Module 4 - The Witch of Blackbird Pond

Module 4 - The Witch of Blackbird Pond

Book Summary -
In the late 1600s, Kit Tyler must move from her home in the Caribbean to the colony of Connecticut.  She doesn't fit in with her family and certainly doesn't fit in with the others in the town.  She is much more free-spirited than the Puritans would like her to be.  She makes friends with another person who is basically ostracized from the community.  But in this world, witches exist, and it is certainly not a good thing to be a friend of the witch of Blackbird Pond.  Kit finds herself accused of witchcraft.  After she is finally exonerated, she finds the love and acceptance that she always wanted.

APA Reference -
Speare, E.G. (1986). The witch of Blackbird Pond.  New York: Dell Publishing.

My Impressions -
This is a great look into Puritan life.  This way of life is so different for us, so the choice of a protagonist that is just as different allows us to learn how Puritan society worked without it being a list of dos and do nots.  Kit and her two cousins are extremely different and it helps the reader to experience this way of life more fully and to get involved in the story as there is a character for everyone to relate to.  It is a great example of historical fiction and a great introduction to the witch hunts that dominated late 17th century society.

Professional Review -
Gr. 6–8. Hurt masterfully reads this Newbery award winner, set in seventeenth-century Puritan New England. Orphan Kit Tyler sails to the Connecticut colony to live with her aunt and uncle, but despite earnest attempts to belong, her behavior is unacceptable by Puritan standards. Criticized by the community, Kit seeks solace with a kindly old Quaker woman. Hurt’s youthful voice and soft New England accent perfectly match Kit’s buoyant personality and well-meaning antics. Hurt’s perception of the story enables her to shift seamlessly among characters, and she ably portrays everyone, including Kit’s soft-spoken aunt and her terse, unforgiving uncle. The villager’s talk of heresy is thick with suspicion, and Hurt’s capable reading accentuates this sense of foreboding.
Rich, A. (2002). The witch of Blackbird Pond (book).  Booklist, 99(5), 518.

Library Uses -
This book gives very detailed descriptions of the town in Connecticut where Kit and her extended family live.  It would be a fun and useful activity if the students drew a map, based on descriptions in the book, of the town.