The Trial of Anna Thalberg

Mexican writer Sangarcía’s fierce English-language debut portrays the misogynistic violence and religious rapture of a witch trial in the 16th-century Holy Roman Empire. Anna Thalberg, a 22-year-old peasant born to a family of devout Catholics, is taken from Eisingen to Würzburg to be prosecuted for witchcraft, having aroused suspicion because she has red hair and because of her status as an outsider. One of her neighbors, Gerda, becomes jealous of Anna’s youth and beauty, and denounces her, claiming she’s seen Anna riding a “wild goat back-to-front.” More testimonies follow, in which other neighbors swear Anna has lain with the devil, provoked miscarriages, and tempted local men into carnal sin. Sangarcía pulls together an astute account of Anna’s trial and sheds light on how witch hunts were rooted in the hatred and suspicion of women (“little girls like you only bring misfortunes and calamities”). The prose, lyrical and scarcely punctuated, matches the plot’s frenzied pace. Fans of Fernanda Melchor’s Hurricane Season will love this. (Sept.)

Correction: A previous version of this review mistakenly described Sangarcía as a Guatemalan writer.