Imagine a world where magic is real, and instead of attending a traditional wizardry school, students carry a pocket-sized version of it with them wherever they go. This concept is the essence of the magical promenade, a miniaturized wizardry school. At first glance, the promenade appears to be an ordinary pocket-sized diary or planner, but upon opening it, a whole magical world unfolds. The pages are filled with enchantments, spells, and intricate illustrations that transport students into a realm of endless possibilities. Each page of the magical promenade holds a different lesson or adventure, allowing students to learn and practice magic on the go. The magical promenade is not just a school, but a community.
The Heretic’s Daughter by Kathleen Kent
In reading the story of the Carrier family, you can sense how grossly unfair and ridiculous the situation was and how it rocked every resident of Salem. Because we ve all been there we ve all purchased the same copy of the same book, plodded through the same novel while scribbling annotations in the margins, rinsed, and repeated with another classic.
The magical promenade is not just a school, but a community. Within its miniature world, students can interact with magical creatures, form friendships, and collaborate on projects. The promenade provides a platform for students to connect and collaborate through its virtual classrooms and communication networks.
Top 10 books about witch-hunts
‘I t is easy to blame the dark,” Sylvia Plath writes in Witch Burning. Stories of witch-hunts show us how the dark is given a name; they talk to us about anxiety and belief and our hunger for scapegoats. All those pious fantasies of women suckling their familiars! Witch-hunts are just a metaphor now, we hope, but we’re drawn to them as much as we ever were.
The White House witch-finder might like to tweet that he’s the hunted, but in reality it’s the marginal, the outspoken, those who lack a voice or upset their neighbours who get pursued. Those least responsible become most at fault: the wanton, the widow, the shrew. Because most of all, witch-hunts have been about controlling women’s sexuality and their tongues. When “one reads of a witch being ducked, of a woman possessed by devils, of a wise woman selling herbs”, Virginia Woolf wrote in A Room of One’s Own, “I think we are on the track of a lost novelist, a suppressed poet”. Women writers, in particular, are recovering these voices.
The books take us back to earlier times of crisis and blame – the Reformation, the English civil war, Puritan New England. My new novel The Wheelwright’s Daughter was inspired by a landslip in 1571 that tore down part of Marcle Ridge in rural Herefordshire. It became famous; it’s still called The Wonder on OS maps. In 1586, William Camden wrote that the hill roused itself up as if out of a deep sleep and moved, roaring, for three days together. What a figure, I thought, for the terrifying dislocations of the Reformation. How might it have been understood, how might people have looked for a scapegoat? Writing in the Brexit era, with looming climate catastrophe and the rise of populism, the parallels with contemporary Britain were inescapable.
The books and stories below variously, wonderfully, follow the threads of the witch-hunt.
1. The Discoverie of Witches by Reginald Scot (1584)
“Truelie I denie not that there are witches,” Scot insists in his Epistle to the Readers, before spending 560 pages doing just that. He meticulously piles up the arguments of the witch-mongers and knocks them down; charmers, soothsayers, alchemists, conjurors and occultists aren’t in hock to the devil, he says, they are charlatans. Shakespeare drew on Scot for Puck in A Midsummer’s Night Dream and the witches in Macbeth. King James I had the book burned. I couldn’t resist giving Scot a walk-on part in my book.
2. The Daylight Gate by Jeanette Winterson
The Pendle witch trials of 1612 led to the deaths of 12 people, including the enigmatic Alice Nutter. My Lancashire grandmother liked to say that we were descended from her but she told a lot of tales. Winterson’s defiant Alice made me wish it was true. The book bristles with magic – there are talking heads, raining teeth and deals with the devil, but there is also a fierce analysis of power and its abuses. Winterson’s stark, poetic prose ensures this stays with you long after you’ve finished reading.
Circe Invidiosa (1892) by JW Waterhouse. Photograph: Alamy
3. Circe by Madeline Miller
I thought I knew the story of the witch who turned Odysseus’s men into pigs, but Miller’s magnificent novel gives Circe her own epic. A daughter of the sun, she is banished to Aiaia where, part-god, part-herbalist, she teaches herself magic. She needs it, for it’s not only men who threaten: the gods, too, can be witch-hunters. The writing shimmers and figures including Daedalus and Odysseus are threaded beautifully into Circe’s story as she learns not only sorcery but love, and what it might mean to be mortal.
4. The Faerie Queen by Edmund Spenser
In Book II, Canto XII, Sir Guyon valiantly hunts down the witch Acrasia in the “Bowre of Blisse”. Acrasia is wily; she stupefies men with sex and turns them into pigs, but her bower is all music, all delight. “Gather the Rose of love whilest yet is time,” a minstrel sings - and all the birds echo his song. Nevertheless, Acrasia gets tied up and Sir Guyon trashes her bower. What keeps me coming back to Spenser’s Elizabethan masterpiece, in all its archaic lushness, is its ambivalence – it lingers wistfully over the garden it condemns.
5. Religion and the Decline of Magic by Keith Thomas
Thomas shows how belief in magic and witchcraft were woven into the way people made sense of the world in the 16th and 17th centuries. The voices of ordinary people ring out from almost every page: Ursula Clarke in 1667 hoping William Metcalfe would “waste like the dew against the sun”; Lodowick Muggleton declaring that issuing curses “did him more good than if a man had given him 40 shillings”. At 800 pages, this is a bible of a book: dip in and in again – it’s worth it.
6. The Witchfinder’s Sister by Beth Underdown
“Once, I scarcely believed in the devil,” Alice Hopkins begins, before widowhood forces her to go and live with her brother Matthew Hopkins, who is collecting names. We follow Alice’s attempts not only to document but to fathom her brother’s cruelty. “Turn over the stone,” she says, “and find another history, struggling to escape.” We need more of these histories.
‘A warning of tyranny on the way’ … Samantha Colley as Abigail Williams in the Old Vic’s 2014 production of The Crucible. Photograph: Tristram Kenton/The Guardian
7. The Crucible by Arthur Miller
No list of witch-hunt books would be complete without Miller’s play. Through the story of the Salem witch trials of 1692-93, the play indicts 1950s McCarthyism – and Trump, and Farage, and … When the play is suddenly a hit somewhere, Miller observed, it’s “a warning of tyranny on the way or a reminder of tyranny just past”. Read or watched, the visceral clarity of Miller’s writing lingers like a catch in the breath, abolishing any reassuring sense that witch-hunts happened then, not now.
8. Lois the Witch by Elizabeth Gaskell
When orphan Lois Barclay lands in New England in 1691 she finds the ground as unsteady as the water. And well she might. Gaskell shows us a community in terrified opposition to its native forests and people. I love the way she refuses to condescend or simply condemn – she puts the reader in the middle of the panic, feeling it spread. The novella has been overshadowed by Gaskell’s novels, but it’s a small, bright gem.
9. I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem by Maryse Condé
Tituba, the “black” witch convicted in the Salem trials (she was in fact probably Arawak) tells her own story: a life that began when her mother was raped on a slave ship called Christ the King. Tituba is flawed and passionate; the Puritans denounce her, but we see her as a witch on her own terms, rejecting America: “A vast, cruel land where the spirits only beget evil!”
A native of New York City, Samantha isn’t exactly welcomed to Salem with open arms considering her last name, especially not by the descendants of those who suffered the most during the trials many centuries ago.
Through these channels, students can seek advice, share discoveries, and support one another's magical endeavors. The magical promenade also serves as a guide and mentor to students. Its enchanted pages offer guidance and wisdom, helping students navigate through their magical education. Spells and enchantments are taught step-by-step, allowing students to learn at their own pace. Additionally, the promenade keeps track of a student's progress and provides personalized feedback and suggestions for improvement. One of the most unique aspects of the magical promenade is its ability to adapt to each student's individual interests and strengths. Instead of following a rigid curriculum, students have the freedom to explore various magical disciplines and specialize in the areas that intrigue them the most. Whether it's potion-making, spellcasting, or wand enchantment, the pocket-sized school offers a wide range of subjects to cater to every student's passion. The magical promenade also encourages students to explore and discover the real world outside of its enchanted pages. Field trips and excursions are organized, allowing students to apply their knowledge in real-life scenarios. These experiences provide valuable practical skills and help students understand the impact of magic on the world around them. In conclusion, the concept of a pocket-sized wizardry school, the magical promenade, is a revolutionary idea that brings magic into the daily lives of students. With its enchanting teachings, supportive community, and personalized approach to education, the promenade offers an immersive and flexible learning experience. Through this miniature portal, students have the opportunity to embark on a magical journey of self-discovery and mastery..
Reviews for "Unlock the mysteries of miniaturized wizardry at the pocket-sized school"
1. Samantha - 2 stars: I was really excited to read "Pocket Sized Wizardry School: The Magical Promenade" as I am a big fan of fantasy and magic. However, I was disappointed with the book. The characters felt one-dimensional and the plot was predictable. The writing style was also quite simplistic, lacking the depth and complexity usually found in fantasy novels. Overall, I found it to be a mediocre read that failed to capture my attention.
2. Michael - 1 star: I couldn't finish "Pocket Sized Wizardry School: The Magical Promenade" because the story just didn't resonate with me. The magic system was confusing and poorly explained, the plot felt forced and disjointed, and the dialogue was cliché and uninspiring. I found myself struggling to connect with any of the characters, as they lacked depth and development. It felt like a poorly executed attempt at a magical school story, and I would not recommend it to others.
3. Emily - 2 stars: I had high hopes for "Pocket Sized Wizardry School: The Magical Promenade" but unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations. The pacing was incredibly slow, taking too long to introduce any interesting conflict or plot twists. The world-building was lacking, with limited descriptions and explanations of the magical elements. The main characters were also forgettable, making it difficult for me to invest in their journeys. Overall, it was a disappointing read that failed to immerse me in its magical universe.
4. Daniel - 2 stars: "Pocket Sized Wizardry School: The Magical Promenade" was a book I anticipated enjoying, but it ultimately let me down. The writing style was overly simplistic, leaving me craving for more complexity and depth in the storytelling. The fantasy elements were underdeveloped and lacked originality, making it feel like a generic magic school story. Additionally, the romance in the book felt forced and lacked chemistry between the characters. Overall, it was a lackluster read that failed to engage me as a reader.