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Father Of Lies (2011)

by Ann Turner(Favorite Author)

3.17 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0061370851 (ISBN13: 9780061370854)

languge

English

genre

Historical Fiction

publisher

HarperTeen

review 1: My Thoughts:I love historical fiction-especially when it involves things that are shocking and mysterious. Such as the Salem Witch Trials. Where during the 17th century a small village in America becomes obsessed with finding witches in their midst. Anyone who is different(a woman who runs a tavern and wears bright colors) or has wronged someone(a person who is late paying a bill) is accused and tried. Some of these trials lead to the deaths of the accused.The main character of the book is 14 year old Lidda who has never felt as though she has fit in with her large family or her village. She has thoughts of running, singing and dancing about-thoughts and actions that are strictly forbidden behavior by her Puritan upbringing.At times Lidda seems to be the voice of reason as... more her friends fall victim to "witch fever" she questions their behavior and the reasons behind it. But then she herself starts to see visions and hear a voice. Is Lidda sane, is she also affected by "witch fever" or is she actually possessed by the devil himself? Author- Ann Turner does an excellent job of including historical fact in her work of fiction. I wish that the book had been longer-two huge subjects are tackled in this story-The Salem Witch Trails and Bipolar Disorder. I appreciated the information she included after the story on Bipolar Disorder as well as the historical information on the Salem Witch Trials. It's a period in our history that is both fascinating and horrific.I bought this book used on Amazon.com and plan to donate it to my local Middle School.
review 2: I'm kind of obsessed with the Salem Witch Trials, so I happily dived into this book. Came away feeling that it's enjoyable, but definitely could have gone on so much longer . It's just over 250 pages, but its dimensions are smaller than average - perhaps to make it look like it's longer?Turner explores the first few months of witch histeria in Salem - we don't even make it to the first round of executions - through Lidda, a girl who is also seeing things and hearing voices. She's always felt like an outcast in her straightlaced village, and the voice, Lucien, encourages her idiosyncracies, so she keeps him secret, terrified that a confession will make him abandon her.I was very intrigued by Turner's inclusion of bipolar disorder and wanted to see how she explored it in a historical context. However, I felt that Turner never quite went deep enough into the disorder. It was a very surface-level exploration of the disorder, and at times really seemed more like schizophrenia than bipolar, especially with the inclusion of Lucien.I liked seeing the events of Salem from well outside the circle of the accusers and the accused - members of Lidda's family all take different positions on the epidemic, and for those that don't believe, it feels like an authentic reaction, rather than 21st century projections. less

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