Incantation

Set during the Spanish Inquisition and centered on a young girl who doesn't know that her family is hiding the core of their beliefs, this book is both heartbreaking and spirit-full. Alice Hoffman's depiction of Estrella and her family, and simple acts of childhood pettiness that can lead to tragedy, paints the horror of that portion of history with a frightening reality. As much about family as about history, and as much about being true to one's belief in oneself as anything else, this is a powerful work, and well worth reading.

Much as it is meant for young adults, though, it doesn't shy away from the worst moments that individuals faced during the Inquisition. If I were going to pass this on to a young reader, I'd want them to read show more it with family so that they'd have someone to talk about it with during and after the reading--I think this is a read that requires that attention and time. It will certainly stay with me.

Recommended. show less

This is the remarkable book that tells the story of Estrella, a teenage girl growing up in Spain around 1500. She slowly realizes as the book progresses that she is somehow different than the others in her village, despite the fact that her family has lived there for 500 years. As the details are slowly exposed, Estrella learns that her family are actually Marranos, Jews who live in secrecy because of all of the hatred and exclusion of Jews in the society. Estrella also learns through the course of the book that she is more powerful and intelligent than she had ever realized. When her best friend grows jealous because her cousin is courting Estrella, she does the unthinkable and turns in Estrella's grandfather as a magician and heretic. show more Estrella realizes at that point that there is a monster of hatred that all people must battle within themselves and that sometimes the monster is strong enough to overtake an entire society.

Hoffman's language is pure poetry. This slim volume is easily consumed, but you will find yourself stopping time and again simply to reread her words that breathe a detailed life into Estrella and her surroundings. There is a beauty here that adds to the pain and the horror. It is masterfully done, a book of poetry without verses. The characterization is wonderful with the adults around Estrella become more and more human as their secrets are revealed.

But I must comment more on the writing itself. Here is a paragraph from the first page which made me know immediately that this was a book I was going to love.

"I have crossed over to a place where I never thought I'd be. I am someone I would have never imagined. A secret. A dream. I am this, body and soul. Burn me. Drown me. Tell me lies. I will still be who I am."

It is writing like this, characters like these, that make writing for teens so expansive and amazing. Occasionally I think about reading more books for adults and leaving behind books for teens, but then I find a gem like this one, a book that will stay with me for years, that I will recommend to others whether they read books for teens or not. It is pure, graceful poetry. show less

"incantation" was a dark, compelling read set during the Spanish Inquisition. Through the eyes of a young Jewish woman, Estrella, the main protagonist, the reader witnesses a world full of evil and senseless brutality. Estrella's life as she knows it is stolen from her thanks to jealousy and vindictiveness. While Catalina showed her true ugliness, Estrella was a shining light.

This novel brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion but it was this line in the final chapter that moved me the most: Some people say, Save yourself and you save your life. I say, Be yourself and save your soul.

A compelling read.

Incantation by Alice Hoffman
Purchased
5/5 stars

I picked up Alice Hoffman’s Incantation on a whim while at my local used bookstore. This book was meant to be my no pressure, no review, just for the hell of it read and then I devoured it in two very, very late night sittings and realized I have to review this book. Incantation is the tragic and heartbreaking story of Estrella de Madrigal and her struggle to remember who and what she is in a time when who and what she is, was simply not allowed.

Though Estrella is a fictional character her story is one that is based on the facts of the Spanish Inquisition. During this dark period of human history, it was essentially illegal for Jews to be Jews in Spain. Under the direction of Tomas de show more Torquemada, Jews were forced to convert to the Christian faith, flee their homes, or risk being tortured and killed if caught practicing their faith. While Estrella is certainly disturbed by what she is seeing and hearing in her village she knows, without doubt, that this horror cannot touch her family. It simply cannot, she and her family are Christians. As dark rumors, gossip, and speculation begin to turn neighbor against neighbor, suddenly Estrella is forced to consider that everything she thought she knew about herself and her family is wrong.

Is it possible that her family is actually Jewish? As Estrella begins to look back over the years of her short life the pieces of a newly-discovered and very dangerous puzzle begin to fall into place. There is the fact that her family eats no pork, they light the candles every Friday evening, they cross themselves differently than do their neighbors and there are times when family members (including Estralla) are called by different, secret names. For Estrella these discoveries are as fascinating as they are dangerous. As the accusations and arrests increase dramatically, Estrella understands that she has precious little time to understand the history of her family and her people and decide if she will stand with them and their shared history. Estrella must decide if she is willing to give up everything she has ever known and loved for the sake of her family and her faith.

Had I started this book any earlier in the night I would have completed it in a single sitting. The plot is as powerful as it is heartbreaking and every character brings something to the table. There are no weaknesses in the cast of characters; you love some and hate others but you undoubtedly see how each plays his/her role perfectly. Each scene and every chapter are crafted rather than simply written and all pull the reader in instantaneously. It is ridiculously easy to become emotionally invested in these characters and their story. This story made me angry, anxious, sad (yes, I cried), and it gave me cold chills up my spine. With that being said, it is important to note there are bright moments of beauty in this book as well. At the end of the day the message is clear: though times are often dangerous and frightening hope and love are equally powerful forces.

Bottom line: Make no mistake, because of the subject matter alone this is not an easy book to read but it is beyond being well worth the time and the emotional investment. The plot and the characters are flawless. As for the writing style? When I consider Hoffman’s writing style I see in my head a mature and beautiful woman, finely dressed, and carrying herself with a grace that is a part of her rather than being something she has learned. In short, Hoffman’s writing style is elegant and suits the subject matter of Incantation perfectly. A phenomenal read! show less

This young adult novel is small but the subject matter really packs a punch. It took me only two hours to read, but I suspect it will stay with me a good while.

Estrella, is 16 years old in the year 1500. This is the year that the Spanish Inquisition comes to the town she lives in. Estrella knows little about the Jews in her town, other than that they live in their own area and wear red circles sewn on their clothing. She and her family attend one of the Catholic churches in the town, the one further from their house. They light candles on Friday nights, and make the sign of the cross a little differently from most of the people in town, but Estrella never gives this a thought. She and her best friend, Catalina from next door, have show more planned to stay close for their whole lives, living close together and raising their children together.

But that isn’t to be. Catalina has an understanding with her cousin Andres; they will marry when the time comes, although she treats him somewhat disdainfully. Although they fight it, Andres and Estrella fall in love- and Catalina sets out to destroy Estrella and her family. It’s an easy thing for Catalina to do, because- although Estrella doesn’t know it- they are Jews just pretending to be Catholic, which makes them even worse in the eyes of the Inquisition. Worse, Estrella’s mother is a healer, her father a scholar and a surgeon, all things that mark them as witches.

Told in the first person, we get the full force of Estrella’s horror as she watches her family destroyed. She learns that not only is Catalina not who Estrella thought she was, but Estrella herself is not who she thought she was. It’s a jolting enlightenment and a brutal coming of age that she goes through.

The story is told beautifully; there is not one wasted word in the book. It reads like it could be set to music. Love, fear, prejudice, stupidity, jealousy, ignorance; it has all the ingredients for an opera. I think this is a valuable book for teens; the Inquisition isn’t something that’s mentioned much in school and it needs to be remembered. show less

I went into this book thinking that I was getting another of Hoffman's signature stories infused with magic and witchcraft (I mean, come on, the title is Incantation!), but instead I got some decidedly non-magical historical fiction! The story is set during the time of the Spanish Inquisition, following a young girl just coming of age, who discovers the truth that her family are secretly Jewish. Her story is pretty simple to follow, and heartrending when you think about the horrific acts of brutality that were carried out in the name of Christianity, but I felt like we were missing a bit of connection to the character. Estrella is disconnected from the truth about her faith, and she's honestly more concerned with the tension with her show more overly strict grandmother and with her best friend, so I didn't feel like the themes were that effectively laid out. The religious aspects of her family life seem pale in comparison to the small hints about her mother's Kabballah magic, and Estrella's driving force seems to be figuring out how to be in love with Andres (her best friend's fiancé and a Christian). With more time to flesh out the story, time period, and characters, I feel like this would be a fascinating story (on par with Hoffman's later historical Jewish novels like The World That We Knew), but in this shortened novella aimed largely at the teen market I feel like we're left hanging a bit. show less

Alice Hoffman can tell a story without much of a plot and still end up with a win. She has a talent of peppering her work with the most profound sentiments. You’ll be reading and come to a passage that spurs you to stop and write it down. Before you know it, you have a long list of quotes that speaks to you. Authors life Alice Hoffman leave me wondering how someone can have so much wisdom and get it out on paper so effectively.

Incantation is a devastating story. It recounts the historical persecution of the Spanish Jews. First they were forced to recant their Jewish faith and become Christian, and later were persecuted for perpetrating a falsehood. No win situation. Estrella's family is in this Jewish/Christian group, but she has been show more kept in the dark about it her whole life. Now the truth is coming to the surface and jealousy will ignite a hatred that motivates her best friend to betray her. Members of her family will receive the worst punishment imaginable, burning at the stake. For this reason, children should be mature enough to handle human suffering before reading. show less