Disclaimer: Read via uncorrected ARC via Netgalley.3.5-4 I’m not sure how most people learn about the Salem Witchcraft trials today, at least here in America. In my city, most of us learn about in brief by the reading of Miller’s The Crucible, which means they are always linked, for better or worse to the McCarthy Hearings. So it is somewhat disconcerting to read a book that does not look at them the same way that most high school teachers teach it. Roach focuses on six women – three accusers and three accused. To use the word victim to only describe those accused of being witches, in particular when Tituba is in both categories. Roach uses these six women as focal points to explore the more of the actual trial and outcome than anything else. The reasons for the accusations are looked at but not as in much depth, in general, that the rest are. It should be noted that the actual history narrative is somewhat dry. In fairness to Roach, she does seem to realize this. Each section, chapter, is introduced by an exercise into what the people, usually the women, might have thought. This fictional writing is very strong and made me want to check to see it Roach had written any fiction - she hasn’t, but if she every does, I’m checking it out. These fictional sections are set apart by italics and do not run very long. I should note that such bits in a history book usually annoy me; they didn’t here. The parts of the book that I found the most interesting were the sections that dealt with Mary English and her escape as well as the sections about Tituba. In fact, it is in writing about the most famous yet least known woman of this story that Roach really shines. She examines where Tituba meant have come from, who she meant of been, and what her family life might have been like. This is furthered by the enclosed of the story another slave a woman who is also in jail, able for a different charge. I also found the bit about how people escaped or avoided charges to be fascinating, most likely because my teachers never mentioned it, and it wasn’t something I knew before reading this book. Another strong point of the book is Roach’s use of sympathy. Instead of trying to demonize the accusers, Roach humanizes them. It is impossible to feel hate towards Ann Putman or Mary Warren, even though their actions led to the deaths of people. If anything, all the women were victims of the society that they lived in or, perhaps, as Marilyn French would claim – victims of the men that controlled that society. A worthwhile read.
