Heather's Library

Circle of Three Series #14: The Challenge Box
by Isobel Bird

p.37-38 While she would never admit it, and in fact would probably deny if asked, she loved reading Harry Potter. The way magic was portrayed in the stories was how she'd always thought of magic when she was little. Now she knew better, but it was fun to read about it in a world where people could make things happen just by waving a wand.

p.105 While she waited for her crawfish, she listened to the man playing the guitar. He hadn't stopped playing yet, and seemed content to keep right on playing the same beautiful music that had drawn Cooper in the first place. The song made her think of seemingly unrelated things: a slow-flowing river, fireflies blinking in the darkness, T.J., standing in a ritual circle holding hands with people on either side of her, listening to the sound of rain on her bedroom roof. It was almost dreamlike, but there was a harshness to it as wel, a sadness, as if the song was supposed to remind the listeners that life was hard but wonderful.

p.117 Sherrie trying to understand something about someone else was like a terrorist claiming he always checked to make sure there were no kittens inside a building before blowing it up.

p.144-145 He even looks the same, Kate thought, taking in his silver hair and bright blue eyes. Father Mahoney looked exactly the way a priest should look. He was wearing the traditional black suit with white collar, which just added to the overall impression he always gave of having been in the church his whole life. It's like the grew him at the priest farm and just picked him this morning, Kate thought.

Circle of Three #12: Written in the Stars
by Isobel Bird



p.41 "I don't think you can look at it that way," Cooper told her. "They didn't have to die so that these things could happen. And these things didn't happen because they died. They're just all connected. One thing leads to another, but it's not like we're all just acting out some big play that somebody else wrote."



p.110-111 It was time to cast the circle. Annie had been reading about different circle-casting rituals in a book that Archer had loaned her. One of the methods had interested her, and she decided to try it out.

   First she picked up the small bowl of salt that she kept on her altar to represent the element of earth. Holding it in her hand, she walked clockwise around the circle of candles, sprinkling a little bit of salt on the floor as she invoked the powers of earth into the circle.

   "Circle of earth," she said. "Cleanse and protect this sacred space."


   She completed her journey around the circle and placed the bowl of salt on the floor. Then she picked up a feather she'd collected on one of her walks in the woods over the summer. Holding that in her hand, she walked the circle again, this time calling on the element of air.

   "Circle of air," she said. "Sweep clean this sacred space."

   The third time around she picked up one of the candles from the circle and carried that with her, saying as she went, "Circle of fire, illuminate this sacred space." And on her fourth trip she held in her hand a bowl of water, sprinkling it on the floor while calling out, "Circle of water, bind and close this sacred space."


p.112-113 Annie bent and looked into the cauldron. It was filled with the brightest light she'd ever seen. It glowed with an intensity so fierce she feared being burned by it, even though it gave off no heat and didn't hurt her eyes. It seemed almost alive, rolling around on itself as if it was playing, or dancing.

   "Go ahead," Brigid urged her. "Reach inside. Take some for yourself."


   Annie looked into the goddess's face. "I'm afraid," she said.

   "Don't fear it," Brigid told her. "Be brave."

   Annie looked again into the cauldron. She was afraid. But she also wanted to accept Brigid's gift. Finally she reached out and tentatively lowered her hands toward the light, cupping them together. Still expecting to feel her skin burn, she plunged them into the flames.

   She wasn't burned. Instead, she felt more alive than she'd ever felt before. The light clung to her, filling her cupped hands. She lifted them and saw it pooled in her fingers, still moving. She lifted her hands over her head and opened them, letting the light fall over her. She felt it trickle over her head and down her body. Where it touched her she felt tiny sparks on her skin, like she was being washed in electricity. It left her feeling excited and filled with the desire to do something, to dance, or to sing.


NAMES: Patanowski

Circle of Three #8: The Five Paths
by Isobel Bird

p.11-12 "We're going to cast the circle in a different way tonight," Annie informed them. "I want to try something new. Since there are four of us I want us to take a different direction. I'll be east, Sasha will be south, Cooper will be west, and Kate will be north. I want us each to think about our direction, the element it represents, and the qualities associated with it. Then we're going to go around the circle, each of us saying a word that comes to mind when we think about our direction. We'll go around a couple of times. Try to imagine a circle of light forming as we do it."
   She paused for a moment as they all thought about the elements they were representing. Then she said in a clear voice, "Inspiration."
   "Passion," Sasha said, following her.
   "Mystery," said Cooper.
   "Strength," Kate said, finishing the first round.
   They continued, each of them saying a word. As they did the words formed a kind of chant, their voices rising and falling as they thought of differrent things to say. "Flying, dancing, diving, planting, wind, fire, waves, stone," they said, the words coming to create a rhythm. "Bird, dragon, whale, bear, birth, life, sleep, death."
   After they'd gone around several times Annie said, "The circle is cast." She let go of Sasha's and Kate's hands and motioned for them all to sit down. Then she took a bottle of clear liquid, opened it, and poured the liquid into the cauldron. Striking a match, she dropped it in as well, and the cauldron sprang to life with bright flames that burned without smoke.
  "Rubbing alcohol," she said as the others looked at the fire. "A little trick I picked up in chemistry class."
  "Very nice," Cooper said.

p.59 "It's called a pentacle," Cooper said. A pentagram is when you draw it on something. A pentacle is when it's in physical form."

p.84 "Just as they are during the Spring Equinox, or Ostara, the hours of light and dark are equal on Mabon," Sophia told them. "But where Ostara herself aids the growth of the light, we're now entering the season of darkness. The days will shorten and the sun will become weaker and weaker. This is a very important time of year for witches. Samhain, or Halloween, is coming up, followed by Yule in December. These are two of the most meaningful and wonderful of the sabbats."

Circle of Three #6: Ring of Light
by Isobel Bird

p.10 "I think a smart guy is sexier than an athlete any day," Aunt Netty said, catching Kate's eye and winking. "Muscles come and go, but a good mind is a rare thing."

p.122 "East...creature of air. We ask you into our circle to bless us with your gift of creativity."

p.122-123 "South, creature of fire, we ask you into our circle to bless us with our gift of determination."

p.123 "West, creature of water, we ask you into our circle to bless us with your gift of change."

p.123 "North, creature of earth, we ask you into our circle to bless us with your gift of portection."

p.123 "By the powers of erath, water, fire,and air, the circle is cast."