First published 2014
Katherine Howe compiles authentic historical documents that reveal the brutal reality of witch accusations across centuries. Her collection spans from King James's 1597 witch hunting manual to Salem trial transcripts from 1692, including newspaper reports of a Philadelphia woman stoned to death during the Continental Congress. The book presents actual court records and eyewitness accounts of figures like Eunice Cole, prosecuted for attacking a teenager with a rock and buried with a wooden stake piercing her heart. Jane Jacobs appears in Boston legal documents, a woman so frequently accused of witchcraft she sued her accusers for slander. Minister Increase Mather emerges through records of his exorcisms and expertise in supernatural matters. These primary sources illuminate the persecution that swept medieval Europe and colonial America, showing how communities turned against their neighbors with deadly consequences.
Genres: history, reference, non-fiction, academic
Vibes: thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-fiction
Setting: America, Boston, Europe, Philadelphia, Salem
Period: 1692, 1597, Continental Congress
319 pages · Paperback · Penguin Classics
Content warnings: violence