Peeking Between the Pages

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Guest Post with Mary Sharratt, author of Daughters of the Witching Hill & GIVEAWAY

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Let’s all welcome Mary Sharratt, author of Daughters of the Witching Hill to Peeking Between the Pages today. I reviewed Mary’s novel yesterday (my review) and I really found it fascinating to read about the Pendle Witches. Let’s sit back and relax and enjoy Mary’s guest post entitled In Search of the Pendle Witches...

The wild, brooding landscape of Pendle Hill in Lancashire, my home for the past seven years, gave birth to my new novel, Daughters of the Witching Hill, which tells the true story of the Pendle Witches.

In 1612, seven women and two men from Pendle Forest were executed for witchcraft, but the most notorious of the accused, Bess Southerns, aka Old Demdike, cheated the hangman by dying in prison. This is how Thomas Potts describes her in The Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster:

She was a very old woman, about the age of Foure-score yeares, and had
been a Witch for fiftie yeares. Shee dwelt in the Forrest of Pendle, a vast
place, fitte for her profession: What shee committed in her time, no man
knowes. . . . Shee was a generall agent for the Devill in all these partes: no
man escaped her, or her Furies.

Reading the trial transcripts against the grain, I was amazed at how Bess’s strength of character blazed forth in the document written to vilify her. Bess freely admitted to being a healer and a cunning woman. She lived as a matriarch with her family at Malkin Tower and instructed her daughter and granddaughter in the ways of magic. Her neighbors called on her to cure their children and their cattle. What fascinated me was not that Bess was arrested on witchcraft charges but that the authorities turned on her only near the end of her long, productive career. She practiced her craft for decades before anybody dared to interfere with her.

Cunning craft—the art of using charms to heal both humans and livestock—was Bess’s family trade. Their spells, recorded in A Wonderfull Discoverie, were Roman Catholic prayer charms—the kind of folk magic that would have flourished before the Reformation. Yet she also drew on an even older source of power: Tibb, her familiar spirit, who appeared to her in the guise of a beautiful young man.

Other books have been written about the Pendle Witches—both nuanced and lurid. Mine is the first to tell the tale from Bess’s point of view. I longed to give Bess Southerns what her world denied her—her own voice.

History is a fluid thing that continually shapes the present. As a writer, I am obsessed with how the true stories of our ancestors haunt the landscape. No one in Pendle can remain untouched by the witches’ legacy. As contemporary British storyteller, Hugh Lupton, has said, if you go deep enough into the old tales and can present them in a meaningful way to a modern audience, you become the living voice in an ancient tradition. Mother Demdike’s voice deserves to be heard.

Long after their demise, Bess Southerns and her fellow witches endure, their spirit woven into the land, its weft and warp, like the stones and the streams that cut across the moors. This is their home, their seat of power, and they shall never be banished. By learning their story, I have become an adopted daughter of their living landscape, one of many tellers who spin their unending tale.
__________

Mary, thank you so much or this wonderful guest post. I too found it interesting that they went after Bess at the end of her career instead of early on. My heart broke for, that at her age, she had to endure all that she did.
_________

About the Book (from Amazon.com)

Daughters of the Witching Hill brings history to life in a vivid and wrenching account of a family sustained by love as they try to survive the hysteria of a witch-hunt.

Bess Southerns, an impoverished widow living in Pendle Forest, is haunted by visions and gains a reputation as a cunning woman. Drawing on the Catholic folk magic of her youth, Bess heals the sick and foretells the future. As she ages, she instructs her granddaughter, Alizon, in her craft, as well as her best friend, who ultimately turns to dark magic. When a peddler suffers a stroke after exchanging harsh words with Alizon, a local magistrate, eager to make his name as a witch finder, plays neighbors and family members against one another until suspicion and paranoia reach frenzied heights.

Sharratt interweaves well-researched historical details of the 1612 Pendle witch-hunt with a beautifully imagined story of strong women, family, and betrayal. Daughters of the Witching Hill is a powerful novel of intrigue and revelation.

About the Author (from her website)


Mary Sharratt is an American writer who has lived in the Pendle region of Lancashire, England for the past seven years. Her inspiration for her forthcoming novel, Daughters of the Witching Hill (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Spring 2010), arose directly out of the wild, brooding landscape: the story of the Pendle Witches unfolded almost literally in her backyard.

Winner of the 2005 WILLA Literary Award and a Minnesota Book Award Finalist, Mary is the author of the critically acclaimed novels Summit Avenue (Coffee House 2000), The Real Minerva (Houghton Mifflin 2004), and The Vanishing Point (Houghton Mifflin 2006). Her first two novels were Book Sense picks, and The Vanishing Point was a UK Guardian Readers’ Book of the Year. She is also the co-editor of the subversive UK fiction anthology, Bitch Lit (Crocus Books UK 2006), a celebration of female anti-heroes which was featured in The Guardian and on BBC Radio 4’s Women’s Hour. Mary’s short stories have been widely published in journals and anthologies on both sides of the Atlantic, including the recent Twin Cities Noir (Akashic Books 2006).

A former Historical Novels Society Reviews editor, Mary writes regular feature articles and author profiles for Solander and The Historical Novels Review.

When Mary isn’t writing fiction, she is usually off riding Boushka, her beautiful and spirited Welsh mare who is making a cameo appearance in Daughters of the Witching Hill as Alice Nutter’s horse.

Mary returns regularly to her hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota where she teaches workshops at The Loft Literary Center.

“The thing that gets me most excited is coaching my students on the power of story, the art of drawing the reader into the thick of the narrative. My job is helping my students discover the stories they need to tell and helping them develop their narrative voice. Then I stand back and listen to their stories unfold, spinning themselves on their own power.”

Visit Mary Sharratt’s website.
Listen to Mary Sharratt’s live talk at Authors at the Gallery.
You Tube video of Mary Sharratt
You Tube Book Video for Daughters of the Witching Hill
_________

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

I have 1 copy of Daughters of the Witching Hill by Mary Sharratt courtesy of the publisher to share with one of my lucky readers. To enter…

  • For 1 entry leave me a comment with a way to contact you.
  • For 2 entries follow my blog. If you already do, thank you and please let me know in your comment.
  • For 3 entries blog or tweet this giveaway.

This giveaway is open to US & Canadian residents only (no PO boxes) and I will draw for the winner on Saturday, May 15, 2010. Good luck everyone!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. What a wonderful post! I don't blame the author for becoming compelled to write about this woman. Just the history of it all really speaks to you! Please sign me up – thank you! rnawrot at cfl dot rr dot com

  5. I would love to read the Daughters of the Witching Hill novel and love your review.

    nancysoffice at gmail dot com

  7. I was always fascinated by the witch trials in Salem, even went there and toured some of the houses. I would love to read this book about earlier trials in England.

    I follow your blog via google.

    seknobloch(at)gmail(dot)com

  9. Please count me in for this wonderful book. Thank you for hosting.

    I follow.

    mystica123athotmaildotcom

  10. What a fascinating post! It was always the strong, outspoken women who were branded as witches, wasn't it? I subscribe in Google Reader. milou2ster(at)gmail.com

  11. Such an interesting post. The relationship between the charms of the 'witches' and the Roman Catholic prayers is a fascinating concept. Thanks for this giveaway; I am so anxious to read this book.

    I follow through Google Reader.

    lcbrower40(at)gmail(dot)com

  12. I really liked this guest post about how Bess's personality shined through even in transcripts meant to villify her. That must have been great reading for that reason alone.

    I'd love to be entered

    savvyverseandwit at gmail

    i follow as you know.

  16. I would love to read this story! It looks fantastic! Great post!

    freda.mans[at]sympatico.ca

  19. I would love to win this! I really liked the author's last book. I follow you on bloglines!

    booksandcooks06ATaolDOTcom

  20. Please, please, please enter me!
    I would love to read this book.
    joannelong74 AT gmail DOT com

  23. I have read many fantastic reviews of this book. I would love to win.
    thank you
    kaiminani at gmail dot com

  26. Hey!
    Would love to enter! I thought I already, but i guess I didn't!!

    I am a follower

    I will post about it on Mon.

    forevereading at gmail dot com

  27. I love period books – this sounds great. Please enter me:
    adrianecoros (at) gmail (dot) com

  29. Mary, I can understand why you were compelled to write about this woman. I love to read books based on actual occurances. I would love to read your interesting book. I enjoyed your interview.

    Thanks for the great giveaway. Pls enter my name.

    misskallie2000 at yahoo dot com

  35. This was a wonderful post – I had never heard of these witches until this book came out. I can't wait to read it. Please enter me for the giveaway – I am a follower and I posted on my blog sidebar http://themaidenscourt.blogspot.com/. Thanks.

    dolleygurl[at]hotmail[dot]com

  36. I've always been fascinated and horrified by the witch trials in Salem and elsewhere. This sounds like a fantastic read.

    + I'm already following you

    melacan at hotmail dot com

  37. Awesome post! This book looks great, please count me in on the giveaway!

    caribousmom (at) gmail (dot) com

  38. Awesome post! Thank you very much for introducing me to another great author!

    I am a follower!

    Have a great day every one!
    Kate (aka YzhaBella's BookShelf)
    mleger0546(@)rogers(.)com

  39. Already have a copy (Thanks to Darlene previously) Just wnated to say this is a wonderful post and glad that you brought this story to light.

  42. This sounds so good. Please enter me for this one.

    I am a follower on gfc.

    mlawson17 at hotmail dot com

  46. I love stories about witches and I have a lack of them in my TBR pile. I would love to read this.

    dawnpnr at aol dot com

  51. Wonderful guest post! I am really excited about this book, and think it sounds wonderful. Like I mentioned on post of the review, I am totally intrigued by the witch trials. Great giveaway also, please count me in!

    zibilee(at)figearo(dot)net

  52. Sounds great. Thanks for this wonderful guest post. I really like the sound of this book and I would like to be entered.

    passionatebooklover at yahoo dot com

  60. This looks like a great book and one I would definitely enjoy reading! If I had a gift for writing, this is definitely the kind of story that I would want to put the pen to! Thanks for the giveaway! I follow on GFC!

    jewell330 at aim dot com

  61. This looks really good. please sign me up and I'm a new follower :)
    jgoffice at cox dot net

  62. Thanks for the chance to win!! This sounds great!!

    areallibrarian[at]gmail[dot]com

    I also follow!!

  64. This sounds great. Would love to read it. Count me in, please! :0)

    I follow.

    Thanks!
    librarygrinch at gmail dot com

  65. This sounds like an intriguing read. I'd heard of the Salem witches, of course, but never the Pendle Witches. Please enter me. :D

    I'm a follower.

    Marie
    utah91960[at]yahoo[dot]com

  70. I enjoyed your review and would love to be entered in your giveaway. Thank you!

    Sandee61

    Muzzley56[at]aol[dot]com

  72. Hi. I love the historical issues brought alive by this book. It's very facinating. I would love to read/win this. Thanks.
    polo-puppy-fluffy[at]hotmail[dot]com

  75. geekgirlreviews at gmail dot com

    I would love to read this book! Its looks so interesting! Your blog is so cute!

  76. some spring reading on a rainy day would be nice,,thx,,
    thehighflyer3(at)hotmail(dot)com

  77. I truely enjoyed reading your post. Bess Southerns must have been terrified, being arrested as a witch, back in 1612, but she stayed strong. I wouldn't doubt that she willed herself to die, just to thumb her nose at her accusers. Please, sign me up for your contest.
    mom1248(at)att(dot)net
    I'm a follower

  82. Please enter me in this giveaway – Thanks!

    seizethebookblog(at)gmail(dot)com

    And I am a follower!

  83. What a wonderful guest post. This sounds like a great book that I would love to read.

    angela.donner (at) gmail.com

    I follow your blog :-)

  102. oh i love books all dark and supernatural sounds cool count me in !!
    roswello athotmail dot com

  105. I have really been wanting to read this book. There is something about the historical witch trials that just intrigues me.

    ~Briana
    thebookpixie[at]yahoo[dot]com