The Last Witchfinder: A Novel (P.S.) (ISBN 0060821809)

Thou shall not suffer a Witchfinder to practice his trade:
When I first saw the title "The last Witchfinder" a rather fanciful plot ran through my mind- a kind of underground railroad with which kind hearted and enlightened citizens spirited women accused of witch craft to a safe place and out of the reaches of the Witchfinder. It turns out I really couldn't have been more wrong. But that's ok because the real plot is something I never could have imagined-making this book a constant surprise. It's the end of the 17th century and while the age of enlightenment is at hand people still respond to anything unknown as occult in nature, and therefore must be demonic. Many men and women have been needlessly killed and tortured. And though witch fever isn't as prevalent in this age as it was in past, witchfinders still enjoy a good living. Jennet Stearne is the daughter of a Witchfinder. But because of all the traveling that he is required to do to find witches and get paid for several months every year Jennet lives with her Aunt Isobel- a natural philosopher who teaches Jennet all of the new learning of the age of enlightenment. But unfortunately the experiments that Isobel performs (on prisms, gravity and even supposed witche's familiars to discover how they corrupted from the innocent animal they once were) cause the huge and cry of witch craft against her. But before she is killed (on the recommendation of the Witchfinder-her brother in law) she charges Jennet with a mission to use philosophy (science was not a term that they appeared to have used in the late 17th century) to prove that there are no witches. She leaves her niece with two clues-Newton's supposedly lost anti-demon proof and the words "fire and water, water and fire." This task will consume Jennets life for decades. Through her myriad adventures (moving to America, observing the Salem witch trials, being captured by Native Americans and marrying into their tribe, a love affair with Ben Franklin, being castaway on a Caribbean island and even a run in with pirates) she is sometimes distracted from her mission. But that never lasts for long because she is determined to rid the world of Witchfinders-even one who is her own brother. This is really an excellent book but it's also kind of complicated and a little weird. For one thing Newton's "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy" narrates (yes, the book talks) little asides throughout the book. Not only are these very funny it's an excellent way for the author to editorialize on his own work, as well as include information that couldn't easily be worked into the regular part of the novel. In addition, the processes and theories Jennet uses to construct her anti-witch proof had my head spinning for quite a while. Because of them someone could easily use this book as a philosophy textbook. It took a lot of re-reading (and note taking) of certain parts in order to figure out what she was trying to say. While that was a little frustrating it was definitely worth it to understand the idea because so much of the book is focused on it. I don't think I would have understood it at all if I hadn't taken intro to philosophy (at least not without a lot research) but even if you don't fully grasp the ideas of the book you can still enjoy it. When I originally tried to read this book I gave up after a couple of pages-it just seemed so complicated with all the philosophy and more than a little scarce in description. Luckily I kept it around and when I picked it up again three days ago I pushed through the first few pages and was completely pulled in to the story and couldn't have torn myself away if I tried. This book is completely absorbing and enthralling filled with drama and the best sarcastic comedy I've ever read. For all that I really liked reading it; I had a couple of problems with the book. For one thing the author didn't define how the supposed "witches" caused problems until almost the very end of the book. And since I didn't really know what witches were deemed capable of doing, it was hard to grasp how what Jennet was doing would disprove it. But a much larger issue is the lack of overall detail in the book. For one thing there is very little historical atmosphere-the historical setting always comes in second to the philosophy. In that way this book is more of a novel set in the past then a work of historical fiction. Also time passes extremely quickly in the novel and that means that a lot of opportunities for more description and character development that were missed out on. So much happens in this novel that it could have easily been turned into an epic with more background about the time period and description of Jennet's adventures. But I might be biased in my opinion on this-I liked this book so much that I wanted it to be longer. Five stars. Keep in mind that even though it is historical fiction, "The Last Witchfinder" is an extremely intellectual book and serious mental muscles need to be flexed to really understand all the book has to offer. This book is not for everyone, and it's definitely not what you want to pick up when you're looking for a bit of light reading. And to my fellow Wiccans out there: if you're looking for a book on the "burning times" this is not for you. This is a philosophical exploration about how to explain the unexplainable. There is no mystic element. If you want something like that you need to look in fantasy-not historical fiction-because as a point of fact, by the time that people started being burned for witchcraft, all pagan religions had been pretty much stamped out.

wonderful novel:
*The Last Witchfinder* is one of the best historical fiction novels that I've read in recent years. Jennet Stearne is furious because her father, the Witchfinder General Walter Sterne, had no choice to investigate the accusations that her aunt, Isobel Mowbray, educated and wise, is a witch. With plenty of witnesses, the Witchfinder has no choice but to burn her at the stake. This act has disgraced the Witchfinder and the Sterne family has no choice but to move from England to Massachusetts. The father is able to convince the government that a witchfinder is needed and is employed. Not long after settling in Massachusetts, Jennet is abducted by the natives, which she marries and bears a child. Years later, she is rescued by the Americans, which she then marries a postmaster. Somewhere along the lines, she learns that her brother has since become the next witchfinder. In addition, she's accused by her brother and his wife in dabbling with witchcraft. Jennet must now convince the court that she is innocent or she'll suffer the fate as her aunt. This novel is filled with interesting characters, whom Jennet meets throughout her life. She meets Sir Isaac Newton, whom she carried a life-long grudge. She also has romantic trysts with Benjamin Franklin. She remains friends with a man who collects jars of deformed children and embryoes, who appears in her life at the oddest times. Witchfinding is a practice that Jennet abhors ever since her aunt was erroneously accused and burned at the stake. Educated and brilliant like her aunt, Jennet, throughout her life, sought to convince the English Parliament and the American Puritan government to put an end to the witch hunts. Wonderful novel of historical fiction that captured my attention from the first page of the book until the last page.

One of the great authors few know of strikes again:
Morrow has always been great at satire and shows in TLW that he can do historical fiction just as well. Even with my expectations for a Morrow book being dashed as I read on and realized I wasn't meant to laugh as much as in previous works, by about 100 pages in I started to revel in the book's prose and purpose just as thoroughly as I've reveled in Morrow's previous works of satire. A great thing about Morrow is that he has a clear purpose in writing his books. While you might suggest that every author has one as well, I can't say that they link a greater purpose with an interesting narrative in a syncretic fashion very often or very well. And with TLW I felt a clear a sense of meaning. This is a book with a purpose. And for a book with the conceit of being written by another book and making much of the evolutionary growth and connection of books, much like blocks of DNA in a sort of natural selection of thought, saying this one is worthy progeny of the best qualities and purposes of earlier works is probably the best compliment I can give it. But i must also add that besides its themes Morrow deserves a lot of credit for utilizing a writing style that was a departure for him. Not only does he get away with it but he created a flowing narrative that was not only readable and more epic and rollicking than past works, he did so in what I found to be an addictive manner. The language and style he uses was compulsively readable in its ability to be direct, to invoke the era, and to find a poetic groove that was neither too arch, nor too trite for the subject matter. One of the best books I've read in years.

Historical Fiction with Style - and Attitude:
Give James Morrow high marks for originality in "The Last Witchfinder", a gregarious, rollicking, swashbuckling (do women swashbuckle?), satirical and, at its core, enlightening tale of those pious, dour soles who persecuted witches and warlocks in 17th and 18th century England and her American colonies. It is the adventures of Jennet Stearne, the bright and daring fictional young women who, after seeing her beloved aunt and tutor burned at the stake by her "witchfinder" father, vows to end this barbaric and misguided practice through science and natural law. It is also the first book I've ever read that is narrated by another, um, "book" - specifically Sir Isaac Newton's "Mathematical Principals of Natural Philosophy", the landmark tome that set the foundation for about three centuries of physics. But if the concept of a book writing a book turns you off, hang on a minute - it actually works - a clever means of providing historical and future context in science, culture, religion, and politics. As well as an outlet for some wry wit and Twain-like cynicism and editorial comment. Morrow's story takes a far more ambitious course that a simple expose of the lunacy behind the state-sanctioned crusade to rid the world of those accused of consort with the devil. That's been done before - and more thoroughly - but never with Morrow's dry humor and keen insight. Instead, the author also takes the reader - and his heroine - through Indian raids and Indian captivity, shipwreck on a deserted Caribbean island, child births and untimely child deaths, and a full plate of historical fact, trivia, and fantasy, much of it centered whimsically around a young Ben Franklin and his illegitimate son, William. What - Ben Franklin? Did I mention the scope is ambitious? By comparison, the tedious adventures of Frazier's "Thirteen Moons" play like a Disney cartoon. Morrow's prose soars and stalls, moving at a breakneck pace through some chapters, while bogging down in repetitive drivel in others. Yet this rambling freehand and untamed verse creates a rhythm and style of its own, lending enough frivolity to take the edge off topics that range from mathematically dull to grotesquely lurid. And while Morrow certainly doesn't pretend to answer missing chunks of the brilliant and enigmatic Ben Franklin's life with scholarly thesis, his fictional relationship with our Jennet is entertaining, and hopefully doesn't have old Ben spinning too rapidly in his Philadelphia grave. Ultimately, an epic yarn that bends and stretches and tests the bounds of credibility in many places along the way, but wraps with a punch that is fulfilling and even suspenseful, capped by a closing that is poignant and satisfying. American history has rarely been so cannily wrought - "The Last Witchfinder" is in deed a rare find that deserves to be read.

Careful Reading This - You May Look Up to Find Dawn a LOT Closer Than You Thought:
The hardest part of finishing a really good book is realizing there is no more. That's how you will feel reading the last few words in this superb novel. At first, I found the book a bit tough to get into, and thought, Well, I will only read to page 30 or so. Of course, two days later and I was reading the last few pages in the whole book - the story seemed to just suddenly entrance. There was a moment - maybe page 45 or 50 - when all of a sudden, the next time I looked up I was more than half-way through the book and it was the wee hours of the night. If you are fan of historical fiction and like a really good story to divert your attentions from the day-to-day, have patience with the first 30 or so pages of this book; soon you too will be wondering why the story could not continue even further....