“The first time that Mary Deerfield’s husband hit her, she didn’t relate the motion to scything: she was in too much pain and she was too surprised. Her skin stung. It was the second time, half a year later, just before she turned twenty and just after the first anniversary of the day they were married, that she noted that he punched her the way a knowledgeable man would scythe.”

Hour of the Witch
By Chris Bohjalian
Source: Advance review copy

It is never easy to read about the victim of spousal abuse but step back in time to 1662 when women had very few rights and it’s easy to see that Mary Deerfield’s life is not going to be easy. The daughter of wealthy merchants, Mary is married to Thomas Deerfield, a pillar of the community. Everyone thinks that Thomas works hard and provides a comfortable home for his much younger wife. But the community doesn’t see him when he drinks. Only Mary knows what it is to suffer his rages.

One fateful day, when Thomas has had too much to drink, he grabs hold of a three-tined fork and rams it into Mary’s hand. The pain and fear of what he’s done drive Mary to seek refuge with her parents. She thinks that the best thing to do is to divorce from Thomas but unfortunately for Mary, it’s much easier for the community to point the finger and accuse her of witchcraft than to listen to her testimony of cruelty.

Why even their servant girl only speaks highly of Thomas and is quick to point out the devil’s forks and other strange things that she witnessed in the household. Mary is forced to return to her home and to Thomas but she will find a way to escape her misery.

I’ve read some reviews that thought the author’s use of language and too many “thees” and “thous” were distracting but to me, I actually felt like I was in the time period. I thought the court scenes were so interesting and the very idea of a woman seeking a divorce during that timeframe is fascinating. If there is one thing that I didn’t like as much was the ending because it did feel a bit too perfect but that said, I really enjoyed reading this book. If you are at all interested in the Puritans, a historical setting and/or witch trials, I recommend it.

First thing, that is not my nightstand just a stock photograph but I would love to have these vintage books. Take a look at the fore edge of the red one. I love paper marbling. And, of course a coffee next to the books? I need to show this to my husband and see if he’ll have this ready for me every morning. Haha…

Anyway, happy October friends. I hope your month has started off with some amazing reads. In my last post I wrapped up my September reads and while I may not have read a lot, I actually do have several books going on so I thought I’d share about those in this post.

First, is The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. I picked this one up for Banned Book week last week. Did you know that this book the book landed in the eighth spot on the American Library Association’s top ten challenged and banned books list. The story is about a teenager who witnesses the police shooting of her best friend at the hands of police. In late 2017, it was banned by school officials in Katy, Texas, where it was challenged for “inappropriate language.” Oh Texas…. Anyway, I’m more than half way through so more thoughts on this one later.

Another book I’m reading is Dear Mrs. Bird by AJ Pearce. This novel is set during WWII and Emmy Lake is desperate to get into reporting. She’d love to be a wartime reporter and thinks she’s found a chance to do so but her great opportunity turns out to be sorting for mail for Mrs. Bird, who responds to letters from readers. Despite that this is a novel set in wartime, there is a lot of lightness to it and it’s really charming and feels like a comfort read.

I’m also listening to Dear Child by Romy Hausmann. A thriller about a woman who was held captive in a shack with two children. When she finally escapes she thinks life may get back to normal but it’s very hard to go back to being the carefree young woman she was. It’s taken me a while to get through this one mainly because I only listen to books when I commute to work and as I’m still mainly working from home, I don’t spend a lot of time on the road. I’ve just had to renew this audiobook for the third time!

Two other books I’m dipping into are Devotions by Mary Oliver. I don’t need to tell you how much I love this. I can see that even when I finish this it will probably be a book I go to time and again. The other read is World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks and Other Astonishments by Aimee Nezhukumatathill. Reading these two together are actually a wonderful complement as they both are books about the magic of nature.

I’m about to start a new book for R.I.P. but I’d like to finish one of these others first. It’s kind of hard not to start my next read especially when I’ve already selected it. We’ll see if I can hold off.

Anyway, let me know if you’ve read any of these or if you think you’ll add one to your reading list.