The Stratford Devil

by Claude Clayton Smith

Book Overview

A fictionalized account of the struggles of a Puritan settlement and events leading to the historical hanging of Goody Bassett for witchcraft in Stratford, Connecticut, in the spring of 1651. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802765440
• ISBN13: 9780802765444
• Release Date: January 1984
• Publisher: Walker & Company
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Age Range: 11 to 15 years
• Grade Range: Grades 6 to 10

Customer Reviews

Highly recommended.

The Stratford Devil is a haunting historical fiction novel based on a true incident. In 1651, nearly half a century before the notorious witch trials in Salem, Goody Basset became the second woman in Connecticut charged with witchcraft, and was hanged for her alleged crime. The Stratford Devil is the tale of a strong-willed woman whose independent spirit is at odds with strict Puritan society, and the one event that set in motion a cycling chain of consequences leading to her destruction. Much like Arthur Miller's classic play "The Crucible", The Stratford Devil is a powerful allegory for the perils of religious fundamentalism and authoritarianism gone awry. Highly recommended.