The Ruin of All Witches

Life and Death in the New World

By: Malcolm Gaskill

Narrated by: Kristin Atherton

Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

A gripping story of a family tragedy brought about by witch-hunting in Puritan New England that combines history, anthropology, sociology, politics, theology and psychology.

“The best and most enjoyable kind of history writing. Malcolm Gaskill goes to meet the past on its own terms and in its own place…Thought-provoking and absorbing."—Hilary Mantel, best-selling author of Wolf Hall

In Springfield, Massachusetts in 1651, peculiar things begin to happen. Precious food spoils, livestock ails, property vanishes, and people suffer convulsions as if possessed by demons. A woman is seen wading through the swamp like a lost soul. Disturbing dreams and visions proliferate. Children sicken and die. As tensions rise, rumours spread of witches and heretics and the community becomes tangled in a web of distrust, resentment and denunciation. The finger of suspicion soon falls on a young couple with two small children: the prickly brickmaker, Hugh Parsons, and his troubled wife, Mary.

Drawing on rich, previously unexplored source material, Malcolm Gaskill vividly evokes a strange past, one where lives were steeped in the divine and the diabolic, in omens, curses and enchantments. The Ruin of All Witches captures an entire society caught in agonized transition between superstition and enlightenment, tradition and innovation.

©2022 Malcolm Gaskill (P)2022 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Malcolm Gaskill shows us with filmic vividness the daily life of the riven, marginal community of Springfield, where settlers from a far country dwell on the edge of the unknown. His attention to their plight—material, psychological, spiritual—goes far to explain, though not explain away, the alien beliefs of a fragile, beleaguered community, torn between the old world and the new. The clarity of his thought and his writing, his insight, and the immediacy of the telling, combine to make this the best and most enjoyable kind of history writing. Malcolm Gaskill goes to meet the past on its own terms and in its own place, and the result is thought-provoking and absorbing.”—Hilary Mantel, best-selling author of Wolf Hall

Refreshing to hear more on this subject from places other than Salem

I really enjoyed this book, and the narration as well. I wasn’t sure how much this would delve into the witch craze outside of Salem in the greater New England area, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that it focused mainly on other areas, mainly the Springfield area.

Love this book

This book was truly delightful to listen to. The readers voice has a slight accent and I felt like she took me back to Springfield. The author paints such a vivid picture of the period. Interesting book and glad it was in audible.

Witch Trial in New England Pre-Salem

This is a compelling book focused on Springfield Massachusetts, its origins, and witch trials there. There is also an interesting parallel study of Puritan theology particularly as it relates to the meaning of the Crucifiction.

An incredible History and storytelling

Loved this book! It was an incredibly detailed history of this period and of a town in Massachusetts. The narrator was perfect her voice is evocative abs beautiful

Great story

Fascinating. An excellent blend of scholarly research and good old-fashioned storytelling, I wouldn't be surprised if they turned it into a movie. And the narrator is perfect.

Wow

The combination of historical research and narrative flow... just wow.
I've lived across the river all my life and only in recent years have had a heightened curiosity about the early residents of the city on the opposite shore. My interest was focused on the history of my own town, West Springfield.
Kristin Atherton's narration was prefect. The choice of a British narrator gave a sense of distance of time and place that, for me, enhanced the story.
Thank you, Mr. Gaskill. Thank you, Ms. Atherton.

A fascinating story well told

The book covers the married lives of a couple in Springfield MA in the mid 17C, a time of Puritanism, superstition and witches.

Immersive

A fascinating look at the day to day life of early colonists, connecting the dots of history in a way that brings their stories back to life. Can a historical nonfiction be riveting? This one is.

It was ok

It was good but just not exactly what I thought it was. Story was a little slow getting started also.

Book club made me do it

Dry, like old paper in an attic. As exciting as a dried mud puddle. As unending as the vast desert sands. I would have burned it as kindling if it had been a book and not selected by my book club. I love historical literature of varying types this was not enjoyable. So much promise to expand and reveal the basic reality of human motivations regardless of the place in time or events surrounding, yet such a disappointment. Sorry to the author, I respect the work that went into this, that gets 5+ stars, the execution of the work, -10.