Magic Lessons

by Alice Hoffman

  Faith still had a penance to pay and much to set right. For this reason, she went from one farm to another on Saturdays to teach any girl whose parents wouldn’t allow her to take time from the workday and attend school. She walked so many miles, and came home so late at night, that Maria worried she would exhaust herself. One dusky evening, as Faith was crossing a pasture on her way home in the gray light of early winter, a white horse approached her and followed her home. It was the field that had belonged to the Hopwood brothers, and the ground there was still ashy. Faith understood that she was fortunate indeed to be chosen again after Keeper’s death. She called the mare Holly, and people became accustomed to seeing her riding through the fields at night, wearing trousers and carrying a satchel of books, her red hair tucked up under a black hat.

  John Hathorne made certain to avoid the Owens women, but Maria and Ruth occasionally saw each other on the street, and when they did they embraced as if they were sisters. Ruth had begun to teach reading classes, and every time she went through her garden gate and kept walking until she reached the library, it occurred to her that she hadn’t told her husband where she was going or asked for his permission, and she was grateful for the life she led.

  There were times when Maria and Faith would glance at one another as they set the table for dinner, or worked together choosing ingredients for a cure, or baked the traditional Chocolate Tipsy Cake for birthday celebrations. They had not forgotten the dark time of left-handed magic. But that time was over, and they had forgiven one another. There are none who can fight as fiercely as a mother and a daughter, and none who can forgive more completely. One evening, when Maria was turning on the porch light so that her clients would know they could come calling, Faith followed her outside and handed her The Book of the Raven. She was ashamed of her behavior and of the red mark she carried in the palm of her hand. “I used it badly. It shouldn’t be mine.”

  Maria considered burning the book, for it was bound to cause trouble. There was no one to claim it, and by rights it should have been burned at the time of its owner’s death. She might have made a bonfire in the rear of the garden and rid the world of it, but the book was so beautiful, and the writer so knowledgeable, she couldn’t bring herself to destroy it. There were reasons dark books were written by women, those who were not allowed to publish, those who couldn’t own property, those who had been sold for sex, those who had grown old and were no longer desirable, women in chains, women who dreamed, women who had turned left when it seemed the only choice. If used carefully, by the right person, the magic in this text could be a great gift. Hidden on the last page there was a spell to bring about the end of any curse, but the price for doing so was high, and the woman who did so must be fearless.

  Instead of burning the book, Maria went through the fields into town late at night, in the dark, as she had long ago, when she was mistaken for a crow. She carried the keys that unlocked the library door. She hid The Book of the Raven behind the loose bricks where long ago she had hidden her own journal. She left that book of magic in the place where she’d looked out the window to spy the magnolia, thinking that a miracle had taken place. She worked a few drops of her own blood into the mortar. In time, an Owens woman would discover the book, and use it as it should be used, with love and courage and faith.

  * * *

  Maria always wore the sapphire Samuel Dias had given her. Sapphire was the stone of wisdom and of prophecy that allowed the wearer to be true to herself. When he was gone, she let herself miss him. He was too tall for the bed, but it was empty without him. Maria often sat beneath the magnolia tree when he was at sea. Even in foul weather she found comfort there. When he returned he would bring back stories of seashells that were as big as cabbages, and mysterious birds with blue feet, of white bears that lived on the ice, and islands where every flower was red. He was arrogant and difficult, a man who liked to argue, but he was a man who could do more than talk. He knew how to listen.

  She had been wrong about love. She had thought it was meant for fools alone, only to discover it was a fool who walked away from love, no matter the cost or the penalty. They waited for the curse, to see if it could find him, but after a while Maria was satisfied that the curse was convinced Samuel Dias had remained in the lake that had no end. He wasn’t the same person he’d been before he died, and a man could not be cursed twice. On dark nights, when she feared for the women in her family who were yet to be born, she found consolation in the knowledge that an Owens woman was made not only to seek remedies, but to fight curses.

  Fate can bring what you least expect, and it brought them a daughter they called Hannah Reina Dias Owens, named after Hannah Owens and Samuel’s mother. In this way two women were returned from the ashes and remembered each day when their names were spoken. The baby was born in January, a winter baby, with black hair and dark gray eyes. She could call birds to her with a single cry and unfurl the bud of a flower so that it bloomed in the palm of her hand, but she couldn’t fall asleep unless her father told her a story. It was time anyway, Samuel announced one morning, he would stop going to sea. Like his father before him he had come to love being on land and spent most days in the garden, where he grew vegetables and kept bees that were known for honey that was so sweet strong men cried when they tasted it. Samuel was out there every day, even in winter, spreading hay over the garden, starting hardy seedlings in the sun, wearing his black coat, the baby in a basket beside him. He was always talking, even as he worked, for he had a thousand stories to tell, and the baby listened so intently she forgot to cry.

  On the last snowy day in March, when spring was greening beneath the ice, Maria left Samuel asleep in their bed. She tucked Hannah into her coat and walked over the grass that was brittle with frost. Crows clustered above them and ice shone on the birch trees. As she walked in the cold morning, her breath cutting through the bright air, Maria thought she heard Cadin’s call. She could remember that day in Devotion Field, in the Essex County of her birth. The fields of snow, the bright blue sky, the forest that was so deep, the woman who taught her the Nameless Art, the quick black eye of the crow. It was then that she saw what was before them, what she had always seen in the mirror, a black heart in the snow.

  A nest had been tossed from a branch when the wind swept through. Maria knelt to point out the small fledgling to the baby. The black bird ignored Maria, but he looked at the baby with his glittering eye, unafraid. You cannot choose a familiar, it must choose you. When Hannah held out her hand, the crow came to her and settled beside her, tucked into Maria’s coat. Maria felt the beat of his heart inside him slowing to match the baby’s heartbeat.

  They would take him home and wrap him in a blanket and Hannah would feed him sugar water from the tip of her finger. In no time he would be hopping around the house, perching on the staircase and on the brass rods above the damask curtains. By the time spring had fully bloomed, he would be flying. He would never be far from the girl who had been born on a snowy day, whose father had come home from the sea so that he could tell her every story he knew, whose sister took her in her arms to read to her, whose mother would teach her all she needed to know. This is how you begin in this world. These are the lessons to be learned. Drink chamomile tea to calm the spirit. Feed a cold and starve a fever. Read as many books as you can. Always choose courage. Never watch another woman burn. Know that love is the only answer.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  To Carolyn Reidy, for all that she did for literature and publishing, and for her extraordinary kindness to me.

  Gratitude to everyone at Simon & Schuster for their ongoing support, most especially Marysue Rucci. Thank you, Jonathan Karp. Many thanks to Richard Rhorer, Wendy Sheanin, Zachary Knoll, Anne Pearce Tate, Elizabeth Breeden, Angela Ching, Hana Park, Samantha Hoback, Carly Loman, and Jackie Seow. Thanks also to Richard Willett.

  Gratitude to Suzanne Baboneau at S&S UK for so many books over so many years.

  Gratitude always to Amanda Urban and Ron Bernstei
n.

  Thank you to Denise Di Novi for believing in magic for twenty-five years.

  Thank you, Joyce Tenneson, for your amazing photography.

  Thanks to Sue Standing for your early reading of the novel.

  Thank you to Miriam Feuerle and everyone at the Lyceum Agency.

  Gratitude and love to the bookstores who have always championed my novels.

  My deep gratitude to Madison Wolters for continuing assistance and literary insights. Thank you to Deborah Revzin for help in matters both practical and magical. Thank you, Rikki Angelides, for joining in with grace and enthusiasm.

  A most special thank-you to my readers, who asked to know how the story began.

  More from the Author

  The World That We Knew

  Echoes

  Faerie Knitting

  The Rules of Magic

  Faithful

  The Marriage of Opposites

  Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman

  This reading group guide for Magic Lessons includes an introduction, discussion questions, ideas for enhancing your book club, and a Q&A with author Alice Hoffman. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

  Introduction

  In an unforgettable novel that traces a centuries-old curse to its source, beloved author Alice Hoffman unveils the story of Maria Owens, accused of witchcraft in Salem and matriarch of the amazing Owens family featured in Practical Magic and The Rules of Magic.

  Where does the story of the Owens bloodline begin? With Maria Owens, in the 1600s, when she’s abandoned in a snowy field in rural England as a baby. Under the care of Hannah Owens, Maria learns about the “Nameless Art.” Hannah recognizes that Maria has a gift and she teaches the girl all she knows. It is here that she learns her first important lesson: Always love someone who will love you back.

  When Maria is betrayed by the man who has declared his love for her, she follows him to Salem, Massachusetts. Here she invokes the curse that will haunt her family. And it’s is here that she learns the rules of magic and the lesson that she will carry with her for the rest of her life: Love is the only thing that matters.

  Magic Lessons is a celebration of life and love and a showcase of Alice Hoffman’s masterful storytelling.

  Topics & Questions for Discussion

  This novel is both historical fiction and magical realism. How does Alice Hoffman blend both genres? What are examples from each genre in the book?

  Maria studies the Nameless Art under Hannah Owens and her mother, Rebecca. Hannah and Rebecca they have different values. What are they? How do those differences influence what they teach Maria?

  Early in the novel, Rebecca teaches Maria, “Love could ruin your life or set you free; it could happen by chance or be a well-planned decision.” How does this advice foreshadow Maria’s relationship with John Hathorne and Samuel Dias?

  There is a song that Maria recalls throughout her journey that starts with the lyric “The water is wide, I cannot get oe’r it.” Think about when the song appears in the novel. How does the meaning of the lyrics change as Maria deals with new challenges and heartache?

  In Maria’s travels, she meets Jewish refugees from Spain and Portugal who have left their home countries to escape persecution. How does Alice Hoffman weave Jewish history into the story?

  Maria encounters discrimination against women in both the old world and the new. In a world where most women are illiterate and have no power Maria knows “a woman with her own beliefs who refuses to bow to those she believes to be wrong can be considered dangerous.” How does Maria rebel against societal constraints? How does she create her own fate?

  On her hanging day, Maria calls down a family curse as she seeks “to protect herself and her daughter and any of their descendants from the grief she’d known.” Does the curse successfully protect her and Faith from grief?

  Note Maria’s relationship to Cadin, her crow, and Faith’s to Keeper. Crows are described as “more loyal than any other man or beast” and Keeper waits years for Faith to return. Have you ever had an emotional connection to an animal? Have you experienced empathy from an animal?

  Faith is a talented witch and deeply loved by her mother, but after she’s kidnapped and held prisoner, she changes. Faith takes up the Dark Arts and studies The Book of the Raven, interested in revenge. Do you think her anger at her father is justified? Do we sometimes lash out at those we love best?

  After reading the novel, reconsider the title. What are the “magic lessons” that Maria and Faith were first taught and what are the lessons they learn to live by after overcoming suffering?

  Love is central to the story. Every character in the story is disappointed by love, but also needs love. Discuss the different types of love that are explored in this book.

  The Owens family curse continues for generations, but Maria still manages to save Samuel. How do they avoid the family curse?

  Enhance Your Book Club

  The Grimoire is a leather-bound book of spells that Hannah Owens gives to Maria. Collect words of wisdom, favorite sayings, and photographs to make your own scrapbook Grimoire. What words, images, mantras, or recipes do you draw strength from?

  Using a map, trace Maria’s journey throughout the world. Explore the history behind each city in the same time period that Maria visits. What would she have encountered during her travels? Have you visited any of the locales yourself? Imagine what it would have been like to walk in Maria’s shoes. How do you think it’s different now in modern day?

  Maria bakes apple pies for her daughter, Faith, but in the Boston teahouse where she works she makes bird’s nest pudding. Search for a recipe and try making your version of this apple-cinnamon custard to enjoy with a pot of tea.

  A Conversation with Alice Hoffman

  Magic Lessons continues the story of the beloved Owens family, taking us to the origins of the family curse. What inspired you to return to the Owens family after so many years?

  Alice Hoffman: My readers asked me for more of the Owens family, and I was intrigued by what their history might be. The character of Maria, who appears in the first book [Practical Magic], always seemed as if she might have a great deal more to say.

  You have said that you always start a novel with a question. What was the question that you asked before writing this book and did you find your answer?

  AH: The question in Magic Lessons is how can those who are cursed in love manage to live a life that includes love. How can people who are hurt and vulnerable and betrayed open their hearts again?

  The story is rich with historical details, especially when Maria enters new cities throughout the world. What was the process behind your research?

  AH: I have been researching the Owens family for twenty-five years! I read a great deal of history, went to Salem, and read extensively about the witch trials. But I’m also interested in everyday details: recipes, how houses were built, clothing—–that to me is the beginning of building a world. I also do magic research, and have a magic library which I have been collecting for years. For me, that is the fun part of my research.

  A value that Hannah Owens imparts on Maria is kindness. It is trait that Maria’s biological mother, Rebecca, does not possess but Hannah teaches Maria to value. What inspired you to emphasize this trait?

  AH: In a cruel world it can be difficult to see that kindness is the way through the maze of uncertainty. But then and now, kindness is always a trait to value.

  You explore the relationships between humans and animals through Maria and her crow, Cadin, and Faith and her wolf, Keeper. Can you tell us about an animal that has been special in your life?

  AH: Witches are said to have familiars, animals or birds who are soul mates. My soul mate was a German shepherd named Houdini, my dearest companion for sixteen years.

  There ar
e different types of love in the novel. There is romantic love, demonstrated in the relationship between Maria and Samuel Dias. There is also familial love between Maria and Faith. What did you want readers to learn from these different relationships?

  AH: The book is about love in its many forms. I think most readers take away what the story means to them, and what love means in their own lives.

  Faith’s journey is a realistically dark one. She is taken from her mother and held captive for years, and subsequently turns to the Dark Arts for revenge. Did you plan her story beforehand? Or did her character evolve in the process of writing the novel?

  AH: I didn’t plan Faith’s story. She was such a strong character, she took charge of her own life and I just sat by and watched. She’s so complicated and hurt and brave. I grew to love her, despite her turn to the Dark Arts.

  This book thematically resonates with Practical Magic and The Rules of Magic in that powerful women are at the forefront of the story. What women have inspired you in your life?

  AH: My mother and grandmother always inspire me. My mother was a single mother in the early sixties, a social worker, a rebel, and a wonderful friend. My grandmother was a Russian immigrant who supported her family and who loved me unconditionally. My first story was about her, and I would likely not have been a writer without her support.