Magick in the West End is a book centred on the esoteric store Malynowsky's in London. Kala is the store's own Tarot reader, and she spends her days helping people, who seek her guidance in different matters, and the stories in the book all deal with Kala and her different experiences.
That might sound interesting to you, and it sure did when I saw the beautiful cover of the book and read on its back what other people had thought about it before me. It's a short book, 177 pages, which makes it a quick read. And I'm sad to say that I found that to be a great thing, because I never managed to find the book very entertaining.
Well, that's not really true. Some of the stories were quite good, for instance the once about Sam, a fellow worker at Malynowsky's who had a extremely traumatic experience at Highgate Cemetery as a child. Or for instance the story about Kala's journey to New Orleans where she spends some time with her best girlfriend.
But that's pretty much it. This will be a short review, and that's only because I don't really have a whole lot more to say about this book. It's true that all stories have some sort of occult reasoning and discussion, but since I don't practise Tarot or any of the other magickal techniques mentioned in the book I never really got very interested, and unfortunately I can only assume that people who do practice the same things Kala practices still won't necessarily find the book to be a must.
If all stories had been of the same quality as the Highgate story or the New Orleans story, then things would be different, because Kala Trobe really does know how to write well. But since none of the other stories managed to get me the least interested I still must say the book as a whole was quite disappointing. Sorry.
Kala Trobe offers another thought provoking collection of tales set in modern-day London. She serves another collection of stories which illustrate the blurring of the line between the mundane and magickal worlds; a collection of stories which the reader will, most likely, feel might have happened, or could have happened, or might yet happen if the circumstances are just right.
This collection of seven short stories is, once again, an eclectic gathering - from Sadboy Sam (is he or isn't he connected with the Highgate Vampire?) to the Kali Furies (a self-admitted "Tale of Misanthropy").
How much of this book is autobiographical and how much is purely invention is impossible to sort out and, ultimately, is unimportant. The stories are entertaining and contain some truths which are passing along. The heroine is not a perfect member of the magickal community. She has her shortcomings, some of which are self-destructive and others of which are merely non-PC. She is not all sweetness-and-light, nor is she all gloom-and-doom. She is, in short, a living, breathing member of the human race and one that most of us can, at least partially, identify with.
As soon as I got this book I knew I was going to regret it. Kala writes so well, and her stories are so believable that I hate to come to the end of her books. I enjoyed her first fiction book (The Magick Bookshop) and found this collection just as enjoyable. I can't speak about her non-fiction, although I may have to dig up a copy or two of her books in that field just out of curiosity. What I can say, without reservation, is that her fiction is among the best I have read set in the real world. You have no doubt about the possibility of meeting her characters in the street, if you haven't already.
I've said it before, and I will say it again. Buy this book and enjoy the experience.
