Puritan Revival

Sure, you know that Massachusetts was the first state bold enough to legalize gay marriage. But how much do you know of the state’s humble beginnings? If most of your education about the colonists was gleaned from pop culture (remember The Brady Bunch Thanksgiving episode?), then essayist and public radio commentator Sarah Vowell’s entertaining book The Wordy Shipmates (out October 7) might just throw you for a loop.

Those Puritans? Not always so pure. Their infighting about the separation of church and state led to dramatic courtroom stand-offs and revenge-fueled exiles. And don’t even get Vowell started on the cruel fate of the Native Americans.

Intermingled with Vowell’s narrative history are anecdotes about her research (like being exposed to diary entries that read like “soft-core mash notes addressed to the Lord”) and sardonic commentary on the early settlers’ beliefs and their lasting legacy (“Why is America the last best hope of Earth? What if it’s Liechtenstein? Or, worse, Canada?”). In a year when we’ll determine the future of our country, it feels fitting to learn about its past – and that’s especially entertaining through Vowell’s thoughtful, irreverent perspective.

The Wordy Shipmates will be available October 7 from Riverhead Books.

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