|  Imagine
if you were related to some fascinating person
in American history? How cool would that be? If
I were able to choose, I’d like to be related
to Ben Franklin or maybe even Thomas Jefferson.
These scholarly men shaped the future of our nation
with their innovative ways of thinking. Then again,
I wouldn’t mind being a part of Martha Washington’s
family either. So many excellent choices!
This month’s Jen’s Jewels, Katherine
Howe, has the distinction of being in this elite
category. Remarkably, she is related to both Katherine
Howe and Elizabeth Proctor, two women accused
of being witches back in the 1690’s in Salem,
Massachusetts. In her debut novel, THE PHYSICK
BOOK OF DELIVERANCE DANE, she blends history with
fiction. The end result is a captivating page-turner
just waiting for you to discover!
As part of this interview, Hyperion Books has
generously donated five copies for you, my lucky
readers, to win. So, don’t forget to look
for the trivia question. And, thanks for making
Jen’s Jewels a part of your summer reading.
 Jen:
Your path to becoming an author actually evolved
as a side-step along your journey of academia pursuits.
Please share with us your educational and professional
background and how it has prepared you for a career
in publishing.
Katherine: My husband and I moved to Marblehead
from Cambridge in summer of 2005, and that November
I was scheduled to take my PhD oral exam in the
American and New England Studies Program at Boston
University. “American studies” is
the interdisciplinary study of American culture,
and so I had spent the last several years studying
American history and art history. The interesting
thing about Marblehead, for those who haven't
been there, is that it has one of the most complete
collections of extant eighteenth century architecture
in the country. It's the kind of place where only
a little bit of imagination allows you to erase
the power lines overhead, block out the cars parked
along the street, and start to imagine what life
might have looked like at a different moment in
time.
Grad students get notoriously nervous leading
into their oral exams, and I was no exception.
If I went walking and didn't occupy my mind with
something else, I would just turn back to worrying.
So I distracted myself with thought experiments.
Since Marblehead is only one town over from Salem,
we see a lot of the more commercial interpretations
of the Salem witchcraft episode. As a historian,
however, I knew that the reality of Salem looked
very different from the fairy tale version. So
I asked myself: if witchcraft were real the way
the colonists understood it to be, rather than
in our fairy tale sense, what would it look like?
How would it work? What would it be capable of,
and not capable of? The story for Physick Book
really grew out of that idea.
Jen: Your debut novel, THE PHYSICK BOOK
OF DELIVERANCE DANE, is a spell-binding tale incorporating
two time periods, the 1690’s and the 1990’s,
into one powerful and truly unforgettable story.
I was hooked from page one! How did you arrive
at the premise?
Katherine: Thanks, Jen! I'm so glad that you enjoyed
it. I was attracted to a dual time period story
for a few reasons. First, I am always keenly aware
of the mundane details about people in the past
that we can never know. So many of the little
personality quirks that make up the bulk of our
everyday experience – what we like and dislike,
our senses of humor, our nicknames, our inside
jokes – can never be known just from the
records we leave behind. So I wanted Connie, the
main character, to be conducting research on women
in the past, but I wanted the story to tell us
more about these women than Connie would be able
to learn; for that we needed to see into the past
for ourselves. I also thought that the 1690s is
a remote enough time from our own experience that
spending the entire span of the story there would
be potentially exhausting. We need Connie's point
of view to help us work through the historical
narrative. So each half of the story, the 1990s
and the 1690s, depends on the other.
Jen: Quite interestingly, you are a descendant
of both Elizabeth Howe and Elizabeth Proctor,
two Salem women accused of witchcraft back in
the 1690’s. How did this connection influence
the tone of the novel? Was it difficult keeping
your biases in check?
Katherine: I first learned about Elizabeth Proctor
and Elizabeth Howe from my aunt, who was doing
some family research when I was about fifteen
years old. And of course I responded like a fifteen
year old girl would – I thought it was the
coolest thing ever!
For a lot of people, uncovering a family connection
is a way to personalize a period of history that
otherwise feels too remote to be really relatable.
For my own part, I have been more interested in
learning about what daily life was like in the
colonial period. How did it feel to live in that
world? What was it like to think like a Puritan?
How itchy were the clothes? How dark was the meeting
house? I don't think that any personal biases
came into play, particularly since I chose not
to write about my own witches. I think the Salem
episode belongs to all of us; we all have something
to learn from it.
Jen: From the get-go, did you have a
vision as to how the story would unfold? Did you
stick to the plan? Why or why not?
Katherine: A lot of people have a secret affinity
for the Salem trials, which is one reason we keep
seeing so many accounts of them, both historical
and fictional. The Salem episode is so anomalous,
so different from what we expect when we think
about colonial history or American culture more
generally, that we are never fully satisfied about
it. I have also been struck by how much lionization
of the New England colonists takes place. We ask
them to bear so much symbolic weight that we forget
that these were individual people, with strengths
and flaws like anyone else. So in a sense I was
attracted to writing Physick Book because it gave
me a chance to explore, albeit fictionally, these
lost individual people.
I mulled over the structure of the story for quite
some time, and wrote a detailed outline before
I started writing the actual body of the book.
I knew that Physick Book's approach to magic would
be different from what we are accustomed to seeing:
it would be small, personal, and closely tied
to the body and to spiritual life. I did have
a few plot elements in mind that didn't make their
way into the book. But I have a secret plan for
a Physick Book sequel, so who knows? They may
sneak into the Dane family story yet.
Jen: In terms of background information,
approximately how much research went into the
writing of the book? Is it historically accurate?
And if not, what liberties did you incorporate
into the plot?
Katherine: I relied on some of the excellent secondary
sources about Salem specifically, and about early
modern popular magic more generally. Historians
such as Paul Boyer, Stephen Nissenbaum, John Demos,
Mary Beth Norton, Carol Karlsen, Keith Thomas,
Owen Davies, David Hall, and Richard Godbeer have
all done incredibly detailed work on this period,
and I would point anyone curious about the real
story of colonial witchcraft to their books. I
also tried to train myself in everyday speech
of the period by reading a few linguistics articles,
since so much historical fiction is written like
an episode of “Masterpiece Theater,”
as though everyone in the past had perfect diction
and no one used slang. For furnishings and details
of daily life I used a wonderful exhibition catalogue
of early New England material culture that was
published by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,
called “New England Begins.”
One of my goals with Physick Book was to inspire
curiosity about the actual history of the Salem
period. It's interesting to me how blurred our
understanding of the Salem episode is; for instance,
many people take “The Crucible” to
be a historically accurate portrayal of events
at the trials, without considering that Arthur
Miller took broad liberties with character's ages
and relationships in order to craft a more coherent
story. (Of course, I took some liberties too –
I moved Deliverance's trial up by a few months
so that she could be tried with an earlier group
of women, and I made it sound like Sarah Good
did not have a husband, though in real life she
did.) But I wanted to illustrate the fact that
the historical truth of witchcraft is very different
from the popular, fairy tale notion. I wanted
to investigate how the colonists might have felt
about witchcraft in their own terms. The witchcraft
in Physick Book is based on how the colonists
actually believed magic to be.
The research took about a year and a half of reading
and stewing, and then another year and a half
was spent in the outlining and writing of the
story. The hardest part was forcing myself to
stop researching. There is always more to be learned.
Jen: The novel centers around Connie,
a graduate student at Harvard, who is working
on her doctoral dissertation quite like yourself.
In what not-so-obvious ways are you two alike?
Different?
Katherine: Connie and I have a few things in common,
but I think that in most respects we are very
different people. She is a better student than
I am, for one thing! I was dithering on my dissertation
and writing a novel instead, while she is hard
at work on her research at all times. We are different
ages – Connie is about ten years older,
and so today would be a young professor, newly
tenured, with grad students of her own. We had
entirely dissimilar upbringings, went to different
schools. She is a sloppier dresser than I am (but
not by much).
A few details overlap. We have the same color
hair, and we both drink peppermint tea. But Connie
has a number of secret talents that are unique.
Physick Book is really about Connie coming into
herself.
Jen: While preparing her grandmother’s
house for sale, Connie finds a key with the name
Deliverance Dane secretly tucked inside. First
of all, did this person ever truly exist? And
secondly, what keeps Connie from initially sharing
this discovery with her mother?
Katherine: I was first drawn to Deliverance Dane,
who was indeed a real person, because her name
is so wonderfully evocative. It seemed dramatic
to me, and a little foreboding. I also wanted
to write about her because the vagueness of the
details about her actual life left me lots of
room to fill in a story. If I had written about
one of the better known Salem witches, like Rebecca
Nurse or Giles Corey, the story would have been
less persuasive since we already know so much
about them.
The real Deliverance Dane was accused near the
end of the trials, when the panic spread north
from Salem into Andover. She did have a husband
named Nathaniel, and she was imprisoned for a
short time. However, there is no evidence that
she was an actual cunning woman, and she survived
the trials relatively unscathed.
As for why Connie doesn't initially share her
discovery with Grace, I would guess that up to
this point Connie isn't accustomed to talking
about the minutiae of her work with her mother.
Grace has clearly indicated that she's not very
interested in what Connie does, and Connie does
not yet know that this discovery is going to have
a broader meaning for her.
Jen: Their mother-daughter relationship
is strained, yet at times there are obvious signs
of mutual respect. How is Connie’s quest
for the truth in terms of Deliverance Dane’s
existence linked to her own desire to make a connection
with her mother?
Katherine: One theme that I wanted to explore
in Physick Book was the idea of talking at cross-purposes,
or rather, of only being able to talk about things
in language specific to our personalities and
places in time. Connie and Grace grate against
each other in part because they are cut from the
same cloth. They have difficulty understanding
each other at first because each views the world
in her own particular idiom; the language that
Grace might use to address a particular idea is
different from the language that Connie would
use. Part of their challenge lies in learning
how to communicate effectively with one another.
This theme echoes in all of the mother/daughter
pairs in Physick Book.
Jen: Sam, Connie’s love interest,
brings out the softer side of her due to his carefree
persona. In a way, he’s kind of like the
forbidden fruit since they are such total opposites.
What is the common thread that binds them together?
Katherine: Connie and Sam strike me as complementary,
two different halves that make up a better whole.
Sam is sillier than Connie is, more willing to
goof around, and as such he is able to push her
out of her reserve, to help her live a fuller
life. Whereas Connie is a historian, who studies
the past from a critical standpoint, Sam is a
preservationist – a steeplejack, no less!
- who believes in working to preserve what remains
of the past for its own sake. But their interests
are very much aligned; Sam becomes caught up in
Connie's adventure. Of course, we learn that there
is danger involved in that adventure.
Jen: Of course, witchcraft plays an essential
role in the plot as Connie comes face to face
with its effects. Being such an analytical person,
one would think that Connie would immediately
have her doubts, but not so. I had the feeling
she wanted to believe it was possible, and was
searching for proof no matter how inconsequential
in order to validate her family’s history.
Would you agree with my observation? Why or why
not?
Katherine: Well, I think different readers are
going to view Connie's reactions differently.
Connie has plenty of doubts at first. She is not
able to cast aside her worldview at the drop of
a hat. After all, who is? She is more willing
to doubt her own interpretation of the facts than
she is to change her mind abruptly about how the
world works. Physick Book is about Connie's expanding
belief in what is possible as much as it is about
the search for what is true.
Jen: Throughout the story, you touch
upon the use of herbal plants in respect to witchcraft.
Would you be able to recommend to my readers some
historically accurate books that explore this
topic in more detail?
Katherine: I would suggest that readers look at
two great books that discuss the history of cunning
folk in England in the early modern period, “Religion
and the Decline of Magic” by Keith Thomas,
and “Cunning Folk: Popular Magic in English
History” by Owen Davies. A “cunning
person” was someone who offered small-scale
occult services for a fee. These services might
include location of lost property, water dowsing,
basic charms or herbs in case of sickness, and
unbewitching. It is thought that the cunning folk
tradition did not necessarily travel to the New
World with the colonists, but historians differ
in their opinions on that. Anyone who is curious
about the real history of folk magic practices
should definitely check these books out! Owen
Davies also just published a history of grimoires,
or magic books, which I would also recommend.
Jen: Without giving too much away (plot
spoilers!), Connie’s advisor, Professor
Chilton, plays a vital role in bringing Deliverance
Dane to life, so to speak. Why does Connie choose
to put her faith in a man who has questionable
intentions?
Katherine: Well, it can be hard to read people's
intentions sometimes, can't it? The academic world
is still structured a bit like a medieval apprenticeship
(even the robes that you wear at commencement
are medieval in design). Connie must place her
trust in her advisor because that is what she
has been trained to do, and because the system
demands that she do so. If she wants her career
to be successful, she has very little choice but
to place her faith in her mentor. Of course, Manning
Chilton is a person too, which is something Connie
doesn't really think about. He has his own goals,
problems, anxieties, and plans. Part of Connie's
task in Physick Book is to learn to trust herself
and her own instincts, and in some instances she
learns that lesson only with difficulty.
Jen: One character who may be easily
overlooked in this story is Connie’s faithful
companion, Arlo, the dog. Not only does he provide
comfort when needed, but he leads her to the answers
through his keen sixth sense. Is he somewhat of
a messenger from the past? Why or why not?
Katherine: I think there are a number of different
ways that one could think about Arlo. Any of us
who have spent time with animals know that they
have a take on the world that is different from
our own, and that is the case with Arlo, too.
This is a question I would like to turn to your
readers, actually. What does Arlo have to do with
the other dogs in the past part of the story?
Does Arlo even exist? I'm not sure I know the
answer. What do you think?
Jen: In terms of promotion for the book,
do you have a website? Will you be participating
in a book tour?
Katherine: The book has
a wonderful website, www.physickbook.com,
which contains all information about signings,
media appearances, and other Physick Book news.
I also can be found on Facebook, with lots of
news and updates, at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Katherine-Howe/47456997235
And I have a Twitter feed at
www.twitter.com/katherinebhowe
Jen: Will there be a Reading Group Guide
available for book clubs? Will you be participating
in author phone chats? And if so, how would my
readers go about scheduling one?
Katherine: A reading
group guide will be available on the Physick Book
website. I am definitely planning to participate
in phone chats or Skype chats with interested
reading groups. Appointments may be arranged either
through the website, or via the book's email address
at connieandarlo@gmail.com
Jen: Thank you so much for taking time
out of your busy schedule to stop by and chat
with my readers. Your novel is the perfect blend
of history and intrigue. I loved it!! Best of
luck! I wish you much success.
Katherine: Thank you so much for having me, Jen!
I really appreciate your inviting me to join you
and your readers here. Connecting with readers
has been by far the best part of this whole process.
I hope you have enjoyed my interview with Katherine
Howe. Please stop by your favorite bookstore or
local library branch and pick up a copy of THE
PHYSICK BOOK OF DELIVERANCE DANE today.
Better yet, how would you like to win one? Be
one of the first five people to e-mail at
jensjewels@gmail.com with the correct answer
to the following question and you’ll win!
Good luck!
What is a grimoire?
Next month, I will be chatting with Julie Metz,
author of this summer’s most talked about
memoir called PERFECTION. You
won’t want to miss it!
Welcome to summer!
Jen
|
Meet
the Author: featuring Jen's Jewels