Reviews - An Outbreak of Witchcraft: A Graphic Novel of the Salem Witch Trials

97 reviews for:

An Outbreak of Witchcraft: A Graphic Novel of the Salem Witch Trials

I didn't realize until I actually got into the graphic novel part itself that this is an adaptation of The Crucible. I personally love that story so that was totally fine with me, but I wish that had been explained a little better on the cover. I was under the impression that I was getting a total different story, not a retelling of The Crucible. I also think that the nonfiction sections of information were a little wordy and slightly confusing. I wish those could have been broken up into smaller chunks. The artwork was beautiful though!

kalin_grace's review against another edition

3.0

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

faegirl's review against another edition

4.0

Being from northeastern Massachusetts, the Salem Witch trials are not a historical event in the far past. 80% of my hometown was involved with a number of people executed by their neighbors. This graphic novel is a useful early book for teens and those who have not had as much exposure to the story of the accused. I like the style of drawing, not too cluttered but generally authentic clothing. The resources in the back are all good, excellent authors of long form books on witchcraft and the trials.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review, opinions are my own.

makeminemonsters's review against another edition

2.5

dark reflective tense fast-paced

This is not a work of non-fiction, it's a fictionalized account of the Salem Witch Trials - any time an author invents conversations between historical people that we have no way of knowing actually took place, their account is automatically fictionalized in my experience. Additionally, there were many facts about the Trials that were omitted, rearranged, or otherwise distorted

(one of the most egregious was depicting Giles Corey making a "not guilty" plea - he refused to plead either way to avoid the forfeiture of his lands, that was why he was tortured)

. I was really disappointed because there are so many distortions and misunderstandings in popular culture about the trials already and often this book reinforces them.

The artwork was very nice, I liked it a lot. The other positives were the inserted sections providing context and I liked it when the author did quote from the trial transcripts, but overall there were too many distortions and mistakes for me to recommend this graphic novel to anyone looking to learn about the Salem Witch Trials.

deirdreanais's review against another edition

3.0

adventurous dark informative slow-paced

ladykaylee's review against another edition

4.0

dark informative medium-paced

Previously this summer, I read a fiction book about the Salem Witch Trials from the point of view of the afflicted, and it presented them in shades of grey, suggesting reasons for them to have accused various townsfolk of witchcraft. This nonfiction account was a broader overview, concentrating much more heavily on those accused of witchcraft. This book also covered some of the broader politics of the time, like the new governor arriving from England during the height of the witch fever of the summer. One thing this book taught me that I had not known previously was that they accused and jailed a four year old little girl separately from her mother and infant sibling, also accused. The infant died in jail, and the young girl was released but never mentally recovered. I have a four year old child, and that part hit so close to home that I had to put the book down for a while. It was a very informative read, if also incredibly dark, but then again, it was a dark time in colonial history.