Book Review of Spirit Stones: Unraveling the Megalithic Mysteries of Western Europe’s Prehistoric Monuments
The prehistoric stone structures of western Europe grip the imagination with their mystery. Who put these immense monoliths and circles in place, and why? Some are nearly 7,000 years old, silent sentinels from the Neolithic and Bronze ages that are scattered throughout England, Scotland, Ireland, and France. Spirit Stones: Unraveling the Megalithic Mysteries of Western Europe’s Prehistoric Monuments, by Dianne Ebertt Beeaff, addresses these questions and bases her theories about their meaning and 
significance on nearly ten years of meticulous research and reflection.
The 309-page book, published in 2011 by Five Star Publications, is packed with detail; even those who are familiar with the ancient stones will find it informative. I have a long-held interest in the megaliths and stone circles and, like many others, wondered how they were constructed. That issue is not addressed in Beeaff’s book. Her concern is with their possible meanings, and she goes well beyond speculation on their uses in the past to presenting insights into their relevance today. Beeaff makes a connection between humanity’s ancestry and present-day life, providing suggestions for “spiritual fitness” at the end of each chapter. Through the standing stones and burial chambers, she says, “we can rediscover the inexhaustible, multifaceted, and wonderfully divine existence that is the life in all of us.”
The author suggests a wide range of ideas for maintaining spiritual fitness, from walking a labyrinth to honoring ancestors to drinking eight glasses of water a day. Beeaff says that the silent stones have lessons for contemporary society. I have not visited all the sites she describes, but those I’ve seen leave no doubt that they can be places for spiritual reflection.
Spirit Stones is a sometimes-jarring combination of academic text (there is more here about the formation of metamorphic rock than many care to know, for example) and simplistic language. Beeaff tells dozens of fascinating stories, legends, and facts about ancient cultures and the natural world. This book is thorough.
The color plates in Spirit Stones show what marvels the monoliths and burial chambers are, even in near-ruins. The book is not a travel guide, however. The author names the locations but provides no information on how to get to the sites. If you want to see Vizar Roc’h, in Brittany, or Castlerigg Stone Circle, in England, or any among the scores of others, you’ll need to do your own research. Numerous guidebooks and websites give directions, particularly to the more famous places such as the stones of Callanish and the Merry Maids of Cornwall. After reading this book, I’m even more eager to visit the prehistoric monuments I haven’t yet explored.
Written by Marilyn McFarlane for EuropeUpClose.com
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