When I found the publication, there were three volumes available. Based on the tables of content, I decided to order volume 2 (2007). Only when the fourth issue (2010) came I did I think to try to get the rest as well. Volume 3 (2008) was already sold out, 4 was sold out in no-time, but volume 1 was still available. In the meantime, the original printing is sold out as well, but fortunately another publisher republished all four issues. I hope that this also means that issue 4 will not be the last. In any case, the first “Heathen Yearbook” is not the best. With projects such as this I imagine that some people have a lot of material available, too much for a normal magazine and then decide to make it larger and the result is a book. It is not really that this is a compilation of great articles. In fact, the first heathen yearbook is not even as much focussed on practical Northern-European paganism as the later volumes. There are some quite new-agy articles, Middle-Eastern heathenry and purely historical texts. In the opening article Baal Müller wonders what neo-paganism actually is. An expected and nice opener for the series. A very long, and mostly historical, article is about “Arbogast, the forgotten hero”. After an article about the belief in wonders another lenghty article about “Erfahrungsreligionen”, or “religions of experience” follows, an approach to paganism that is to become a red thread through all future volumes. Vision-quests, shamanism, investigation of regions of the brain from which out-of-body-experiences can be forced, articles that did not really catch my attention. More interesting was the article about Hermann Hendrich. For the rest there is an investigation of “Grottis magical mill” and texts about the freedom of a heathen, runes and the original language and wolf-men. Book- and musicreviews and a calendar for 2006 close off the book. An interesting start of an interesting series of publications, but looking back, not the best volume. Fortunately available in reprint, so you can get it and judge for yourself.
2005 Verlag Daniel Junker, isbn 3938432020, 2010 reprinted by Edition Roter Drache, isbn 3939459437