The Witch of Blackbird Pond

Rating:
Summary: An OK book..Read it yourself to find out!
Review: This story is about a high-spirited young girl whose rebellion against prejudice and her surroundings culminates in a terrifying witch hunt and breath-taking trial.
Kit Tyler was the main person in the story. She was an out-going young rebellion. Some others in the story were Mercy, Judith, Mathew Wood, Aunt Rachel, and Hannah. Mercy and Judith were quiet most of the time but at times they would become a little more out-going than usual. Mathew Wood was a tall stern man who had fury. Aunt Rachel was a quiet woman but she would and could out break at times. Hannah was the "suspected witch and was a kind and a very lonely Quaker.
Even before she set foot on the dull and forbidding shore of Wethersfield, Conneticut, on that April day in 1687. Kit Tyler felt the finger of suspension pointing at her. A solid cloud of disapproval settled about her as dis heartning as the contrast of this gray, barren land to the shimmering green that hinged the turquoise bay of Barbados which had been her home for sixteen years.
Her unconventional upbringing and her luxorious wardrobe were out of place in the primative household of her aunt's family and so were her clumsy ettorta at cleaning and scrubbing. Only the Meadows were a sanctuary.

Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: This book is completetly awesome. I read it for the first time when I was 8 or 9, and I fell in love with it. My sister bought me a copy, and it stands on my favorite book shelf. The story is about a Katherine Tyler, (Kit)a girl from Barbados, who comes to America when her Grandfather dies, to live with her strict Puritan aunt and uncle. She does everything wrong, including wearing fancy dresses, and going swimming to save a little wooden doll. When everything gets really bad though, she meets the "witch" of the town, a very sweet lady who is a Quaker. Because of her relationship with Hannah and also because of her earlier suspicious activities, the town begins to become suspicious of her, accusing her of being a witch.
I can't tell you anymore, because you have to read the story, it's an absolute must. It's my favorite of Elizabeth George Speare's books, and I've reread it 10-11 times.

Rating:
Summary: Justice to Everyone Except an Old Lady.
Review: Kit's grandpa died and she had to leave her rich home and sail to America. She hoped to find her Uncle there. What she finds is that her uncle is poor and has a temper. At first she just wants to go back home. Her cousins treat her good. One day, Kit was helping her cousin in a field, when she spotted an old, little house. She saw an old lady working there. She asked her cousin about it. Her cousin said, "She is the witch of Blackbird pond." Kit was scared. When things got worse, Kit finally broke. She ran and ran and ran. Her feet carried her to the big field. She through herself on the ground and sobbed herself to sleep. When she woke up, the witch was standing there and watching her. The witch said, "Thee must be hungry. Come with Thee." Kit was not afraid at all of this sweet old lady. She took her into her house and gave her some food and drink. Kit felt wonderful after that. She thought to herself, "Why would anyone say that she is a witch?" They became good friends. Kit heard a mob one night. She crept out of the house and eave-dropped them. She found out that they were going to go get the "witch" and throw her in jail. Kit fled to the field and told her to grab her things. They ran into the woods and hid. The mob burned down the Hannah's (the "witch") house. The mob looked in the woods for the "witch." Will the mob find the Hannah? This story takes place in America when it was first being colonized. Everyone had limited supplies, and sickness was everywhere. Doctors always bleed people when they got sick! I really enjoyed this book. I felt that I had to live with Kit's uncle and had befriended Hannah. Thanks for writing this great book Elizabeth George Speare.

Rating:
Summary: good historical fiction
Review: Have you ever read a book that was so good it made you feel you
were going back in time? That is how I felt while I was reading this book about a 16 year old girl who has to move to the unfamiliar Connecticut colony to live with her relatives because her father has died and she has nowhere else to go. Everything is so different from her sunny Carribean home where she has lived most of her life.

This book takes place in 1687 in a small town in Connecticut called Weathersfield, a stern puritan community. Kit Tyler, the 16 year old, comes to live with her Aunt and Uncle after her father's death. Even after she settles in to her new life, she starts to feel caged like a bird. She is unhappy and unliked by the townspeople because she acts so differently. For example, she wears expensive silk dresses, knows how to swim and becomes friends with the local witch. She meets the local witch, named Hanna, in the meadows, by the swamp, the only place Kit can feel completely free. Her association with Hanna and the fact that Kit is different form the townspeople cause her to be accused of witchcraft. Can she prove to them she is not guity of witchcraft before it is too late?

The reason I like the book was because of the strong, action-filled plot. I also liked reading this book because it had portrayed the time period in which it took place accurately. The book seemed very plausible that a town in those days could panic and accuse a stranger of being a witch. I also liked the book because I liked the main character. Kit is someone that I would like to have met because she is independent, and wants to be accepted for being different. One thing I didn't like was the town's atmosphere. The atmosphere was dark, and strict, and loaded with witch hysteria.

I would recommend this book to people who like the genre of historical fiction, and particularly the time period of witchcraft. This book would appeal to those in sixth to eighth grade who are studying this time in American history. This book is more for teenage girls than boys given it female main character and narrator. There is also a love story in the subplot that would appeal to those who like romance. If you have read and liked the novel "The Scarlet Letter", this is another good book to read.

The climax of the story is when the main character is tried for being a witch. This review is not going to give away the outcome of the trial, but it is a strong finish to a well told story that will not disappoint the reader. I guarantee it! The conclusion will leave you feeling that almost anyone could be found guilty of breaking strict traditions in this stern peritian community where this book takes place. Can Kit escape the town's accusations and find happiness in this cold region, so unlike her native home?

Rating:
Summary: A Gem of a Book
Review: If you have never read "The Witch of Blackbird Pond", don't be turned away by it's categorization as a Children's Book. It is not, in my opinion, only for children! I read this in 7th Grade, and to this day I will still pluck it off the shelf and re-read it every once in a while. I'm sure adults and children alike will enjoy this little book.

Kit, a young girl from Barbados, is on her way to America to live with her Aunt and her Uncle after her beloved Grandfather dies. However, Kit does not fit in well at all (I find myself sympathizing with the outcast type of character) because she has fancy clothing, she can swim, and she likes to read books other than the bible. This is all very strange to the people in Puritan New England, and what is even stranger to them is her friendship with the "Witch" of Blackbird Pond. But things get worse when the children of the town begin to get sick, and she herself is called a witch! Something for everyone, even Romance! I highly recommend this book to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent lesson to be learned
Review: I discovered this book years and years ago in the fourth grade. The thought of it stayed with me through the years. I bought the book for my friend's son a couple years ago and reread it to see if it was as good as I remembered. It was even better because as an adult I can see some of the most important themes of the book that weren't evident to a child. Tolerance and acceptance are perhaps the biggest lessons of all to take away from it. Independence is another. I will continue to buy this book every time a child close to me comes to the age where they can understand it. The plotline is enough to keep them interested while at the same time teaching them valuable life lessons, without them even knowing it.

Rating:
Summary: A Bewitching Story for Kids of All Ages
Review: It's April of 1687 when Kit Tyler steps on shore in Connecticut. Having recently lost her grandfather, she's come to the colonies to live with her uncle and aunt. But her new town is completely different from her old life in Barbados. Not only does she have to do the chores she used to have servants do, but her Puritan relatives are much stricter then her previous upbringing has taught her to be.

But her life isn't all bad. There is the interest William, the most eligible bachelor in town, has shown in her. And there's the refuge she's managed to find in Hannah, the town outcast suspected of being a witch. But will she ever truly adjust to her new life?

I found this book in Jr. High, and have read it four or five times since then. I recently reread it again, and was completely drawn into the story. I couldn't put it down, and I already knew how it ended. The characters are sympathetic and interesting, especially Kit. You can help but root for her to find some happiness in her new life. The plot is engrossing, with several sub-plots expertly woven through the book. And the time and place of the setting is brought to life in such an amazing way it feels like you are actually in the town of Wethersfield.

This book is so engrossing that anyone will love it. And the theme about judging others will stick with you long after you've read the last page. I can not recommend this book highly enough. Ms. Speare is an excellent author.

Rating:
Summary: A Dramaticaly Proportioned Storyline
Review: Kit Tylers grandfather has just past away, now she uninvitedley boards the "Dolphin" to the expressionless hamlet of Connecticut Colony. As she takes her first steps upon the bleaky shores of Wethersfield she perceives that she would never return to the sun-showered,shimmiring shores of the sweet Carribean Islands.Know, she must do her best to fit in with the townspeople who are ignorant of her wereabouts, and soon acuse her of practising witch-craft with a harmless old widow. Kit is then sarrounded with fear, suspicion and anger.The only people that can dig her out of this deep hole are her Aunt Rachel, Uncle Mathew, cousins Mercy and Judith and possibly a student named Prudence. This beautifully written novel will keep you reading untill tomorrow painting picture after picture of vivid images in your head.This novel is a recomendation to any reader for its pureness, calrity and interesting plot. I was able learn many knew facts about the colonies, such as the daily life of the people. This extravegantly written novel has engaging and unexpected turn of events that make this book worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: BORING AND POINTLESS!!!
Review: In the beginning Kit sails to America to live with her aunt and uncle,from there you follow her through day to day pilgrim life. Kit dislikes the life of the pilgrim; she finds refuge at the house of an old lady at Blackbird Pond. The book does a great job describing the history of this time period which is probably why it won the award.
However, I was seriously disapointed with the story itself.
One of the main problems being that there is no plot of which to speak. Kit goes the U.S., nothing else happens, FINALLY, at long last the story ends. Also, while I'm sure the author envisioned Kit as a strong willed character, they do not show it very well; also there really isn't any character development either, unless you count the last three pages.
Wondering why I chose to read this if I hated it so much? I didn't choose, it was assigned for school reading.
Oh yeah, there is no actual "witch" of Blackbird Pond (lady, but not witch). So, in conclusion, only read this if you want to die of boredom.

Rating:
Summary: Convincing tale of endurance and love
Review: With no other choice, other than marrying an old 50 year old man, Katherine Tyler, a 16 year old vivacious girl who preferred to go by Kit, was forced to leave her beloved home of Barbados for the bleak, desolate, and unfriendly territory of Connecticut. As they sailed up the river to Kit's new home, Kit was filled with apprehension about her unexpected arrival to her Aunts home. Kit was received by her Uncle in a less than welcoming manner though, her Aunt and two cousins Mercy and Judith were glad to have her. What she didn't count on, however, was how different, and hard, her aunt and uncle's grim, cheerless, and strict Puritan way of life was. The suspicious townsfolk looked upon her warring of satin gowns as frivolous, and her habit of questioning her elders as evil. When they learned she could read and swim, she was accused of being a witch. When Kit befriended Hannah Tupper, an old Quaker woman known as the Witch of Blackbird Pond it was more than the community could take. Yet, Kit learned that "Hannah Tupper was far from being a witch, but certainly she had worked a magic charm. In one short hour she had conjured away the rebellion that had been seething in [her] mind for weeks." However, the townspeople didn't know this, or want to, and Kit was forced to save Hannah's life and defend her own.

I loved this book! (...) I loved this book when I read it in fifth grade, and now, years later, it is still a delightful tale of endurance and love!