Newes from the Dead [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Mary Hooper (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2008

"Intriguing and captivating."—Celia Rees, author of Witch Child

 

WRONGED. HANGED. ALIVE? (AND TRUE!)

Anne can't move a muscle, can't open her eyes, can't scream. She lies immobile in the darkness, unsure if she'd dead, terrified she's buried alive, haunted by her final memory—of being hanged. A maidservant falsely accused of infanticide in 1650 England and sent to the scaffold, Anne Green is trapped with her racing thoughts, her burning need to revisit the events—and the man—that led her to the gallows.

 

Meanwhile, a shy 18-year-old medical student attends his first dissection and notices something strange as the doctors prepare their tools . . . Did her eyelids just flutter? Could this corpse be alive?

 

Beautifully written, impossible to put down, and meticulously researched, Newes from the Dead is based on the true story of the real Anne Green, a servant who survived a hanging to awaken on the dissection table. Newes from the Dead concludes with scans of the original 1651 document that recounts this chilling medical phenomenon.

 

Newes from the Dead is a 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up—A grabber of a premise: It's England, 1650, and as the dissection of an ill-fated 22-year-old servant woman newly unstrung from the gallows begins, the participants detect the cadaver's eyes flickering. Hooper alternates perspective from Anne (the not-actually-dead corpse), who flashes back to explain how she ended up there, to that of a young intellectual attendee of the dissection, a sympathetic stutterer named Robert. Anne's story, rife with gruesome scenes of Puritan-era life (e.g., a rat-infested prison, a bloody miscarriage in a dirty privy) trumps Robert's drier account of the discourse among various distinguished intellectuals of the day, unless readers are well versed in the period's historical details (e.g., when Christopher Wren is teased for his poor poetry). The resulting back-and-forth of the two narrators makes for a poorly paced read, but the pervasive sense of injustice and indignity is vibrant enough to buoy readers through to the unexpectedly positive ending. Loosely based on a true story—hence the title, taken from broadsides published at the time—with a decidedly unromantic view of the era, this is a must-read for teens learning about Cromwell and the Puritan revolution, or for young feminists who appreciate narratives about the treatment of women in history.—Rhona Campbell, Washington, DC Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

“Newes from the Dead” was the name of a pamphlet that circulated in England in 1650 after a teenage housemaid, hanged for the crime of infanticide, awoke on the dissecting table. Hooper uses this case as the basis for a historical mystery that is creepy in the best Edgar Allen Poe tradition, as well as thought-provoking about sexual harassment and abuse. The story opens in a coffin, as the reader listens in on poor Anne’s frantic coming-to-terms with where she is and how she got there: her days as a servant, her seduction by a young lord, the accusation of murder. Anne’s thoughts, from coffin to dissecting table, are juxtaposed with a third-person narrative, centering on a nervous young surgeon who is on hand to witness and assist in the young woman’s dissection. Hooper explains that surgeons were allowed to conduct autopsies on criminals, and it's just such intriguing tidbits of Cromwellian history that add heft to this suspenseful novel. Give this to readers who prefer their historical mysteries straight up—without an overlay of fantasy. Grades 9-12. --Connie Fletcher

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
  
• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Roaring Brook Press (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596433558
• ISBN-13: 978-1596433557
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,342,137 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "I was hanged, but I did not die....", May 13, 2008

By 

R. Kyle (USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Newes from the Dead (Hardcover)

1650 England, a young woman wakens in darkness 'curled on her side like a wood louse'. She believes she's in Hell. Meanwhile, Robert, a young medical student, sees the eyes fluttering of a hanged murderess who is about to be dissected for the medical school.

Doctors and Puritans clash. The doctors believe the woman yet lives. The Puritans claim her soul for God. The doctors apply all the tests at their disposal, including bleeding her, and giving her an enema, to prove she's alive...

Anne Green is a maid in the house of Sir Thomas. The Lord's grandson, Geoffrey, makes advances to her promising to elevate her when his grandfather dies. She eventually succumbs. Then, she discovers she's with child....

"Newes from the Dead" is billed as a childrens' novel, but it's impossible to put down once you've opened the book and begun reading. Even when you have read the true accounts or the adult fiction tale, you're still going to be drawn in by Mary Hooper's adept retelling. The author's done her research and it definitely shows.

Rebecca Kyle, May 2008

See also:

An Instance of the Fingerpost

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truth IS Stranger than Fiction!, November 10, 2008

By 

M. Mori - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Newes from the Dead (Hardcover)

My father is a mortician. I remember that as a kid I asked him once if dead bodies can move (which I'd heard some people say could happen). Dad gave some type of scientific explanation about nerves and blood and replied that yes, a body could "appear" to move, but it wasn't moving because it was still alive. Unless it's Anne Green's body. Anne was dead. She was accused of infanticide after her child was stillborn, and she was hanged--hanged for 30 minutes. Her corpse was now part of medical science study and about to be dissected. Moments before the dissection began, however, one of the medical students noticed Anne was still alive--barely. Filled with drama and suspense, author Mary Hooper fills in the fictional details (although they are very believable) about the true account of Anne Green's miraculous return from the dead. This one is a page turner that is sure to keep the attention of teens and adults alike! A copy of the actual pamphlet from the 1600s that explains the true story is included at the end of the book and is a must-read. Lots of potential for good discussion with this book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, historians and mystery readers will love!, February 9, 2009

By 

Edgemont City Library - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Newes from the Dead (Hardcover)

I could not put this book down. Although the book is for the young adult readers I found it to be interesting and not dumbed down in any way. The history in the story coupled with the imagination of the writer is wonderful. A must read.