She's feeling pretty haunted by the past and we're about to learn why: this lass lived in Salem. It's 1706 and our narrator Susanna English is in her old church. An excellent com panion volume is Ann Petry's Tituba of Salem Village (HarperCollins, 1988).

Nevertheless, A Break with Charity portrays an excruciating era in American his tory from a unique perspective, and it will be enjoyed by readers who enjoy psychology, the supernatural, and history. Even Susanna's anguish, as she is torn between her fear of revealing her secret and her sense of responsibility because she is silent, is muted. Contributing to the formality of the text is the author's use of Puritan diction and gram mar. However, despite the tumultuous events, the characters remain rigid. The plot is rich with details and names that will be familiar to those who have read about the trials. In fact, Susanna's family is torn apart, and so is all of Salem. One young woman warns Susanna that if she betrays them, the bewitched girls will accuse her fami ly.

As the game gains momentum, the circle begins to believe in its own power. When the group begins to ''cry out'' on townspeople, one girl admits to Susanna that they are playing a game, seeking freedom from the harsh Puritan code of con duct. Susanna English, daughter of a free-thinking Salem family, is both attracted to and frightened by what she sees brewing in Tituba's kitchen. Ages 10-up., Grade 6-10- Well researched, this story of the Salem witch trials is told 14 years later from the perspective of a young woman who lin gered on the fringes of the bewitched girls' circle in 1692. Finely tuned, well researched and very accessible, this novel ranks with Rinaldi's finest work. At the same time, the author's quiet, factual style stands in a soothing contrast to her inherently shocking and histrionic subject matter. The artful placement of Susannah as an observer provides a 360-degree view of the causes and effects of inexplicable mass persecution. The reader is confronted with conflicting and disturbing issues: lies masquerading as divine truth, courage, trust and the terrifying power of a rising tide of hysteria. A graceful blend of fiction and history, Rinaldi's incisive and thoughtful narrative brings to life a dark period in America's past. Susannah English, caught between the desire to be a part of the group and her revulsion toward their wickedness, finds herself an unwilling party to what would become the Salem witch trials. Finely tuned, well researched and very accessible, this novel ranks with Rinaldi's finest work.'- Publishers Weekly, Boredom and frustration in a small Puritan town provide fertile ground for a band of teenage girls to incite and nurture deadly mischief. Rinaldi at her best.'- Kirkus Reviews 'A graceful blend of fiction and history.

A break with charity book