In the late 1990s, the community of Bassa Modenese, Italy, faced a Satanic Panic. Children began making disturbing accusations against their family members and other members of the community, including a priest. The accusations ranged from various forms of sexual abuse, to being locked inside tombs in cemeteries. The reports seem wholly unfounded, though it is certainly possible, maybe even probable, that some of the children were victims of sexual abuse or physical abuse at the hands of their parents. Certainly, at least in one case, there was some neglect and lack of care. It is interesting to note that all of the children were seen by a young, inexperienced psychologist. This book outlines each allegation and the results of the investigations into these families.

The book was very well done. I had never heard of this, so I learned a great deal from this book. I have formed the opinion that the psychologist was not behaving properly in these instances. I think the way the children's services people reacted, in concert with law enforcement, was disgraceful. I think what happened to these children and their families was beyond disgraceful. The Satanic Panic is irritating to me, simply because of the rabid ridiculousness of it. It's like a new flavor of witch hunts, which was also ridiculous and detrimental to individuals and society as a whole. This book was something like six hours to listen to but is around 300 pages if you prefer a physical copy. It was a pretty quick read, especially if you read fast.