Positive magic can be seen as a form of self-care, a means of empowerment, and a way to connect with oneself and the universe. Elissa Washuta, a writer and member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, explores the concept of positive magic in her work, highlighting its potential for healing and personal transformation. Washuta's book, "White Magic," delves into her own experiences with positive magic and how it has shaped her life. She examines the power of intention and the belief that we have the ability to manifest our desires through positive thinking and rituals. Positive magic, for Washuta, is not about controlling or manipulating others, but rather about harnessing one's own inner power and connecting with the natural world. It is a practice that helps to cultivate a sense of agency and agency, allowing individuals to take ownership of their lives and create positive change.
Washuta is a member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, a federally recognized tribe in the Pacific Northwest. “The mortgage lender and the cops don’t treat me as a menace, they think I’m white so they let me live,” she writes. Though Washuta might pass as white, the toxin of racism and colonialism penetrates the ground she walks on, the water that runs through town, and the alcohol she drinks to medicate herself for physical and psychic pain.
In Little Lies, the first essay of the book, Washuta describes the toll of coal mining on the human body In the early 1900s, autopsied lung sections of career miners in Pennsylvania were found to sink in water. In Little Lies, the first essay of the book, Washuta describes the toll of coal mining on the human body In the early 1900s, autopsied lung sections of career miners in Pennsylvania were found to sink in water.
It is a practice that helps to cultivate a sense of agency and agency, allowing individuals to take ownership of their lives and create positive change. In her writing, Washuta also touches on the importance of community and the sharing of knowledge and experiences. She highlights the role of storytelling and the passing down of ancestral wisdom in keeping the tradition of positive magic alive.
White Magic (Paperback)
Throughout her life, Elissa Washuta has been surrounded by cheap facsimiles of Native spiritual tools and occult trends, “starter witch kits” of sage, rose quartz, and tarot cards packaged together in paper and plastic. Following a decade of abuse, addiction, PTSD, and heavy-duty drug treatment for a misdiagnosis of bipolar disorder, she felt drawn to the real spirits and powers her dispossessed and discarded ancestors knew, while she undertook necessary work to find love and meaning.
In this collection of intertwined essays, she writes about land, heartbreak, and colonization, about life without the escape hatch of intoxication, and about how she became a powerful witch. She interlaces stories from her forebears with cultural artifacts from her own life—TwinPeaks, the Oregon Trail II video game, a Claymation Satan, a YouTube video of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham—to explore questions of cultural inheritance and the particular danger, as a Native woman, of relaxing into romantic love under colonial rule.
Bracingly honest and powerfully affecting, White Magic establishes Elissa Washuta as one of our best living essayists.
About the Author
Washuta is a member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe and a nonfiction writer. She is the author of Starvation Mode and My Body Is a Book of Rules, named a finalist for the Washington State Book Award. With Theresa Warburton, she is co-editor of the anthology Shapes of Native Nonfiction: Collected Essays by Contemporary Writers. She is an assistant professor of creative writing at the Ohio State University.
Praise For…
Necessary and magical.
— NPR
Exactly what you need right now.
— O, The Oprah Magazine
A web of honest examination of self and context. . . . A vibration that asks the body to listen, and rewards it for doing so.
— The Seattle Times
Nobody in the country uses more innovative nonfiction forms than Washuta.
— The Stranger
A well of invention and imagination.
— The Believer
A fascinating magic trick of a memoir that illuminates a woman's search for meaning.
— Kirkus, Starred Review
Her skill at transforming writing clichés and well-worn cultural signifiers into fresh insights is alchemical.
— The A.V. Club
Incredible.
— Book Riot
Seamless and scalding.
— Guernica
Incantatory, impassioned. . . . [A] wholly magical look at learning how to recognize the power that rests within you.
— Refinery29
Resonant and weighty.
— BuzzFeed
An innovative and deeply felt work to sink into.
— The Millions
As an essay collection, White Magic is as beautifully complex as it is illuminating. Washuta is a conjurer here, able to effortlessly showcase her talents while simultaneously pulling you close, as if she might suddenly reveal all her secrets. She is a genius at the art of subtle misdirection. Reading this book felt like being shown an expertly performed magic trick: deftly, flawlessly. No loose threads revealed. The work is funny and wry, it's thought-provoking and tender. It's a sleight of hand performed by a true master of the craft. White Magic is magnificent and Elissa Washuta is spellbinding. There is no one else like her.
— Kristen Arnett, author of Mostly Dead Things
Elissa Washuta is exactly the writer we need right now: as funny as she is formidable a thinker, as thoughtful as she is inventive—her scrutiny is a fearless tool, every subject whittled to its truest form. White Magic is a bracingly original work that enthralled me in a hypnosis on the other side of which I was changed for the better, more likely to trust my own strange intelligence.
— Melissa Febos, author of Whip Smart, Abandon Me, & Girlhood
White magic, red magic, Stevie Nicks magic—this is Elissa Washuta magic, which is a spell carved from a life, written in blood, and sealed in an honesty I can hardly fathom.
— Stephen Graham Jones, author of The Only Good Indian
In brilliant, clear-eyed prose, Elissa Washuta maps a magical passage into (and back out of) the underworld, through knotty legacies of violence and longing and love. Part history, part riddle, part portal: this book worked on me like a spell. I've never read anything like White Magic, and will be returning to it again and again.
— Claire Comstock-Gay, author of Madame Clairevoyant’s Guide to the Stars
You're going to feel like you’re drownfloating reading this diary of pain and meditation and wish for magic where every word helps Elissa Washuta’s soul return to her body. White Magic is as haunting as the work of Beckylane’s Where The Rivers Join and as eerily hypnotic as Kate Schatz’s Rid of Me. These pages are windows into a black lodge where Twin Peaks and Fleetwood Mac are on repeat—sometimes forward, sometimes backwards, sometimes in blackout blur. I stand in awe of everything here. What an incredible and wounding read.
— Richard Van Camp, author of The Lesser Blessed and Godless but Loyal to Heaven
- Literary Collections / Essays
- Literary Collections / Indigenous Peoples of the Americas
- Literary Collections / Women Authors
- Kobo eBook (April 27th, 2021): $17.95
- Hardcover (April 27th, 2021): $26.95
White magic, red magic, Stevie Nicks magic—this is Elissa Washuta magic, which is a spell carved from a life, written in blood, and sealed in an honesty I can hardly fathom.
— Stephen Graham Jones, author of The Only Good Indian
Through sharing these stories, she believes that we can find strength, purpose, and connection. Ultimately, Washuta's exploration of positive magic serves as a reminder of its transformative potential. It invites readers to embrace the power within themselves and connect with the world around them in a meaningful and intentional way. Positive magic, as she describes it, offers a path to healing, self-discovery, and personal growth..
Reviews for "Exploring the Depths of the Soul: Unveiling Elissa Washuta's Positive Magic"
1. John - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with Positive Magic by Elissa Washuta. I had heard such great things about this book, but personally, I found it to be confusing and disjointed. The writing style felt experimental and abstract, which made it difficult for me to connect with the content. Additionally, I felt like the author jumped around too much, making it hard to follow her train of thought. Overall, I couldn't engage with the book as much as I wanted to, and it left me feeling unsatisfied.
2. Sarah - 1 star - I really wanted to like Positive Magic, but it just wasn't for me. The book seemed to lack a clear focus or direction, and it felt more like a stream of consciousness rather than a cohesive narrative. I struggled to understand the connections between the different topics and themes, which made it hard for me to stay engaged. Additionally, I found the writing style to be pretentious and self-indulgent, which further alienated me as a reader. Unfortunately, this book was not my cup of tea.
3. Mark - 2 stars - I had high hopes for Positive Magic, but ultimately, I found it to be a disappointment. The book lacked a clear structure, making it difficult to follow along with the author's thoughts and ideas. It often felt like the author was trying to be avant-garde, but it came across as confusing and inaccessible. While I appreciate experimentation in writing, it felt like the narrative was sacrificed for style in this case. I struggled to connect with the content and found myself losing interest as I read on.