Witches and Witch Hunts: A History of Persecution

by Milton Meltzer, Barry Moser (Cover Art)

In this fascinating, thought-provoking book, master historian Milton Meltzer examines witch-hunts from around the world. From fifteenth-century France to Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, from Adolf Hitler to Joseph McCarthy, devastating witch-hunts were fed by superstition and have threatened societies with their hysteria.

Here is a book that presents the truth behind the frenzy, taking an engaging yet sobering look at prejudice, discrimination, and murder practiced in the name of the betterment of society.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Witches, Occult, Juvenile, Religion

128 pages, Hardcover

Published September 1, 1999

About the author

Milton Meltzer wrote 110 books, five of which were nominated for the National Book Award. With Langston Hughes, he co-authored A Pictorial History of Black Americans, now in its sixth edition. He received the 2001 Laura Ingalls Wilder Award for his contribution to children's literature, the 1986 Jane Addams Peace Association Children's Book Award, and the 2000 Regina Medal. He died in New York City of esophageal cancer at age 94.

Reviews

[Taneka · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gives accounts of witches and witch-hunts around the world. People believed that witches were working closely with the devil, and the religious climate in most places forbade any dealings with evil. Many of the accounts are well documented for the trials were considered legal matters. Victims range from ages eighty to age six and both men and women are among the accused. Events occurred in Germany, throughout America and Africa. The author discusses how witch-hunts have transformed, from Adolf Hitler to McCarthyism and today throughout the African continent.


This book was an interesting read. However, there were times that I had to put the book down out of disgust. They actually chained, tortured and starved a six year old for witchcraft. I understand that people have their religious beliefs and that expelling the devil is part of that, but to be cruel to a child is unacceptable. To do that to a child shows no compassion and is the act of a Godless being, at least that is my opinion. It took me a while to recover from that bit of information. The letter from a prisoner in Germany charged with witchcraft was touching and gave voice to the accused. I could understand their dilemma and why they would admit to something that they did not do. Unless they repented (lied) they would continue to be tortured and to escape torture means that you had to die. For those accused, with the exception of a few, their only outcome was death.


The book gives a historical perspective of how the bible dealt with witchcraft and how it instructs on what to do with those that practice the art. Parallels are drawn to the Holocaust, due to Hitler’s ability to accuse them of satanic powers such as greedily controlling the financial systems causing financial woes for Germany and spreading disease. It is also drawn with McCarthyism in the United States and its’ ability to jail individuals with no regard to the Bill of Rights. During this Era, education was considered evil, with Harvard and Yale labeled “sanctuaries” for Communism. The book distinguishes between fact and theory by showing both sides of the cases. There is a historical letter included where a male prisoner writes to his daughter about his accusations and how he will lie because he cannot endure the torture any longer. Although admitting to be a witch, the reader understands that the crimes that the accused admit to are only lies in an attempt to escape anymore pain. The book encourages further pursuit of the subject by asking the reader to compare the different eras to one another, The Inquisition, The Salem Witch Trials, Nazis Propaganda, and McCarthyism

[Sam · Rating 1 out of 5]

The summary of this book should be “how the community legally killed off people they don’t like”

There were many historical inaccuracies, and while I know many ‘legends’ surrounding witchcraft are told viva voce but there has been enough studies and research done for the general consensus to agree.

Plus the random chapter on the Holocaust??? And the “Witches Today” final chapter? A joke.

Wasn’t a fan of the writing either.

[Electroclan17]

I'm not going to rate this book. It was a really interesting read.

[BookWormYami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read! Too bad the book is short.

[Victor · Rating 4 out of 5]

My overall experience with this book was pleasing. I have gained more knowledge than I had originally anticipated to on the subject of witches.From the late middle ages to around the late 18th century, religion drove the world. Much of what was believed to be evil on this earth was usually said to be a doing of witches. Many witch hunts occured in this time period due to the fact that everyone wanted an explanation for why awful occurances happened, this is where the witches come in. Throught the book, there are multiple accounts of actual witch trials that have taken place. The majority of the belief in witches was concentrated in Europe and Africa though over time it spread to America. One of the many satisfying aspects of this book is how the author manages to convey the information in great detail. At one point however I asked myself if a couple of the facts repeated themselves in the next chapter but I feel this lasted for only a few pages. I was especially surprised by what people suspected to be witchcraft. Nearly any accident could be blamed on witchcraft. I found this book to be very interesting as it guides the reader through stories of persecution and the strong beliefs people held in witches.

[Amy Layton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in a conversational tone, I find that this book is a wonderful stepping stone into learning about the horrors of not only the Salem Witch Trials, but other witch trials that happened all throughout Europe, and the same sort of "witch hunts" that have happened even in the past 100 years. 

I've seen some people express confusion over the chapters on the Holocaust and McCarthyism--which is interesting, because those two such things are touted today as almost modern witch-hunts, in which fear and anger are instilled towards a group of people--Jewish peoples and communists, respectively--a fear and anger which are unfounded, but a fear and anger that is acted upon with little question and little intervention.  

Mostly though, I think that there's a lot to be gained from this book, even though it's become a little dated in this year of 2019.  Still, very interesting, and I appreciate that it looks at all sorts of witch trials that were happening at the time!

Review cross-listed here!

[A.J. Martinez · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to learn more about the days of Witchcraft Trials and Persecution, this book is definitely informative without shoving facts down your throat. It's clearly written for younger readers, but as an adult I'd recommend this to any of my adult friends wanting a little taste of the Salem Witch Trials. This book also makes some really good points about modern day witch-hunting. A parallel can even be drawn to today's day and age with the rampant racism and anti-Muslim sentiments. As this book states: "A witch craze occurs because of a negative aspect of human nature: the desire of human beings to project evil on others, define them as outsiders, and then punish them horribly."

I'd give this book a solid 3.5/4 stars, just because it was a little juvenile for me. Other than that, I'd recommend it!

[Mandy Moss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow-did it surprise me?! You’re left with a political commentary on the “witch-hunts” that have carried on for centuries into our modern world; kept alive on mankind’s fear of losing control. It was facinating …and terrifying, existentially.

[Angel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book certainly was an intriguing non-fiction read. Although it is rather short, this book keeps the reader in a thought provoked state. It tells of the history of the persecution of people during events that some may refer to as “witch hunts.” This book tells of the history of witch hunts from all around the world. Anywhere from fifteenth-century France to the infamous salem witch trials of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. It even addresses events more relevant to our time such as the horrible actions of Adolf Hitler and the “Red Scare” with Joseph McCarthy. I have also noticed that this book inadvertently addresses prejudice, discrimination, and murder all practiced by society due to superstition and hysteria. All for the illusion that it is for the betterment of society.

I believe this book to be well written, but it’s short length takes away from the quality. It tends to be slightly short handed because whenever you get into one of account of “witch-hunting” the book hastily concludes and moves on to the event in history. Although this book has it’s advious downfalls it is still a book I would recommend someone if they are looking for a quick read, or for a brief lesson in history about persecution due to superstition and dire conditions.

[Kam Ho · Rating 3 out of 5]

A small book with a fantastic telling of the history of witchcraft stretching from the middle-age to today.
In the earlier sections, Meltzer focused on a brief sketch of the history, including folklore and true cases, of witch-hunts, leading to the most famous Trial in Salem. Apart from story-telling, Meltzer claims that witch-hunting eventually transformed into a more sophisticated and modernized systematic persecution, e.g. genocide.
This book is certainly not aimed at a complete historical account of witch-hunting. If you expect a more detailed historical account of the topic, you would be very disappointed. However, with only a hundred pages or so, this book is very entertaining as an introductory book to the more nuanced and academic-oriented study of witchcraft.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this very interesting! The book definitely lives up to its name. It really covers the persecution of witches, how the witch craze started (fear, lies, religious basis) and really covers it throughout history. What made it even more interesting is that it wasn’t just about the Salem Witch Trials. It also explained witch hunts all over the world including England, Germany, Switzerland, and Africa! Wow! I had only ever heard about the Salem Witch Trials and Crusades but never realized it really started in Europe first.

Besides learning how worldly witch hunts were and that they were just really a part of the culture at the time, I also learned about the horrors of persecution and what these women and EVEN children were subjected to!!!

My only complaint is that they talked about political witch hunts and the hunting down of the Jews. I get what they were going for, but those are very different things in my mind. I don’t think they were totally comparable.

If you are a curious person about the supernatural, I highly recommend this book.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

...a witch craze occurs because of a negative aspect of human nature: "the desire of human beings to project evil on others, define them as outsiders, and then punish them horribly. -pg. 105

Everywhere the danger of making scapegoats of innocent people is painfully clear. Crazed behavior can erupt when unscrupulous leaders manipulate public opinion to enlarge their power. It can result in great harm - pain, torture, imprisonment, and even death - for hundreds, thousands, millions. -pg. 116

[Alexandra Kern · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a much different subject than I was expecting. I sometimes forget that witchcraft hysteria is not an inherently American thing. It was really interesting to read about some of the other instances of witchcraft in other parts of the world. The last few chapters about the Holocaust and McCarthyism are interesting and definitely something to think about. I think I was looking forward to modern witchcraft hysteria with the rise in popularity of Harry potter and such. Overall, good book for YA interested in the Craft.

[Jessie Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay, subject matter was more interesting than the delivery. Also, I was a bit disappointed that there were not illustrations throughout because I'm a fan of Barry Moser's illustrations (the artist who did the cover of the book).

[Lorna Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brief but informative primer of the history of witches and the witch hunts over 400 years. An,easy and quick read with an impressive scope. The notes and bibliography sections alone deserve 5 stars!

[Paige · Rating 3 out of 5]

a short nonfiction read about the history of hysteria surrounding witch hunts. looks at gender, religion, and class as indicators as to who was persecuted. also looks into modern forms of “witch hunts” such as Hitlers attack on Jews, McCarthy on communism, and so forth.

[Cozy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read but the writing isn't the best.

[Mercedes McLean-Wheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty good intro to the history of witch hunts. However, the chapter on the Holocaust had a weird tone, and overall felt like it didn’t belong.

[Matthew Connolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though it was informative,and interesting,there were some inaccurate parts,I noticed.I didn't understand why it included chapters on other crucibles,(such as the holocaust)when those were not witch trials.I did find it helpful,though.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in a conversational tone, I felt that this book by Milton Meltzer offered a basic history through the ages and across the world about witch hunting. The terrifying and saddening search for people who were accused of satanism and workers of evil magic, it was definitely an informative read. The splices of stories and information of how thousands upon thousands were tortured, and or killed, was maddening. There wasn't one specific figure of witch craft that was a central focus for the book rather one theme; which was often terrorizing investigations and accusations of men, women, and children that were proven guilty of performing heinous acts against their family, friends, and neighbors. Taking the blame for the world's downtrodden economy, fall from religious grace, etc., Meltzer points out the fear that trickled from stranger to stranger to name people who were accused of witchcraft; whether they knew of any justified evidence that could prove they caused harm. I'd like that he not only shown light on the Salem Witch Trials but also Hitler's regime and McCarthyism. Definitely a good read for someone who is looking into the witchcraft to write fantasy fiction (like I was) or someone who was interested in its history.

[Joshua Flores · Rating 3 out of 5]

Witches and Witch Hunts at first was a book I was going to read for laughs and giggles, but then I suddenly became open-minded and learned a little more about the Salem Witch Trials in English class which caused me to enjoy the book more than I thought I would. Witches and Witch Hunts has a scary, mysterious, dark, yet historical feel as it explains popular scenarios involving witches around the globe. Since the book is sort of broken down its hard to summarize it in one, but basically it points out the troubles a witch would go through, how you become suspected and why they were so frowned upon.

I did enjoy the book mostly because at the time I was interested in learning more about witchcraft and history about it, it definitely helped. I would recommend the book to teenagers that are into witches or dark/mysterious themes.

[Jody Mena · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a brief but excellent look at the historical, social, behavioral and psychological roots of the persecution of witches, both in general and in specific cases; how and why witch-hunts begin and take root; and other forms witch hunts have taken, such as the Holocaust or McCarthyism. It was very informative, and the thing that really cinched it for me was that the author took time to explain at the end the difference between accused "satanic" witches of antiquity and modern Pagan witches - ending with the words "no one deserves to be the target of a witch-hunt, not even those who today call themselves witches". It is a very short book, just over 100 pages, and easy to read, I finished it in just a few hours, succinct but informative. A good read, I recommend it.

[Steph Connor · Rating 2 out of 5]

With its brevity and factual information, this often reads like an elementary school textbook but one with horrific, graphic content. While I was vaguely familiar with the Salem witch trials, I was ignorant to the scope of witch trials and executions around the world throughout history. It’s incomprehensible how we murdered entire groups of innocent people out of fear and a lack of understanding—-an especially harrowing thought since we are faced with many of those same challenges today.

[Diana Gagliardi · Rating 3 out of 5]

For what it is, it's good. That being said, I'm not sure I like what it is.

There are many chapters that I would want to use for different explanations, all in all though, just didn't like it as much as I wanted to?

[Melanie Ullrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was the catalyst for my obsession with the odd and my interest in history starting in 4th grade. Reexamining this book as an adult was even better. I loved that the book didn't just focus on Salem, but really delved into the influence of witches in art and history.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad book, just wish it was longer.

[Stephen Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far the most information packed book on this topic that I've ever read. KUDOS!

[Carrol · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting. liked the sum up at the end

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Everywhere the danger of making scapegoats of innocent people is painfully clear. Crazed behavior can erupt when unscrupulous leaders manipulate public opinion to enlarge their power. It can result in great harm- pain, torture, imprisonment, and even death - for hundreds, thousands, millions."


This book is a good starting point for the topic of "witches and witch-hunts". As a juvenile book, it describes witch-hunts throughout years (including now).
I like how it describes the main belief that a witch is one that deals with the devil and is evil. It does not simply imply that they only deal in magic. It includes stories the tortures people endured mostly because of accusations without proof.
Quests for power helped some like Hitler and McCarthy demonize large groups of people through hateful propaganda. Without educating ourselves and ridding our ignorance, we could be headed back down that path with our current "leaders".