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The Ruin of All Witches
- Life and Death in the New World
- Narrated by: Kristin Atherton
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
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The Ruin of All Witches
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Summary
Brought to you by Penguin.
A Time, Sunday Times and BBC History History Book of the Year 2021
In the frontier town of Springfield, in 1651, peculiar things begin to happen. Precious food spoils, livestock ails and property vanishes. People suffer fits and are plagued by strange visions and dreams. Children sicken and die. As tensions rise, rumours spread of witches and heretics, and the community becomes tangled in a web of spite, distrust and denunciation. The finger of suspicion falls on a young couple struggling to make a home and feed their children: Hugh Parsons, the irascible brickmaker, and his troubled wife, Mary. It will be their downfall.
The Ruin of All Witches tells the dark real-life folktale of witch-hunting in a remote Massachusetts plantation. These were the turbulent beginnings of colonial America, when English settlers' dreams of love and liberty, of founding a 'city on a hill', gave way to paranoia and terror, enmity and rage. Drawing on uniquely rich, previously neglected source material, Malcolm Gaskill brings to life a New World existence steeped in the divine and the diabolic, in curses and enchantments, and precariously balanced between life and death.
Through the gripping micro-history of a family tragedy, we glimpse an entire society caught in agonised transition between supernatural obsessions and the age of enlightenment. We see, in short, the birth of the modern world.
Critic reviews
"A bona fide historical classic." (Sunday Times)
"Simply one of the best history books I have ever read." (BBC History)
"A great story, exquisitely told. This book is history at its illuminative best." (The Times)
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What listeners say about The Ruin of All Witches
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jane
- 13-01-23
Fascinating
Interesting insight into the lives of early New Englanders. How their jealousies and suspicions led to accuse of witchcraft. Follows the relationships in the Town of Springfield. Good narration
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- C. R. Broadhead
- 16-08-22
This is surprising quite interesting
An interesting book about America, who knew. Actually more about the English colonists. Fascinating insight into moving to a new country with no back up. Would highly recommend
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ife
- 07-02-23
enchanting history of suspicion and strained hope
this book reads like a spellbinding grimm fairytale and is just as thrilling and haunting.
it is the history and tale of humankinds need for understanding, overwhelming fear, pressure of society and the burden of maintaining its suffocating tenants for the sake of control.
i was transported back into springfield and walked alongside the townsfolk and those accused of witchcraft. it is a reminder of what we can do to eachother when bankrupt of compassion, and how prejudice can cloud our minds and lead to tragedy.
it is a perfect book. thank you Malcolm for reviving this history and retelling this story for us all to enjoy, learn from and carry the ghosts of it into time going forward.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mrs. C. Turnbull
- 13-02-23
A fantastic book!
A fascinating and detailed history of the witch trials in Springfield, colonial America which tells the story of the families of Springfield and the accusations and subsequent trials for witchcraft. This is carefully woven story of the destruction of the lives of those accused of witchcraft in Springfield which reads just like a story. I especially liked the epilogue where Malcolm Gaskill recounts his research visits to Springfield and explains life on modern day Springfield and his work in the archive. Highly recommend!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Melmo25
- 23-07-23
What a gem of a book
Fabulous. Not just a dry telling of historical events but a detailed description and recreation of people and their lives. We know what they wore, ate, who they were friends with etc.
Particularly touched by the epilogue when the author revisits Springfield and tracks down the long forgotten homes of the people in this story.
Just wonderful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Elainia
- 08-06-22
Great historical book
Loved this!!! I had audio version .. great historical book of the persecution of witches would recommend 👍
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 15-12-22
Well researched and compelling.
The true story presented here is so remarkably well researched that I found it difficult at first to believe that so many detailed accounts from the 1600’s could exist. This was my first audio book and I was worried I would find it difficult to listen instead of read, but the nature of the story telling here was gripping. I usually prefer non fiction that presents more of an argument or point of view, hence why for me this was 4 stars instead of 5.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Alison Dean
- 13-06-23
An interesting insight into early colonial New England
I liked the presentation of every day life in early Springfield; also how difficulties, bad luck & being worn down by struggle & family tragedy could lead to looking for a scapegoat. The story of Mary Parsons is tragic, abused & misused. Hugh Parsons a victim of his own short-tempered unpleasantness & being generally unlikeable. Very interesting final chapter on politics, power, witch-hunts, & the development of government & public-private economic systems in 17th century Massachusetts.
While on the whole I found the narration clear the mispronunciation of money is a bit irritating. Also I was taught Holyoke was pronounced something akin to whole-yolk not Hollyoak as here or Holy-oak as I pronounced it, but that may have been particular to the South Hadley person who told me. There is a misreading of Margaret Jones having been hanged in 1948, which caused me to pause. I checked in the book - it was 1648, as I should have worked out.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Lee
- 03-06-23
Slow
Not a lot of witch craft more a life in the day….slow going. It is history but every little thing is described…narration was good
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 03-03-22
The ruin of all witches
Excellent book,highly recommend it. Yet it is heartbreakingly tragic.
Also great research involved.
Narration is very good.
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