Newes from the Dead

Categories: Teen Books , Staff Picks , Fiction

The Teen historical novel Newes from the Dead (2008) by Mary Hooper is absolutely fascinating. It carries the flavor of life in 1650 England, retelling the true story of Ann Greene, a young woman who was hung as a murderess for killing her newborn (actually stillborn).

The story starts with Ann gradually waking in her coffin, which is sitting in a medical dissection laboratory. She is unable to move and feels neither terror nor joy. She does not realize where she is, at first believing herself to be in bed and then, remembering her execution, believing herself to be in purgatory. Ann muses on her past, observes "angels", and hears distant voices.

Hooper interweaves Ann's past with her present in a fascinating can't-put-it-down read. The compassion of the doctors and the heartless cruelty of prison are both brought to life through Ann's story. Contemporary pamphlets were printed telling about Ann's "miracle", one of which is reprinted in the back of the book.