National Network for Equitable Library Service

Drawing from her own interviews and a wealth of material from the Memorial University Folklore and Language Archive, Barbara Rieti explores the range and depth of Newfoundland witch tradition, looking at why certain people acquired reputations as witches and why others considered themselves bewitched. The tales that emerge - despite their spells and black heart books, hags, and healing charms - concern everyday affairs and the intense social interdependence central to outport life. Often featuring women, they provide fascinating new perspectives on female coping strategies in a precarious economy.vBy addressing the human issues at the heart of witchcraft - the construction of enmity and intertwined fates - these narrative accounts also illuminate older witch beliefs revealed in witchcraft trial documents. Making Witches shows that in storytelling communities with a rich legacy of witch lore, witch tradition has survived well into the twenty-first century.