Wicked Girls

March 6, 2012 Heidi Uncategorized 0

Wicked Girls

Author: Stephanie Hemphill
Publisher: Balzer & Bray
Publication Date: June 17, 2010
Pages: 336
Source: Purchased

About the Book: 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 Thoughts: I bought this book back in 2010 when I met the author at the Anderson’s Young Adult Literature conference. At this conference Attendees are seated at tables. Each table has a spot reserved for an author. This meant that I got to sit next to Stephanie and get to know her a bit. She is delightful. At the end of the conference I was going to rush right home and read Wicked Girls. Obviously that didn’t happen. It sat and sat and sat on my shelf. Every time I saw it I’d think, “Oh yeah! I really want to read that” and then go on my merry way. This weekend I read Witches! The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem by Rosalyn Schanzer (reviewed yesterday.) Reading this nonfiction telling of the Salem Witch Trials was the push I needed to pull Wicked Girls off my shelf. I am so glad I did. The two books worked so well together.

After finding out more about the Salem Witch Trials I was left wondering, “Why?” Why would those girls make those accusations? How could so many people believe them? Where did it all come from? Stephanie Hemphill addresses these questions in Wicked Girls. To be clear… Wicked Girls is fiction. The author researched the events and accusations of the Salem Witch Trials and came up with her own voices and reasons for each girl. She then proceeds to tell their stories in verse. I really enjoyed this. I loved that the different vignettes alternated between the girls and added power to the story. Plus… verse, multiple narrators, historical background, mean girls, mysterious happenings… so many awesome things in one book!

I really liked having the background knowledge from Witches! The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem while reading Wicked Girls. It added so much to the story. I was familiar with the events and could really see how the author made the story her own. I found myself thinking a lot more about what each girl must have been thinking and going through. I was completely fascinated.

If you’re a fan of historical fiction or verse this is a great book for you. Stephanie Hemphill builds the story through lovely prose and powerful moments.

Sidenote: The conference I met Stephanie Hemphill at was also the first time I met John Green. If you know me you can imagine how much I was geeking out. I absolutely love that Stephanie reassured me that this was normal when she signed my book: