The Devil's Door

January 1, 2011

Gr 4-6-Sarah Wright and her father, Ephraim, escape to Salem after an attack by Wabanaki warriors on their homestead in Maine. They settle there just as the witchcraft trials are beginning. They are lodged at Dr. Griggs's home where Betty Hubbard, one of the accusers, is indentured to her uncle. Sarah becomes an eyewitness to the disturbances caused by the girls, the accusations, hysterical behavior, the trials, and the executions. She is befriended by Abe Toothaker, who fleshes out the theories about witchcraft in their conversations. As the arrests occur, Ephraim is recruited as a constable, only to be accused of witchcraft himself. The third-person narrative reveals Sarah as a reportorial, somewhat apprehensive but empathetic innocent observer. Factual material is incorporated into the narrative, creating a fast-paced, fascinating read.-Kathryn Kosiorek, formerly at Cuyahoga County Public Library, Brooklyn, OH

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2010
Grades 5-8 The mass hysteria of the 1692 witchcraft trials in Salem, Massachusetts, is the focus of this entry in the Historical Fiction Adventure series. Told through the viewpoint of newcomer Sarah, who with her father, Ephraim, fled the Wabanaki Indian raids in Maine, the book neither preaches nor is sentimental. Ephraim acts as constable, rounding up the suspects, until he questions his role and lands in prison. Can Sarah help him escape? The cast is huge and difficult to keep straight, but the confusion is part of the drama. A final note on the real history and a bibliography conclude.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)