Truth Be Told |
| Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill Review Posted: 18 Dec 2010 03:42 PM PST  Wicked GirlsWritten By: Stephanie Hemphill Published In: June 2010 Published By: Harper Teen 426 PgsARC Synopsis: What started out as girls' games became a witch hunt. Wicked Girls is a fictionalized account of the Salem witch trials told from the perspectives of three of the real young women living in Salem in 1692. Ann Putnam Jr. plays the queen bee. When her father suggests that a spate of illnesses within the village is the result of witchcraft, Ann grasps her opportunity. She puts in motion a chain of events that will change the lives of the people around her forever. Mercy Lewis, the beautiful servant in Ann's house, inspires adulation in some and envy in others. With a troubled past, she seizes her only chance at safety. Margaret Walcott, Ann's cousin, is desperately in love and consumed with fiery jealousy. She is torn between staying loyal to her friends and pursuing the life she dreams of with her betrothed. With new accusations mounting daily against the men and women of the community, the girls will have to decide: Is it too late to tell the truth? A Printz Honor winner for Your Own, sylvia, Stephanie Hemphill uses evocative verse to weave a nuanced portrait of one of the most chilling and fascinating times in our nation's history. My Review: Wicked Girls is a new topic in historical fiction. Rarely do you see young adult novels discussing issues such as The Salem Witch Trials. I was really excited to read this novel; the Salem Witch Trials is something I am slightly fascinated with. There are so many things that went wrong in that era, so many innocent lives that were lost. Something about this time frame intrigues me. Needless to say I jumped at the opportunity to review this novel. This novel also stands out on the shelves of historical fiction. This book is written entirely in verse. Also, the characters are real people who lived during the era; these accounts are entirely fictional though. These characters were well built, I felt as though each one had their own distinct reasons for accusing others of witch craft and it was easy to understand why they were doing this. Although the book focused more on Mercy, Ann, and Margaret's story, it did also touch on the other girls' interpretation of the story. Each of the characters also had their own history in this story. All of these small details helped make the novel interesting and well rounded. At one point I felt that the book became a little confusing. It was hard to understand whether the girls actually felt that they were seeing spirits, or if they were merely very good liars. I think a little more detail on this part would have made the story easier to understand. Anyone who reads this book will be able to appreciate all the research that went into creating this story. The author's use of language sounds like that of the time period. The descriptions of the character's beliefs is written as if she lived in the time period herself; I was able to fully imagine this story taking place in front of me. Wicked Girls was very interesting and a unique historical young adult novel. I would recommend this to those who like books written in verse but also love historical fiction.  Overall, I give this three lanterns. I enjoyed it and felt that it helped give a new take on a huge event in our history. **Disclosure: I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for a review. No other compensation was made. These are my honest opinions.** 
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
|
No comments:
Post a Comment