I am also not reading these in a certain order and I hope Beth doesn’t mind. She’s been trying to get me to read this since it came out. Want to know how I know? I have Beth’s hard copy of this book; she loaned it to me ages ago and it’s just been in a stack of TBRs near my bed since then. So, I thought maybe I’d start with this one and then I could give it back to her when I see her next.
Starting my Pop Culture Reading assignment!! I hope Kate doesn’t mind I’m going out of order.
Welcome to Beth’s Pop Culture Homework Assignment: WITCHES!
Witches seem to be having a cultural moment right now (which is great), so this felt timely. It also felt timely because Beth and I are going to a good friend’s wedding this summer in England, and then while we’re in Ol’ Blighty we’re going to visit Pendle Hill, the site of a 1612 witch trial. (Well, really, THE 1612 Witch trial.) We gotta go pay our respects. This year there are five picks…because when I floated the idea of one short non-fiction piece and one set of selections of a historical text, Beth didn’t say no! (She also didn’t say yes, so I am expecting to receive some flack for this.) So, here we go!
1. Selections from the Malleus Maleficarum by discredited member of the clergy Heinrich Kramer
The Malleus Maleficarum is maybe the best known treatise on witches. It was written in the 15th century and provides legal and theological reasons to execute witches. It laid the ground work for a lot of terrible things that happened to a lot of people. I thought it would be nice to provide some context before diving into the next selection.
2. The Familiars by Stacey Halls
This is a brand new novel (out in February!) that’s also a debut novel AND is written by a Lancashire local! It is set during the Pendle Hill trials! It’s like the universe wanted us to have this homework assignment!
3. Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
It’s about witches! It’s about sisters! It’s about women’s relationships! It’s a classic! I honestly can’t believe this book is as old as it is, but I also often can’t believe I’m as old as I am, so here we are, surprised by inexorable march of time.
4. These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling
So, this also came out this year, this past Tuesday, in fact. It was on my to-read list and as I was looking for a third novel, I got an email saying that this was coming out. You have to love that timing. It is about Hannah, a real witch who lives in Salem, Mass and who has to keep her real-deal magic a secret, because if she gets caught using it, she could lose it. I believe it also has an LGBTQIA relationship in it. I think it looks great and I really hope Beth loves it.
5. Witches, Midwives, and Nurses: A History of Women Healers by Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English
This clocks in at just over 100 pages and is a brief history of women healers. It discusses midwifery, witching, nursing and how traditionally feminine practices have been delegitimized and outlawed as a tactic of the patriarchy to control women. At least, that’s what I remember it being about? I read it while a family member was in the emergency room and we were waiting for test results, so my memories of the book aren’t maybe the best? So, I really look forward to hearing Beth’s thoughts on it and discussing it with her.
So, that’s it. There we go. I hope Beth enjoys these books! If you are reading along with Beth, leave a comment below or hit us up on twitter or the faceyb!
Since it is Memorial Day, it is officially summer! So, Beth and I will be assigning each other Pop Culture Homework Assignments this week! If you are new here, A Pop Culture Homework Assignment is summer reading that Beth and I assign each other. It is usually four books, themed, and designed for us to share something fun with each other (and you!). Also, I like to think it gets us out of our comfort zones, but that might just be justifying assigning Beth a bunch of non-fiction over the years.
So, Join us this summer on two themed 4-book challenges!
As things get dark for Lucy, Dr. Seward and his former teacher Dr. Van Helsing get serious.
The music is Oppressive Gloom by Kevin MacLeod who can be found at incompetech.com. This was edited using audacity.
Previous Chapters can be found here.
So, this is totally embarrassing. I recorded this more than a week ago and I’m just now getting to posting it. Sigh. Apologies.
In today’s installment, a flurry of activity happens as documented in various diary entries, letters, and telegrams! It is so exciting!
Chapter 9 can be found here.
You can get caught up here.
The music for the recording is Oppressive Gloom by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). (Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). And, the text is by Bram Stoker.
In which we discover what has happened to Jonathan Harker
In today’s installment, we find out what happened to Jonathan Harker. We also hear more about Dr. Seward’s most interesting patient and Lucy starts keeping her own diary!
The music for the recording is Oppressive Gloom by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). (Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). And, the text is by Bram Stoker.
Previous chapters can be found here.
This just in! The news from Whitby!
The music for the recording is Oppressive Gloom by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). (Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)
Previous chapters can be found here.
As a fun bonus for Vampire month, Beth and I got together and discussed the gateway drug of Vampire books for a generation of readers, Twilight by Stephenie Meyer.
We had a really good time discussing the novel, and we only digressed a couple of times into other things (like the movie Soapdish and The Red Queen books by Victoria Aveyard). We hope that you enjoy our little chat, too.
It can be found here.
You can catch up on Dracula, the centerpiece of Vampire Month, here.
Cemetery in Whitby, England. Photo by Chris ( Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license)
In today’s installment, we hear more from Mina Murray and Dr. Seward! The chapter ends with some creepy foreshadowing! What will happen next?
The music for the recording is Oppressive Gloom by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). (Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)
Hear from Mina and Dr. Seward here.
Previous chapters can be found here.
2 Women, So Many Books 