- mourning the loss of her grandfather, a 16yo girl moves in with her only remaining relatives (on another continent) and has difficulty fitting in
- a focus on strict Puritan rules and their tendency to condemn anyone different than themselves–particularly to blame inexplicable events on magic & witchcraft [spoiler for parents: there is no actual witch in this book]
- sweet friendships and heartwarming instances of kindness bring life to what appears to be a frigid community
- convo: quite a bit of gentle romance but all appropriate (courting, asking permission to court, talk about marriage, planning future homes, etc.), one young man is seen shirtless as he works on a roof, slaves/slavery mentioned, mentions people being branded on their foreheads for being Quakers (not described), a few non-descriptive mentions of whippings (ones that happened and threats of them), mentions finding a captured soldier scalped and dead
- language: stupid x1, injuns x1, damn x1, hussy x1
Type: historical fiction novel
Ages: 11+
Author: Elizabeth George Speare
Parents are, as always, welcome to cast my age suggestions aside for their specific circumstances! But I wanted to further note that the sweet spot for this book might be a little older (mid-teens?). It’s pretty safe to hand to most children over 10 years old.
Priceless conversations could very well be had in your home when reading this book! Where does one draw the line in religion? Should everything odd to us be immediately condemned as demonic? How much is too much entertainment? Are holidays to be completely avoided, even Christmas? What does the Bible say about obeying leaders (both in your home and in government)? How do we manage what we read and where do we draw the line on the content we are consuming? On and on!
But a few more specifics – early on, Kit Tyler earns suspicion when she swims to rescue a little girl’s doll. To the locals, only witches know how to swim. “The innocent ones just sink like a stone.” (Condemned if you do, condemned if you don’t.) This may have been forgotten if her lively personality didn’t clash with many other traditions and habits of her cousins and new neighbors. She is a nice girl, but she keeps making blunders.
One day she happens to meet the dearest old woman–the epitome of kindness–only to be forbidden to ever see her again. This lady, Hannah, is an outcast because she is a Quaker. She has the brand on her forehead to prove it. Furthermore, the locals’ gossip has built her up as a terrible witch. Anything that goes wrong (for example, children getting sick) is blamed on her. Hannah’s house, however, becomes a place of peaceful comfort for both Kit and a neglected, mistreated child whom Kit secretly teaches and loves.
Everything goes awry when Hannah is blamed for something she is innocent of. Friends whisk her away unharmed, but Kit is now blamed and imprisoned. The small “mob” of upset people won’t listen to reason, and she becomes very close to being put to death. This is the most intense part of the book.
This review has a few more details than I usually give, but it seemed necessary. Speare crafted an incredibly rich tale focused around real American history, and I wholeheartedly recommend it in any way that works for your family–a read-aloud, an accompaniment to history studies, etc. A further recommendation is to find another book to pair it with that also shows the good side of Puritans…because there definitely was one. Much of their teaching is richly biblical–perhaps one good result of being so strict, allowing for more time to study Truth? It’s important to understand historical context and why they had formed such strict standards.
I’ll be done now! I hope you enjoy this book one day!