A Break with Charity: A Story about the SaleWitch Trials (ISBN 0-15-204682-8) is a novel by Ann Rinaldi

Ann Rinaldi

Ann Rinaldi is an American young-adult fiction author. She is best known for her historical fiction, including In My Father's House, The Last Silk Dress, An Acquaintance with Darkness, A Break with Charity, and Hang a Thousand Trees with Ribbons...

 released in 1992

1992 in literature

The year 1992 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Ben Aaronovitch - Transit*Julia Álvarez - How the García Girls Lost Their Accents*Paul Auster - Leviathan*Iain Banks - The Crow Road...

, and is part of the Great Episodes series.

Plot synopsis

The story begins with a girl named Susana English who desperately wants to join an inner circle of girls who meet every night at the Reverend's house. The leader of the girls, Ann Putnam, is going to set off a torrent of false accusations leading to the imprisonment of innocent people in Salem. She names people her mother disliked as witches, and the elders of Salem believe them. Ann tells Susana everything about their plan, but if Susanna tells anyone, Ann will name Susana's parents as witches. Susana must choose between keeping quiet and breaking charity (that is, telling tales), risking her family being named as witches. Later on, the afflicted girls accuse Susana's mother and father of being witches, even though she told no one about what Ann said to her. She finally tells Joseph, Ann's uncle, leader of the "non-witch believers" what she knows, and together, they put a stop to it. Fourteen years later she returns to hear Ann Putnam apologize for all the innocent people imprisoned, or hanged. This story is based on true happenings of 1692.