A Season with the Witch: The Magic and Mayhem of Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts [Paperback]

Salem, Massachusetts, may be the strangest city on the planet. A single event in its 400 years of historythe Salem Witch Trials of 1692transformed it into the Capital of Creepy in America. But Salem is a seasonal townand its season happens to be Halloween. Every October, this small city of 40,000 swells to close to half a million as witches, goblins, ghouls, and ghosts (and their admirers) descend on Essex Street. For the fall of 2015, occult enthusiast and Edgar Awardwinning writer J.W. Ocker moved his family of four to downtown Salem to experience firsthand a season with the witch, visiting all of its historical sites and macabre attractions. In between, he interviews its leaders and citizens, its entrepreneurs and visitors, its street performers and Wiccans, its psychics and critics, creating a picture of this unique place and the people who revel in, or merely weather, its witchiness.Edgar Award-winning travel writer spends an autumn living in one of America's spookiest tourist destinations: Salem, Massachusetts [A] lively chroniclepart travel guide, part history lesson&Ocker moves easily among the archivists, historians, and performers he interviews, and he describes the carnival atmosphere that descends upon Witch City with enthusiasm and vividness. What better place to celebrate Halloween than Salem, Massachusetts? Festivities begin with a parade on October 1 and end with Halloween parties and costumed celebrations on October 31. In between, Ocker, a travel writer with an Edgar Award, and family stay the entire month, exploring Salems many attractions. Although the witch trials in 1692 only lasted for nine months, Salem has been branded Witch City, overshadowing its maritime history. Ocker samples everything: cemeteries, museums, gift shops, performances, wax museums, and more. He talks to street performers and street preachers as he tries to understand the appeals of the city. He interviews curators, haunters, costumed tour guides, a policeman, thl“Ð