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A review by thenovelstitch
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Honestly, what don't I love about a Grady Hendrix book?? Witchcraft for Wayward Girls is no different. The story, the characters, the conflicts, the resolution -- chefs kiss.
Fern is 15 and pregnant, and in 1970 there is nothing worse that could happen to you. Her parents ship her off to a "maternity home" where dozens of girls have gone before her to have their pregnancies in secret, give birth in secret, and return home with a secret. Fern is terrified of birth, being apart from her parents, and all the agony of pregnancy. As she makes friends, she realizes that maybe something sinister is going on at the house, or at least in the world, and maybe girls united can have unimaginable power to create change, if they only know the right spell.
Even though Grady is a white man with no kids, he very clearly spent a lot of time talking to and listening to the lived experiences of women in his life. His own aunt was sent to a maternity home when she was young, and the horror and trauma of that experience inspired him to write this book to bring awareness to something most of us forgot or didn't know about. I think I knew about homes like this in theory, but I had no idea the actual scope of them. How young mothers were coerced into giving up their babies, and there was no paper trail so there could be no reunification later (although many did reunify). The terror and fear and shame and trauma these young women went through resonates through the book -- it is real life horror. Highly recommend.
Fern is 15 and pregnant, and in 1970 there is nothing worse that could happen to you. Her parents ship her off to a "maternity home" where dozens of girls have gone before her to have their pregnancies in secret, give birth in secret, and return home with a secret. Fern is terrified of birth, being apart from her parents, and all the agony of pregnancy. As she makes friends, she realizes that maybe something sinister is going on at the house, or at least in the world, and maybe girls united can have unimaginable power to create change, if they only know the right spell.
Even though Grady is a white man with no kids, he very clearly spent a lot of time talking to and listening to the lived experiences of women in his life. His own aunt was sent to a maternity home when she was young, and the horror and trauma of that experience inspired him to write this book to bring awareness to something most of us forgot or didn't know about. I think I knew about homes like this in theory, but I had no idea the actual scope of them. How young mothers were coerced into giving up their babies, and there was no paper trail so there could be no reunification later (although many did reunify). The terror and fear and shame and trauma these young women went through resonates through the book -- it is real life horror. Highly recommend.