Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

This is an historical novel set in 1665-1666 in a small village in England. Based on fact, it tells the story of the Black Plague coming to this village, possibly carried by fleas in fabric which has been shipped to the village tailor. As the members of the village start to die horrible deaths from the bubonic plague, the village’s rector makes a bold and frightening, but altruistic, proposal that the village quarantine itself, so that no one leaves and no one enters. This way, the plague will not spread beyond the village’s borders, and once it has struck whoever it is to strike, it may end there. Most of the people agree to this plan, and a system is put into place to receive necessary supplies from outside the village without the risk of spreading the disease.

The main characters are the Rector and his wife, along with their maid, Anna—whom the author learned from historical documents survived the plague, as did some of the villagers, though I won’t give away too much here! What happens to our human nature when we are “trapped” with fatally ill, contagious people? What happens when your beloved family and friends are suffering and dying all around you, and you are helpless to cure them?

I thought this was a fascinating account of the period. They lived a very difficult life in those days, and we have no right to complain about our easy lives in comparison! As a warning to the very squeamish, some of the details are quite gruesome. Toward the end, it got a bit like a “romance novel” to me, of which I’m not a big fan, but I enjoyed the novel nonetheless.