Some parts were very interesting and other parts dragged. I picked up this book since I intend to visit Salem in the off-season soon. It's hard to classify: travelogue? Sociological? Anthropological? Historical? Whatever it is, I enjoyed it- I just believe it could have benefited from some more editing. ( )

"A Season with the Witch” is definitely a worthwhile read; I enjoyed Ocker's style of writing and he had a lot of fascinating insights that I wish he shared more of!

I don’t know a lot about the history of the witch trials so I wished I’d read more historical books before reading this one, but he provided a lot of book titles that I’m hoping to read now and get more historical context. See my Goodreads list, "Books mentioned in A Season With the Witch" https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/56776944-topaz-tourmaline?shelf=books-ment...

I love how he talked about Salem in what felt to me like a more whole way. For example, acknowledging that it is a city -- I particularly liked the two chapters that talked about the "witch" in Witch City and the "city" in Witch City. I read some reviews that didn't like that he focused on that, interviewing the police chief and mayor, and found that part to be boring, but I enjoyed it.

I feel like, to view Salem solely in the context of Halloween or the witch trials does it a disservice and I think that's what J.W. Ocker really was driving at in this book. Because I feel such an affinity to and appreciation of Salem, I want to learn more about it as a whole. Because that's important.

There were a fair amount of typos that were noticeable -- they weren't a big issue for me unless they altered the meaning of a sentence by using a different word or were missing a word -- then I'd have to go back and re-read the sentence because the missing word tripped me up temporarily. That can disrupt the flow of a book and if I had to list one chief issue with the text, that would be it.

This book gave me a lot to think about and also resulted in me adding a bunch of books to my "want to read" list. It's a valuable part of the Salem library and worth a read.

A Season With The Witch: The Magic and Mayhem of Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts.
by J. W. Ocker
2016
The Countryman Press
3.5 /4

Absolute fun!
We join the Ocker family as they spend a month in Salem, Massachusetts. Touring historical sites, museums and cemeteries and many of the sites associated with the Salem Witch Trials.
The title is misleading, as it is not really about Halloween, but is still an engaging and informative book. There is a chapter about the Maritime museum and Nathaniel Hawthorne's tribute. ( )

The subtitle to this is "The Magic and Mayhem of Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts". Ocker and his family spend an entire month in Salem, where he visits every museum, haunted house, witch supply shop and witch trial location standing. He also interviews the people in charge of these places, the local police, actors who work the haunted houses or lead city walks, and even interviews the most famous witch in the world, Laurie Cabot. Along the way, he also takes in the Peabody Essex Museum (which wants nothing to do with witches or Halloween), some maritime history and visits the home of Nathaniel Hawthorne and spends a chapter on his life and work. Ocker does pretty much any event going in Salem in October, and he makes for a fun, always curious companion. ( )