10/31/2026
Too smart. Too opinionated. Too independent. The kind of woman who, a few centuries ago, would have been called a witch. Today, we prefer to call her an inspiration.
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The women accused of witchcraft, from Europe to colonial America, were disproportionately the ones who stood apart -- the unmarried, the outspoken, the healers, the women who lived outside a man’s control. For readers who want to explore how that history still shapes the way strong women are seen today, we recommend:
For a sharp, fiery exploration of why the witch hunts targeted the independent, the childless, and the elderly woman -- and why women fitting those same descriptions are still on trial today -- we recommend Mona Chollet's "In Defense of Witches: The Legacy of the Witch Hunts and Why Women Are Still on Trial" at https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9781250894878 (Bookshop) and https://link.amazon/B0cTNm0iF (Amazon)
For a witty and furious history of the Scottish witch trials, we recommend "How to Kill a Witch: The Patriarchy's Guide to Silencing Women" at https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9781464241253 (Bookshop) and https://amzn.to/4AH7duz (Amazon)
In "The First Witch of Boston," Andrea Catalano tells the true story of Margaret Jones, the healer and midwife hanged in 1648 as colonial Massachusetts’s first executed ‘witch’ -- a bold, independent woman ahead of her time at https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9781662526008 (Bookshop) and https://link.amazon/B08TF8CRM (Amazon)
For a Newbery Award-winning novel about a teen girl who stands up against witch hysteria and mob mentality in early colonial America, we highly recommend “The Witch of Blackbird Pond” for ages 9 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/the-witch-of-blackbird-pond
For an excellent book about an 11-year-old girl who leads the drive to build a memorial to women accused of witchcraft in her Scottish town, we recommend "A Kind of Spark" for ages 9 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/kind-of-spark
