The Accusation of Norwich

A game turns deadly. A lie becomes law. And a city forgets the truth.
Norwich, England - 1144.
Miriam and Isaac are cousins growing up in the Jewish quarter. Their friend Willem is a Christian boy who plays Mob Ball with them in the streets. But when a fairground game ends in panic and Willem disappears, whispers begin to spread.

At first, it's just rumors.
Then a monk writes a scroll.
Then the bishop claims the land.
And suddenly, the Jews of Norwich are blamed for a crime they did not commit.

This is the story of the first blood libel-the myth that Jewish families kidnapped and killed a Christian child in a ritual. It wasn't true. But it worked. And it lasted for centuries.

Told through the eyes of children, this book follows how a false story takes hold-how it changes a city, buries the truth, and leaves behind only one thing that remembers: a poem hidden in a prayer book.

A vivid, emotionally guided story grounded in real 12th-century events
Characters based on historical figures and surviving documents
A "What Really Happened?" page explaining the truth behind the myth
Gentle reflection prompts for families and classrooms
A glossary of key terms: scapegoat, rumor, witness, justice
A discussion guide for Jewish or interfaith co-readers

• The poetry of Meir ben Elijah, a Jewish boy in 13th-century Norwich

• The starr of Samuel of Norwich, a real Hebrew-Latin land deed

• Monastic writings from Thomas of Monmouth, who helped spread the lie

• Trade records and town chronicles from medieval England

Mob Ball - Monks of Norwich is Book I in the Covenant and Memory series:
A storytelling project that helps young readers confront historical injustice with moral clarity, empathy, and hope.

"They kicked the ball before they called it holy.
They buried the truth before the boy."