Inspired by the true story of Eyam, a village in the rugged mountain spine of England, Year of Wonders is a richly detailed evocation of a singular moment in history...Hailed as an "astonishing re-creation of how it felt to be a victim and survivor of the year of wonders and horrors" (Thomas Keneally), Brooks's novel examines the collision of faith, science and superstition at the cusp of the modern era.

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When an infected bolt of cloth carries the plague from London to her village, housemaid Anna Frith emerges as an unlikely heroine and healer.  Through Anna's eyes, we follow the story of the plague year, 1666, as her fellow villagers elect to quarantine themselves to arrest the spread of the disease.  But as death reaches into every household, faith frays.  (They) turn from prayers and herbal cures to sorcery and murderous witch-hunting... As she struggles to survive, a year of plague becomes, instead, annus mirabilis, "a year of wonders." *

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Geraldine Brooks is the author of Caleb's Crossing, which we featured on the evening of November 19, 2018.  It was a popular title.  Let's see how the horrors and wonders of our past year enrich the discussion of this historical novel.

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Books (large print) and CD-audios are available at the circulation desk at the library.

*From the book jacket