More Weight: A Salem Story

More Weight: A Salem Story by Ben Wickey (2025) 532 pages 

I loved the in depth history, mostly in black and white, of the 1692 events. So much more disturbing than Arthur Miller's version of events in The Crucible. The focus on Giles and Martha Corey works well. I also appreciated poets Longfellow and Hawthorne's tour of Salem in the 1860s. It goes in an otherworldly direction, which seems odd, until you realize that this part has been a ghost story all along. The two parts connect because Longfellow had written a play about the Salem Witch Trials focusing on the Coreys and Hawthorne is related to one of the judges with his family living in the Salem area for generations. The Intro and Outro about the aftermath of the witch trials leading to modern day Salem is super dense with litigation from mishandled justice, politics, consumerism, and ongoing fictions and frauds. So much fascinating educational material. It took longer to complete than I expected, but I'm glad I stayed with it.

The Hour of the Witch

The Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian, 405 pages

In 17th Century Boston, unhappily married women have very few options when it comes to divorcing their husbands, particularly when the man has not been unfaithful or deserted her. But that's exactly what Mary Deerfield would like to do after five years of increasingly violent outbursts from her much-older husband Thomas. The final straw comes when Thomas takes one of the newfangled three-tined forks (meant for eating, not carving, and imported by Mary's father) and stabs it through her hand. But even with an injured hand, the divorce trial is difficult, particularly since so many of the Puritan magistrates see the weapon as "the Devil's tines" rather than an eating utensil. Mary must walk a fine line to seek an end to her marriage without bringing a charge of witchcraft down upon her head.

This is a fascinating exploration of the limitations upon women in the 1600s, as well as a pointed look at how little things have changed over the past 400 years. It's well-researched, well-written, and has a compelling plot that moves it along much faster than your average 400-page historical fiction novel. No wonder it has so many people waiting for it at UCPL!

The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter / Nathaniel Hawthorne, read by Anne Wauters, 273 p.

Frequently high school juniors have to read this novel.  Occasionally, they are reluctant and their mothers have to listen to the audiobook with them.  I'm speaking hypothetically, of course.

So, Hester Prynne, Hester's daughter Pearl, Pearl's father Arthur Dimmesdale, Hester's legal husband Roger Chillingworth, a bunch of Puritans.  So bleak!

If a mother and teenage son were going to listen to this, they would need lots of cookies. 

The Wordy Shipmates / Sarah Vowell 254 p.

I picked up the audio of this for a road trip and loved it.  Vowell (who wrote Assassination Vacation, which I plan to read next), tells the story of the founding of Boston and the Massachusetts Bay Colony by the Puritans.  These were not the Mayflower-ers of 1620 who Vowell explains wanted full separation from the Church of England; rather, this group sailed on the Arbella in 1630 and wished to remain (tenuously) connected to the C of E, but free to practice in their own style.

The stories of a few key individuals are highlighted here: Governor John Winthrop, Rhode Island-founder Roger Williams, and fellow Massachusetts banishee Anne Hutchinson.  Vowell looks closely at journals, letters and sermons to trace the specifics of their Puritan, Calvinistic thought and the enormous impact their words and deeds have today on American Culture and foreign policy.  Vowell is a radio veteran, and the audio quality reflects this, with voice appearances by Catherine Keener, Eric Bogosian and others and gorgeous musical accompaniment.

The Pilgrim / Hugh Nissenson / 356 pp

A fascinating and strange novel about an idealistic young man's journey to the New World shortly after the founding of the Plymouth Colony. Contains extremely graphic descriptions of gallows activities and repeated references to a certain unmentionable topic.