Book Review: The Great Goddess

I was so excited when I found the book by Jean Markale, The Great Goddess! It looked like the kind of book I had been searching for. This book deals with Goddess worship from the Paleolithic to the present. It's filled with so much information on Goddess history, that I recommend taking notes if you really want the info to stick. Now I must say that I did enjoy reading this book, although it can be a little dry in some areas, so it's a book you'll read over time. It's mainly academic with a little mythology.

Worship of a Mother Goddess dates back thousands of years. Figurines of women have been found with exaggerated breasts and hips that are believed to symbolize fertility. Jean Markale discusses each and every one of these ancient figurines. Everything from the famous Venus of Wilendorf to the Sheela Na Gigs of Great Britain. There is even a reference in the back of the book that names all Goddess centered figurines, sanctuaries and statues.

The beginning of this book gives you a history on the ancient practice of Goddess worship, starting with the Paleolithic peoples. It goes on from there to talk about Christianity, and the change of the world religion from a Mother Goddess nature centered spirituality, to a patriarchal spirituality. The last few chapters of this book talks about different Goddess/Pagan religions around the world, like the Celts, Egyptians, Hindu and so on. I have to say, that the middle portion of this book goes a little too deep into detail about when Christianity came about. Although it's a relevant time period in our history, I was looking more for just info on Goddess history.

The Great Goddess is filled with historical fact and is very academic, which I happen to like. There are no rituals or meditations to try or anything like that. Strictly historical fact on ancient Goddess worship. Which I think is very important for modern Goddess followers to know. But if your looking for an easy, fun, activity filled read, this isnt it. Take your time with this one and soak it all in! Theres tons of Goddess history out there waiting to come to the surface, and I think Jean Markale did a superb job conveying that ancient message to us.

Check out The Great Goddess on amazon. Enjoy learning about our history with the Mother Goddess!


Blessings )O(