in herbalism for children of all ages (and grown-ups getting acquainted with the plant world).

The colorful cover will make you want to dig right in to the book. Luckily for us, the eye candy doesn't stop there; delightful watercolors fill every page.

Hopman begins with an introduction for parents and teachers, in which she gives several practical pointers and basic instructions. She recommends we use the book as a starting point for scavenger hunts, or, more casually, as a field guide for our children's finds, and hopes the ancient art and study of plant uses will inspire a sense of wonder in our children. She also gives us the important safety information here.

Next is an introduction that can be read aloud to the children, or read by the children; it is written to them. Here is where you'll start to see why this herbal is special. Hopman's text exudes love for her subject, and the sense of wonder she wishes to inspire is apparent in her own words. In this chapter, she covers plant etiquette, or safety for the ecosystem, right alongside safety for the kids, and offers additional guidance similiar to what she prepped parents and teachers with previously.

As one last help before digging into the meat of the book, the author provides a handy checklist (with a symbol indicating the poisonous plants) which can be copied into one's nature notebook and used as a record of what has been found and used, or of which herbs have been studied.

The rest of the book is arranged into seasons, with poems by contemporary poets introducing each of the four. There are only a few herbs listed for winter, but thirty-seven in the summer section, and more in spring and autumn. Each season has it's own pretty watercolors border, making it easy to use the book for casual browsing.

One plant is featured on each two-page spread, with a color photograph on the left hand side, and a lively introduction and recipe or craft, sometimes more than one, on the right hand side. The photographs are quite large, and show the necessary details to help learners identify a plant. The introduction to the herb is from the perspective of the herb. For example, "I stand straight up! My stems are covered with . . . " It is charming, especially when read in the field with the wind blowing the plants to life in front of you.

The directions to the projects, which include crafts, foods, washes, toys, and a myriad of other neat things, are bare bones. She gives three sentences on the canning process for pickles, something that you should definitely read more thoroughly on before attempting. But, for the vast majority of the projects, this will only be a problem if you've never cooked or gardened before.

The entries also cover Latin, and notes of interest on the historical names and uses of the plant, making it easy for homeschoolers to build unit studies around this book.

Hopman does occasionally refer to aspects of plant science your children will not understand -- temperate zone, for example. These terms are so well encased by wording that is on the right level for children of five and up, that if you knows plants yourself, you'll be able to explain in context with no major interruptions to the flow of the lesson (or scavenger hunt).

Though the author is Neopagan, this is still a book useful for those desiring a secular education. Statements frequently anthropomorphize the plants, but this is nothing new in children's literature.

As a Neo-Pagan mom, I was thrilled to see that the introduction for children includes a paragraph explaining to children how to make offerings to the plants. Parents of other religions should know that this can be skipped during a read-aloud, or whited out neatly, without losing the rhythm of the text.

There is, however, one section that will probably prevent the placement of this book in public school libraries. Between the children's introduction and the seasonal sections, we find a chapter titled "The Wheel of the Year." It explains how the herbalist's year integrates with modern Pagan holidays. It's written a bit inconsistently: Hopman carefully defines the words "night" and "day," but when it comes to Samhain, she says it's Celtic and expects the same kids to know what that means. If you don't have any reason to teach your children the Neopagan Wheel of the Year, you could easily skip the chapter, as there's not anything absolutely necessary to beginning herbalism in it. If you are Pagan, you'll find uses for this section despite the awkward irregularity in the author's expectations of her readers.

A useful bibliography and list of organizations for herbalism end the book.

If you are completely and utterly inexperienced in the green world, you will probably want to pick up a book or two on gardening or plant science to help you understand the information here. But whether you know herbs or are learning them with your children, Walking The World makes a very good spine around which to build your herbal science curriculum.

Walking The World in Wonder: A Children's Herbal, by Ellen Evert Hopman, photographs by Steven Foster, is published by Healing Arts Press of Rochester, Vermont. ISBN 0-89281-878-6.

Original Reviewed at athenahomeschool.org

Priestess of the Forest

The Celtic world has always piqued my curiosity; I am not certain whether this is due to some past life adventure or simple admiration for the roles Celtic women played in the care and protection of the home, the earth, and the spiritual and cultural direction of a society. Any story that brings ancient Celts to life is usually on my list of “must see films and books.”
Still, novels and films, while based on historical events or facts, tend to be limited in their ability to accurately depict Celtic life and the Druid lifestyle, in particular. Serendipitously, a novel that balances historical accuracy with story arrived in my mailbox for review: Priestess of the Forest: A Druid Journey
by Ellen Evert Hopman is a historical novel steeped in Celtic Druidism.

Priestess is a bardic teaching tale in which Hopman weaves Druid history and spirituality into an engaging story set in a fictional third-century Ireland just as Christianity begins to infiltrate the Celtic isles. The tale follows the fate of a young Druid priestess, Ethne, who has been living a secluded life in
the woods, specializing in herbal healing of the wounded who are sent her. A Fennid warrior named Ruah arrives at her hut in need of medical attention and, during the long winter, a passionate, soulful love emerges between the two. Come Spring, Ethne is called upon by her Druid masters to take the seat of high queen—and the bed of the high king—in order to preserve the Druid way of life from Christian conversion.

The story is told through Ethne’s eyes, giving the reader a true sense of the Druid way of looking at life, death and magic. Ethne must navigate a way between duty to her people and the love in her heart, between politics, war and religion. With few exceptions, the characters are well-developed and genuine. The reader is drawn into their lives, their desires, and their fears.

Were this book a “true novel” and not a teaching tale, I would have liked aspects of the plot to have thickened a bit more or conflicts to have been resolved less neatly. For example, Ethne, who admits she “is bound in her soul to Ruah,” easily shares her heart, mind and body with the High King, Crimthann. A child is conceived, and the paternity is in question (but not to give away the plot), suffice it to say Hopman too quickly and easily tidies-up this issue. All things considered, I highly recommend this book equally to readers who are new to the Celtic tradition as well as those who practice Druidism or related earth-based spirituality.

Hopman, co-chief of the Order of the White Oak and a Druidess of the Clan of Dana, is the author of several books on neopaganism, druid herbology and spiritually. In Priestess, her first novel, she recreates the magical and medicinal practices of daily Celtic life, politics and spirituality during a tumultuous period in history. Weaved throughout the story are Druid celebrations, holy rites, rituals, herbology, crafts and much more. The book includes two glossaries for the uninitiated—one on the characters and one of Celtic terms. At the back of the book there is a resource list for further study and an informative interview with Hopman.

Karen M Rider, M.A. writes articles, stories, reviews and promotional copy that educates, enlightens and entertains the reader. Karen is guided by three muses—clarity, integrity and creativity—in all endeavors. She holds a degree in health psychology. Karen resides in central Connecticut where she shares life's adventures with her daughter and husband. She is working on her first novel. Contact:riderkm@cox.net.

A Druid's Herbal for the Sacred Earth Year

For a selection of Ellen's books covering topics from Druids and Druidry through to Herbalism and Paganism click here