Incantation
- ISBN13: 9780316154284
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Estrella is a Marrano: During the time of the Spanish Inquisition, she is one of a community of Spanish Jews living double lives as Catholics. And she is living in a house of secrets, raised by a family who practices underground the ancient and mysterious way of wisdom known as kabbalah. When Estrella discovers her family’s true identity–and her family’s secrets are made public–she confronts a world she’s never imagined, where new love burns and where friendship ends in flame and ash, where tr
Rating: 
(out of 26 reviews)
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Review by Jewish Book World Magazine for Incantation
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The burning of Jewish books in the town square is the first portent that life for sixteen-year-old Estrella is going to change. Set in Spain during the Middle Ages, the story is about secrets and self-knowledge. Estrella’s family are Conversos, who practice Judaism in secret at home and in a church where all of the congregation plus the priest are like themselves. As the persecution of Jews draws ever closer to Estrella’s own family, she is told about their secret, given a ring to buy herself safe passage to Amsterdam if need be, and taught the rudiments of kabbalah by her learned grandfather. This unlikely act is undoubtedly a gesture toward the current popularity of kabbalah and it does little to mar the credibility of the plot, consisting only of a few “kabbalistic” customs like wearing a red thread and learning the names of the ten gates of Paradise. More central to the story is Estrella/Esther’s development from a carefree girl to a young woman fated to pass on her family’s heritage virtually alone. As in other of Hoffman’s books, nature and magic are intertwined. Estrella’s mother is a dyer and a healer; her grandfather is a surgeon and a scholar. The witchcraft of which they are accused is practical magic, the kind that works not through the supernatural but through knowledge heightened by insight. Throughout the book, Estrella’s mother teaches her about the natural world and how humans use it for good or evil. At the conclusion, after some horrific scenes of torture and burnings, she flees, having learned that “a Jew can never be attached to a place…We cannot have roots in the earth of any country, only in the garden that we carry inside us.” This is a somber message for the teens of today and it is offset by other conflicts that they may find more appealing: the true nature of a false friend, and rivalry over a boy friend. Admirers of Alice Hoffman will enjoy her evocative writing style but Incantation is one of her lesser works. For teens and adults. Reviewed by Linda R. Silver
Review by Teenreads.com for Incantation
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“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
Review by Armchair Interviews for Incantation
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“I am someone
I never would have imagined.
A secret.
A dream…
body and soul…”
Growing up in the small village of Encaleflora, Spain, Estrella deMadrigal is aware of the Spanish Inquisition but believes it has little to do with her. She and her family attend one of the Catholic churches in town and her brother is studying to be a priest. However, Estrella is forced to face the brutal reality of the Inquisition as Jews from the ghetto are murdered and she discovers her own family’s secrets–they are Marranos, a community of Jews who public profess to Roman Catholicism while secretly practicing their Judaism and Kabbalah at home.
Shortly after this momentous discovery, her family’s secrets are made public and Estrella confronts a world she’s never imagined, where neighbors turn on each other, where friendship ends in flame, and where betrayal has tragic and bitter consequences. To create a future for her family, Estrella must reach deep within herself and find sources of strength to craft a new reality.
Incantation, Alice Hoffman’s newest novel for young adults, introduces readers to a turbulent period in European history through the eyes of 16-year-old Estrella.
Estrella enjoys spending time with her best friend Catalina, believing that their destiny is to marry and live next door to each other. “We thought we knew exactly what our lives were made of: still water, not a moving river.”
Fate, however, has different plans for Estrella and Catalina. In 1478, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella established the Spanish Inquisition in a bid to maintain Catholicism in their kingdoms and in 1500 the Inquisition arrived in Encaleflora and snared Estrella and her family in its trap.
In Incantation, Hoffman has crafted a compelling coming-of-age story. At a time when the biggest decision facing her should be choosing a young man to marry, Estrella must confront a life built upon lies. Yet even within this dark period, Estrella manages to find dignity and hope.
Armchair Interviews says: Interesting history lessons for young adults.
Review by Ann Jordan for Incantation
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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.
Review by for Incantation
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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!