The book is as much a history primer as it is a travel guide, with the first handful of chapters dedicated to Salem in the Puritan era - particularly focusing, of course, on the infamous Witch Trials. The result is a loving nocturne to both a city and the holiday that, for better or for worse, it has come to embody. It’s an excellent, enviable premise, and Ocker makes the most of it, venturing out into the hustle and bustle of the crowded streets of downtown Salem during the days before retreating back to a rented house or, more often than not, a themed restaurant or bar (wherein he would imbibe colorfully-named concoctions like “Candy Corntini” and “Satan’s Cider”) in the evenings to collect and record his thoughts. To write it, Ocker and his family spent an entire October experiencing the haunted holiday along with Salem and its other guests. About the charm and chaos and contradictions that constitute the Witch City. It really is the perfect read to set the stage for Hallowe’en - Ocker’s enthusiasm for the holiday is infectious, and you can’t help but be swept up by the magical pandemonium he chronicles in this spookiest of travelogues.
I finished it on a gray, gusty evening a couple of days into October, and honestly I couldn’t have asked for a better atmosphere (marred slightly by the fact that I was getting over a cold). Ocker’s A Season with the Witch late in September, wanting to get into the spirit of the season a little earlier this year.
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