No Shame, No Fear by Ann Turnbull

No Shame, No Fear by Ann Turnbull is about fifteen year old Susanna, a Quaker growing up in England in the 1600s. During this time, the Quakers were persecuted for their religious beliefs as well as their customs, by the Church of England. Basically, anyone who was not a Quaker felt obliged to yell obscenities at them, throw manure and rotting food at them, and force them to give money. Susanna's father ends up in jail because he refuses to give the church (to which he doesn't belong) ten percent of his income. Because of this, their family struggles to make ends meet. Susanna takes a job in the city, working at a print shop for another Quaker woman. There, she meets seventeen year old Will, who has just returned to town from three years of studying at Oxford. They are immediately enthralled with one another, and Will begins to learn more and more about the Quakers, much to the chagrin of his father. Eventually, Will begins joining the Quaker meetings and practicing their ways. His father, an elder in the church, does everything within his power to stop this from happening. Soon, a law is passed in England making it illegal for the Quakers to meet in their worship meetings. Nearly all of the adults in town are arrested and held in prison for continuing to meet. Things get worse and worse for Will and Susanna, making it almost impossible for them to marry, which has been their plan all along. Will must go to London to earn a steady job; Susanna must take care of her younger siblings while her parents are in jail. Will they ever meet again?

I really enjoyed this book. I wasn't sure I'd like it at the beginning, but it was very interesting. I didn't know very much about the Quakers before. I had no idea they were persecuted, much like the "witches" in Salem, and at around the same time period. There is a sequel called Forged in the Fire.