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kkozzz's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Misogyny
Moderate: Death
Minor: Domestic abuse
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The style of this book was a large miss for me. So much detail is missed in these letters between characters. This makes the writers of the letters excellent unreliable narrators but ultimately does not strengthen the plot very much.
This is a bit of a social commentary on greed and mob mentality. I find myself disagreeing withThe Keplers on their win of the case. Yes Frau Kepler avoided execution but she still faced abuse, torture, isolation, and an outcast status. Every character was some shade of infuriating or tedious, which is realistic but not very enjoyable. I did enjoy Frau Kepler the most of the characters as her dry wit balanced out the everything else a little.
The ending of the book really lost steam and was unsatisfactory. We did not know enough about the character who wrote the pages we were reading so they came off as trivial and shady.Simon went to visit Frau Kepler after a long time. She knew and said that he was there for curses, to face judgment for not speaking up for her at the trial. The reader did not know this as Simon was talking of his visit like he had lost track of time.
If the reader is someone who likes unreliable narrators and stories where much of the action happens off page this will be enjoyable for them.
This is a bit of a social commentary on greed and mob mentality. I find myself disagreeing with
The ending of the book really lost steam and was unsatisfactory. We did not know enough about the character who wrote the pages we were reading so they came off as trivial and shady.
If the reader is someone who likes unreliable narrators and stories where much of the action happens off page this will be enjoyable for them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Animal death, Torture, and Grief
Minor: Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Police brutality, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic
emmylis's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Terminal illness, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic
mattiedancer's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Writing: 4⭐️/5
The writing is stylized enough to give it a human touch. It does feel, at times, like you’re reading the unedited, unformated thoughts of the characters. And yet, something about it was incredibly hard to get used to. I’ve been thinking lots about it and I’m still not sure exactly what it is, other than perhaps the tone mismatches the time period – or at least my expectations of the time period. Writing with a more modern feel to it, I had a hard time with feeling as though it felt cohesive with the events. Overall though, strongly written, even if a bit hard to get in the flow of.
Characters: 4.75⭐️/5
I really enjoyed Frau Kepler’s, or Katharina’s, sections of the story. She had a strong voice, a strong personality, and it was always incredibly clear when I was reading her sections versus Simon’s. In fact, all the characters felt alive: in the way they lied, in the way they thought, and in the way they remembered.
Plot: 4.25⭐️/5
It’s the story of a woman, accused of witchcraft, who is found victim of a campaign to blame all their problems on her. The story’s plot, while always centered on Katharina’s trial and the accusations thrown at her, goes beyond it in the oddest ways, focusing on her cow, her family, and her thoughts on the neighbours in an intriguing way. My biggest critique here is that it took me a while to get into. But it was a surprisingly fun – and then serious and then semi-sad – story that I’m glad to have read.
Who Should Read This Book?
- Those looking for a fun historical fiction read
- Those who want historical fiction but love modern spins on stories
- Readers looking for stories about witchcraft and mob-mentality-driven witch hunts
Content Warnings?
- Death, death of parent, death of child, manipulation, toxic relationships, injury/injury detail, child loss, pregnancy, grief, torture
Post-Reading Rating: 4.25⭐️/5
A wonderful, apt ending to a fun yet serious story.
Final Rating: 4.25⭐️/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Misogyny, Suicide, Violence, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, War, and Classism
c_lizziebeth's review against another edition
dark
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Religious bigotry, and War
slothmom's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Misogyny, Torture, and Religious bigotry
imds's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Moderate: Torture, Antisemitism, and War
buntatamilis's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Child death and Hate crime
serendipitysbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch is a fictional account of a 17th century German witch trial involving Katharina Kepler, mother of famous astronomer Johannes Kepler. I really enjoyed the voice of Katharina and the way she was portrayed, with her positive characteristics highlighted as well as the negative ones - opinionated, meddlesome, forthright, sarcastic, and cantankerous - which probably partly underlie why the accusations were made in the first place. The story also highlighted the petty jealousies and resentments which underlay the accusations as well as the farcical nature of the trial - leading questions, mob mentality, no proof of a link between cause and effect and more. Reading about witch trials in a setting that wasn’t America or England was interesting but it was Katharina herself which made this book shine
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry
voidboi's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Galchen takes an interesting historical anecdote and dives into the interiority of Katharina Kepler, an old widow and mother of the Imperial Mathematician, who loves cows and speaking her mind. In the form of narrative dictated to her friend Simon (Katharina is illiterate, it's the early 1600s), court transcripts, letters, and an occasional interjections from Simon, this book tells the story of Katharina's accusations of witchcraft, her trial, and her life throughout.
I adore the way Galchen plays with voice and modernity in this story, with humor and empathy. For subjects so sad- persecution, misogyny, ageism, war, poverty, loss- this book manages to contain a lightness that I found so refreshing. This was such an interesting world to be let into and I really enjoyed it.
I adore the way Galchen plays with voice and modernity in this story, with humor and empathy. For subjects so sad- persecution, misogyny, ageism, war, poverty, loss- this book manages to contain a lightness that I found so refreshing. This was such an interesting world to be let into and I really enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, and Grief
Minor: War