A review by adrizeuza
The Ruin of All Witches: Life and Death in the New World by Malcolm Gaskill

dark informative reflective tense slow-paced

4.5

Despite deeply disagreeing, I totaly understand the reviews that criticise the book for being boring. It spends a lot of time involving the reader in what life was like in mid 17th century New England. Some people might find it derivative. However, I think it was exatly the detailed, almost in vitro approach to the social history of this time period, its politics and economy and the permanent narrative anchor in the town of Springfield - more specifically, the tragic life stories of Mary and Hugh Parsons - that I loved about the book. It truly feels like you are there experiencing the events. Out of all the books about witch trials I have read, never have I felt such a deep understanding of how and why these things can happen. It gave me a new understanding of the christian religious rationale, specifically the more fundamentalist branches of it, which is very relevant for today's world. 
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