Incantation

Estrella deMadrigal thought she knew herself. She lived in Spain, when Jews who refused to convert to Christianity risked everything-love, life, family, faith. Then she finds out a startling revelation that shakes her to the core. As she emerges from the secrets, passion burns and a friendship crumbles. Betrayal unleashes an evil that takes Estrella to a place she never thought she'd go and changes her into someone she could never imagined. This is a powerful tale told through the eyes of a young girl who's family are Conversos-- New Christians who were later accused of being secretly practicing Jews. My own ancestors went through this in Mexico when the inquistation followed them a century later. I read my families own inquistation records from 1677 in which my ancestor Acuna was accused of casting bones and practicing witchcraft. INCANTATION gave me a glimpse of what my ancestor must have gone through all in the name of following the true religion. The horror young Estrella witnesses--her own family betrayed by someone close to the family--resonated through me. Once again Alice Hoffman swepts the reader away with her powerful prose into a time where being different gave others the right to destroy them. Hopefully like Estrella says--Remember what I've told you.--will stay with the reader long after the final page.

The author of this book also wrote "Practical Magic", which became a movie. Set in Aragon, Spain of 1500, this novel of historic fiction features a coming-of-age girl who discovers that her family is secretly Jewish. The extreme intolerance of the time and place is vividly brought to life with the story. Estrella tells the story of jealousy and betrayal of her best friend. Given incentives by the government to turn Marranos over to the police, the average people of this small town point fingers of guilt at Catholic church members whose ancestors were Jews forced to convert. The marranos did their best to maintain their ancient traditions in secret, but were reviled as witches, their medical texts and surgical tools destroyed. The horrors of the Spanish Inquisition are brought home here, and the reader will get a much clearer picture of conditions faced by Jews throughout history that will serve as an example of social intolerance. The story was compelling. A middle school student won't be put off by the violence of the book, but may be intrigued and further study history.

INCANTATION Spain in the 1500's, the era of inquisition was a period of time where all Jews where forced to convert to Catholicism or where sentenced to death if they refused. Incantation is about a catholic sixteen year- old- girl by the name of Estrella deMadrigal. Estrella's life was at its peak. Her best friend Catalina is as close as can be, she is surrounded by the warmth of her family and she feels the anti-Jewish riots that sweep through her town leave her life untouched. When two life changing events step in, Estrella's life crumbles. A family secret that she was completely unaware of is reviled and if ever announced to the public would make the difference between life and death. Will love overcome friendships? And will secrets become fatal? Opinion I would recommend this book to almost everyone. Someone who enjoys history and who is interested in mysteries, love, friendship, and secrets I think would really enjoy the book Incantation. The book contained so many emotions and life changing events it just kept you interested and surprised. Many parts in the book were extremely moving, it made you just wanted to keep reading so you could find out what happened next. Incantation is an amazing book I absolutely loved reading it and I hope everyone gets a chance to!

Amidst book burnings, trials, public burnings, and murders, sixteen-year-old Estrella DeMadrigal, living in Spain in 1500, learns that her family is part of a secret community of Jews who converted to Catholicism to avoid persecution. Hoffman's writing is lyrical, moving, and profound. And, despite the historical setting of the narrative, young adults will relate to the timeless nature of Estrella's conflict with her best friend and her love affair with her neighbor. Shedding light on a dark, and not always known, chapter in Jewish history, Incantation is highly recommended for public, school, and Jewish libraries.

"A monster is hard to see and even harder to kill. It takes time to grow so huge, time to crawl up into the open air. People will tell you it's not there; you're imagining things. But a book is a book. Pages are pages. Hawks are hawks. Doves are doves. Hatred is always hatred." Estrella is Esther and her family is Marrano, caught during the Spanish Inquisition when Spanish Jews hid their heritage camouflaged as Spanish Catholics. Sixteen-year-old Estrella knows nothing of evils or monsters, nor is she aware that anyone can suddenly become an outcast. Estrella's life is full of hope and dreams of a happy future with her best friend, Catalina. Both girls have black hair and look so much alike. Catalina is the Crow and Estrella is the Raven, and the two plan, as sisters might, for the day when they will raise their children as friends. They know each other so well --- until the day the monster is brought to life in the town square. The day soldiers come into the plaza and publicly burn a rabbi's books is the day the town is poisoned. It becomes dangerous and full of fearful hate, the hate often used as protection. The soldiers reward those who turn against neighbors as they uncover the Conversos, who practice Judaism at home and in a church with a congregation of other Conversos. A mere accusation would suffice and seal the guilt; the accused would suffer unimaginable punishment and humiliation. For most of Estrella's life she is unaware of her family's true identity --- their greatest secret. Estrella never questions her private name (Esther), family traditions such as lighting candles before dinner and not eating pork, or her grandfather being a teacher. But Catalina does notice that Estrella always makes the sign of the cross backwards. Estrella's confidence in Catalina's character fades when she learns that her best friend may have turned in their neighbor, an act that leads to their deaths. Catalina is poisoned, but the poison becomes deadly when she realizes that her handsome betrothed has fallen in love with Estrella. Catalina's betrayal leads to a series of arrests with horrific consequences. Friendship ends in tragic destruction as a new love forms, and a silly, innocent girl becomes a burdened woman carrying unbelievable responsibilities for her people. Alice Hoffman's story of love, friendship and betrayal is set during a deplorable period in history, a time of religious intolerance and racial discrimination, when individuals benefited from turning against their best friends. This cautionary tale painfully describes the haunting consequences of Catalina's betrayal; it advises that the monsters of hatred, intolerance and discrimination have existed through time. INCANTATION is such a powerful novel that it captured me from the start, seriously wounding my heart and conscience with its affecting portrayal of Estrella. --- Reviewed by Patsy Side