Hester

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter has always been one of my favorites, so when I read that Laurie Lico Albanese's new novel Hester (#1,124) was positing a potential inspiration for his Hester Prynne, I couldn't wait to read it.  Overall, I thought Ms. Albanese's book fulfilled her promise.

Isobel Gamble is a Scottish immigrant, married to a ne'er-do-well apothecary forced to flee to the New World due to debts.  She encounters Nathaniel Hathorne by the docks in Salem upon landing.  Both are struck by that first glimpse.  What could these two possibly have in common?  

Well, Isobel bewitches Nat with her red hair and blue-green eyes.  Not surprising, as she is descended from witches and has the blessing (or curse) of synesthesia, the ability to see, hear, or taste things imbued with unique colors.  Isobel's needle, when she is not mindful, produces scarlet As, blue Bs, yellow Cs and so forth.  Her mother long ago cautioned her to hide her ability, or she will be persecuted for it.

Nat, on the other hand, is the great great grandson of the only judge in the Salem Witchcraft Trials who refused to repent his role in the proceedings.  Nat is at a loose end, having graduated college, but unable to find any well-paying employment.  He writes, but his work so far has not been well received.

The obvious answer then is sexual attraction.  But just as Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne are doomed in The Scarlet Letter, so are Isobel Gamble and Nat Hathorne in Hester.  No good can come of it, except Margaret, Isobel's own Pearl.

I just had to keep reading to see what would happen next here.  If you are a Hawthorne fan, you should definitely add Hester to your reading list for a different perspective on him.  What an interesting origin story for the Scarlet Letter itself!