How My Love of History Began (It was not in the Classroom)

Ah, it has been a while since I have written.  No, I'm not on break (not yet at least; we have one more full week and a half week), but I just spent a day grading papers so writing this is my reward.

I read the Witch of Blackbird Pond several months ago, but the book has stuck with me.  In fact, it has been one of my favorite books that I have read these past few months, and as you probably noticed, it is also a Newberry Award winner and so a classic.

Typically, if I just heard the title without picking up the book, I probably would not be eager to read it.

However, the 6th graders at my school read this book, and the teacher told me that it is a historic fiction piece about the Salem Witch Trials.  A historical fiction novel?  I love historical fiction!

In fact, I love history.

I did not realize that though until high school.  In elementary school, when the teacher would announce social studies, I groaned inside.  For me, social studies was a bunch of dates and famous important people.

Make sure you know who did what when!

However, in high school, I had one particular teacher (I had him for three separate classes) who presented history as the story that it is.  He showed the little details, and through that the historic people were brought to life in my mind.

Because of him, I took a history class in college that was early American history taught through field trips throughout our state.

Of course I loved it, and I took more classes that were very hands-on, including a colonial internship where I cooked food as the colonists did.

I said to myself, if I can bring this type of learning into my classroom, then I know children would be just as excited as I am about history.

And within my own classroom, I do strive to bring this hands-on investigating to history (and to all subjects for that matter) whether we look at a historic document, pass around an artifact, read a poem or book about the time period, or I come dressed up as a character from history like the Black Death Doctor.

This year alone, several students have told me how much they love history, and of course that warms my heart beyond words.

However, I had enjoyed history earlier than high school because I loved reading historical fiction.

I read all of the American girl books.  I learned about the Holocaust from books like Number the Stars.   I learned about the medieval period from books like The Ordinary Princess (a bit of a stretch).  But I did not realize that it was history, until I sat and thought about it after discovering my love for history.

That is the power of a book, able to teach without the reader realizing they are learning.

So of course, when the teacher told me this particular book was about colonial America, I think I probably jumped for joy. 

But she did not stop there!  She then said that it was about a love triangle.  Oh!  A historic novel with romance?

If you do not know me very well, you might think I am a bit of a cynic when it comes to romance.

Yes, but that is just a crusty exterior; underneath, I am a complete and total romantic.  I sometimes describe it as a melted M&M where there is the sugar coating and underneath is a chocolate soup.  (I mean my favorite author is Jane Austen, need I say more?)

With all the excitement that I had leading up to the book, the book did not disappoint.  Kit is a girl who has lived in Barbados her entire life.  When her grandfather dies, she chooses to leave her home and travel up to Connecticut where she has family in the Puritan community.

She is met with culture shock as everything around her is gray compared to the colorful home she left.  She is also unaccustomed to the Puritans' strict ways of doing things.  She learns quickly she is not to swim because the people believe it is a sign of being a witch among other things she cannot do anymore.

To escape from the pressures of living in a new area, she finds a pond and a meadow that is peaceful.  Here, an old lady lives alone; Kit is warned away from her because everyone in town believes that this old lady is a witch.  Kit though befriends this lady and finds comfort here.   When she is found out by the town, trouble begins.

This story has excellent character development, description, and a mix in storytelling.  I found that I could not put it down, and only did so under protest.

I had a vivid image in my mind of the meadow, the thatch roof, the Puritan houses, and Kit's beautiful dresses.  I understood what Kit was feeling and her loneliness though surrounded by people, which allowed the story to move more rapidly.

One of the things that really stood out to me though was Kit's relationship with Hannah (the old lady).

Here was a girl who had not been brought up with what the Bible teaches, and yet she was the one who acted the most Christ-like.  She was the one who was willing to befriend a lonely old lady whose husband had died, to take her food, to help things needing to be done, and to warn her of danger.

The others in the town, professing Christians, instead chose to look down on Hannah, to spread lies about her, and to refuse hospitality to her.

It made me think how Jesus came into the world for all people.  While He was here, He chose to eat with people that others did not respect, He chose to heal the sick who were cast out of town, and ultimately He sacrificed Himself for us to restore a broken relationship with God.

It amazes me the example that He set.  I strive to live like He did even though so often I do fall short.  I would much rather be like Kit who learns about Jesus as she shares His love.  This book made me ask myself, what can I do to share Jesus' love with others?

Overall, I loved this book, and I would recommend it for upper elementary and older.  It made me think, it was well-written, it was historically accurate, and it had a bit of romance thrown in with the adventure.