The Witch of Blackbird Pond

I was in one of my rare cleaning fits when I came upon a yellowed softbound copy of "The Witch of Blackbird Pond". Inspired by the children's literature class I took up back in college, I picked it up almost ten years ago because it was on sale and it was a Yearling Newbery awardee*, in that order.

It was a quick and totally satisfying read, and I began to wonder if my 30 year old self even progressed with my choice of reading materials because there I was, engrossed in something more apt for my 12 year old self.

"The Witch of Blackbird Pond" tells the story of Kit Tyler who was raised by her grandfather in Barbados and who suddenly had to move to a Puritan American colony after her grandfather died.

A semi-historical novel, it tells of the plight of an outsider in a close-knit, zealously religious community. One of those classic fish out of water stories, it narrates how Kit adjusted or tried to adjust in a setting absolutely different from what she was used to (i.e. she had servants in Barbados but in Connecticut, she was expected to work from sun-up to sun down).

The first thing that reached out to me was how multi-dimensional most of the characters were. There were no out and out evil or annoyingly angelic characters here, just real people driven by real motives. I was particularly impressed with the characterization of Kit's uncle, how we first meet him as a stoic and straight-laced bible thumper, but later on we get to see through Kit's eyes exactly why her aunt willingly left jolly old England to follow him all the way to cold and dreary Connecticut.

The second, and primary, thing that captivated me was the historical aspect of the story. Here we learn about Puritans and how they lived their day to day lives. It was a hefty dose of history lessons without any form of indigestion whatsoever because the story laid it out so naturally and effortlessly, without any bias or preachiness. This is the way I like learning about history, none of that memorization shtick thankyouverymuch.

The climax is actually anti-climactic because it feels rushed and contrived. A whipped husband does an about face to suddenly challenge his wife's authority and save Kit from the witch hunt. It was at this point that I was vividly reminded that this is indeed a children's book and so closure is needed where the good guys will triumph. Ok, my 12 year old self would have appreciated that but my 30 year old self says "Could be better."

Hey, so maybe my taste in books has improved after all!

Anyway, if given the choice between the latest chick lit with its emphasis on Manolo Blahniks and snagging "Mr. Right with the Jaguar and gold charge card" and a children's book on Puritanical America, call me crazy, but I'm definitely choosing the latter.

Reading this makes me want to unearth my "Little House" and "Anne of Green Gables" books and relive those bookworm days of my youth. Now that's what you call the good old days!

(footnote: The Newbery Medal and Newbery Honor books are named after John Newbery, the famous eighteenth-century publisher and seller of children's books in England. These prestigious awards were first given in 1921 and have come to represent the best in children's literature).

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The Witch of Blackbird Pond