Toil & Trouble

A Spellbinding Memoir of Witchcraft, Family Secrets, and the Power of Love "Here's a partial list of things I don't believe in: God. The Devil. Heaven. Hell. Bigfoot. Ancient Aliens. Past lives. Life after death. Vampires. Zombies. Reiki. Homeopathy. Rolfing. Reflexology. Note that 'witches' and 'witchcraft' are absent from this list. The thing is, I wouldn't believe in them, and I would privately ridicule any idiot who did, except for one thing: I am a witch." In this stunning memoir, Augusten Burroughs, the number one New York Times bestselling author, delves into his family's history of witchcraft and his own journey to understand the tricky power he wields. Descended from a long line of witches dating back to the early American colonies, Augusten and his mother shared an extraordinary bond—until the day she left him in the care of her psychiatrist to be raised in his family. Navigating the world of this mysterious gift, Augusten chronicles his experiences, from the hilarious to the terrifying, in Toil & Trouble. Readers will learn that very few things in life are mere coincidences—ghosts are real, trees can want to kill you, beavers are the spawn of Satan, and houses are alive. At the heart of this touching and slightly spooky memoir lies the most powerful magic of all: love.