Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
For more than two hundred years, the Owens women have been blamed for everything that has gone wrong in their Massachusetts town. Gillian and Sally have endured that fate as well: as children, the sisters were forever outsiders, taunted, talked about, pointed at. Their elderly aunts almost seemed to encourage the whispers of witchery, with their musty house and their exotic concoctions and their crowd of black cats. But all Gillian and Sally wanted was to escape. One will do so by marrying, the other by running away. But the bonds they share will bring them back - almost as if by magic...
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This is a story that's been near and dear to my heart for as long as I can remember so don't expect this to be a typical book review, instead, it's basically my love letter to the story itself. I've watched the film Practical Magic every single year around Halloween ever since I was little. But it never scared me. It always struck me as a beautiful tale full of love and magic and anytime I watch it I get that warm fuzzy feeling of excitement I used to when I'd see it as a kid. So, for a very long time, I've put off reading the book it was based on. I didn't want the book to ruin the movie for me you know? But then last year I read the prequel about the aunts, and it destroyed me inside and out and I had to read more about the Owens' even if it was a story I already knew so well.
Well, the book definitely didn't ruin the movie for me. They're so starkly different that I don't think you can even fairy compare them. But once again, reading this book, I got that warm fuzzy feeling. Alice Hoffman's words always open up parts of my heart I didn't know existed. Her sentences are so lovely that you don't realize she's ripped open a hole in you until it's too late. It's a fairytale for grown-ups. A fairytale grounded in the real world with all of its unfortunate truths but always in the background, there's that faint buzzing of hope and love. So of course, this book didn't disappoint. The Owens' now own my heart.
The thing I like about the Practical Magic universe and especially in this book is that it's about a family of witches, yet magic is never the outright subject or theme. Not once. It's left so open-ended that if you refuse to believe that what happens around this family is actual magic, no one could blame you. It's not shoved in your face with spell books and hokey incantations. This makes it a book I think all types of people can enjoy. It's a story that, no matter how dark it gets or how sorrowful the plot becomes, you always know that there will be a happy ending. It's a story that will leave you in tears. It's a story that will bring you hope. And most of all, it's a story about love, and I think that's what makes it so beautiful and why the Owens' seem to be able to dig into the hearts of anyone who encounters them whether through book or film.
As much as I love this story, I will point out a few things that did bug me. I don't like how the entire story takes place in Sally's suburban home instead of at the Aunts witchy house in small-town Massachusettes. Maybe I'm biased towards the movie, but what better for a witchy story than an ancient house built by the first witch ancestor? Who wants suburbia? I get that it represents what Sally has always dreamed of... but I really wished it had taken place at the Aunts house. Another thing I had a problem with was the Aunts backstory. And this book was written first so I'm not blaming the fault here, but in the prequel (which I loved so much, maybe more than this one) the Aunts both have very elaborate love stories with two very different men who impacted them so much that neither ever fell in love again.... but in this book, their background story is completely different! I didn't like the discrepancy, it was like an unexpected splash of cold water. Also, another main focus in the movie, and in the prequels, is the curse. But this book barely mentions anything about a generational curse. It just seemed like it was missing parts of the story. But I guess that's what happens when you do things out of order, so, partly my fault.
One major change between the film and book that I greatly enjoyed, was Sally's daughters. They're so young in the movie and are basically just props for Sally's story. But in the book, they're both teenagers and they both have their own stories which I thought brought so much more depth to the book and to the theme of sisterly relationships. Sally and Gillian seem to either love each other or resent each other at any given time, which is nothing new when it comes to sisters. But the relationship between Antonia and Kylie showed just how tumultuous that relationship could be. Sisters have the power to be your worst enemy and your best friend. They can spew words that hurt you like no other, yet they can be your fiercest champion against someone who has done you wrong. With Sally and Gillian, you don't get much of that because they're already adults, that behaviour is behind them. But as teenagers full of jealousy and lacking self-confidence, Kylie and Antonia's story was a perfect reflection of how sisters can really be growing up. It was a surprising addition I didn't expect but greatly enjoyed.
All in all, I loved it and I'm so glad it didn't disappoint. I would have cried if it did.... although, I did cry anyway. This story has a way of burrowing into me. It's always been my favourite movie and now it's turned into one of my favourite books. I definitely recommend it. Read the book, read the prequels (the Aunts AND the original Ancestor both have their own stories), watch the movie, enjoy it all! Always 5 stars on this one.
"Always throw spilled salt over your left shoulder. Keep rosemary by your garden gate. Add pepper to your mashed potatoes. Plant roses and lavender for luck. Fall in love whenever you can." -Alice Hoffman