Since childhood, Hilarie Burton Morgan has felt the call to record, keep and catalogue life in all its strange wonder. It was a whimsical habit, with no clear goal. And then, when she became a mother, the importance of all that collecting snapped into focus.

What inheritance can I give these children that is true and loving and lasting? What will stay with them, long after I am gone?

In an effort to patchwork together an anthology of traditions, curiosity, and magical thinking that she could pass down, Burton realized she was crafting a grimoire.

Perhaps the word brings to mind witches harboring secrets... and that's not far off. A grimoire was the tangible collection of a lifetime of learning. At great risk, a woman recorded what she'd been taught as a child and added to it over the years. In its purest form, a grimoire was a guide to keep you alive.

Like the grimoires of old, full of life-saving wisdom, these pages record the people, places, ideas and habits that have kept Hilarie alive. Simple Spells follow each chapter, and are clear ways you can add mischief and magic into your own daily life.

Enchantment exists in all of us. So begin creating your own inheritance, take a long look inward and decide...

What wisdom will be written on the pages of your Grimoire?