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Year Of Wonders

Belief systems and prejudices as equal plagues to the Plague, Oct. 11 2002

Elinor is an enthusiastic gardener and has a growing interest in the herbs being cultivated by an ostracized family of women who are suspected of being witches, despite the fact that many of their herbal preparations have proven beneficial to the local villagers. From the beginning of this engaging novel the reader experiences a growing tension and increasing realization that something will happen to this tiny village and its mostly poor inhabitants. And that "something" is the Bubonic plague that in reality struck an actual English village upon which this story is based.

Anna is so key a character that it is within her household that the person carrying the plague, a vagabond-type tailor, actually sets in motion the larger plot. How will persons of varying socioeconomic levels and belief systems deal with a plague? Will it force some to rely on their destructive superstitions? Will it be a catapult to positive change? What will its devastating force do to the small minded, the idealistic, the religious minded?

These questions are all dealt with in this beautifully written novel. Reverend Mompellion is a good, idealistic man. Because he's educated, he and his wife are invited to the homes of some of the area wealthy. It is at these gatherings that he first learns that those "who have" will flee the area for London, expecting to escape suffering and death. Because the plague struck during 1655 and 1666, there was no understanding that the Bubonic Plague was carried by fleas from infected rats. Undoubtedly, escaping the poor, dirty peasants would bring a higher social strata some insurance from being affiliated with and, therefore, infected by the underclass!

Death escapes no family. Some are decimated within days. Yet various neighbors assist one another, nurse one another, one another's children...and ultimately bury them. Others are convinced the witches are the cause of the plague; a murder takes place. All the while Reverend Mompellion keeps his head and is a strong, persistent leader who convinces his parishoners of two things: God is testing them; and they should voluntarily quarantine themselves so as not to spread the plague any further.

Reverend Mompellion strikes a deal with a leader of a neighboring community to bring food and supplies to a certain point beyond which none of the villagers will stray. The community continually shrinks as its inhabitants die in increasing numbers. Church services are eventually stopped indoors, hoping lack of close proximity will quell the plague. Services are held for decimated numbers outside. Yet, Reverend Mompellion prevails in his unflagging belief in God....until tragedy strikes his own household and his own faith is crushed.

The novel's ending is very much a surprise. As I earlier indicated, some grow in knowledge, spirit, understanding and generosity. Others do not! Belief systems are shaken but the results are not necessarily negative! Well written; well told; engrossing!

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Well-researched, but chickens out, Janv. 1 2003

This book is set in 1665; its heroine is Anna Frith, an 18 year old widow with two young sons. It is soon revealed that her husband was a miner killed in a mining accident. Anna is a servant in the household of the local Anglican priest and his wife, Elinor.

As the book opens, it is clear that a) the "year of wonders" is almost over and b) Elinor is dead. Careful readers will learn in this chapter that Anna and Elinor were the bestest of friends and that Anna, despite the fact that she's a peasant in a remote English village, not only reads, but understands Latin. At this point, alarm bells started going off in my head. I'm always deeply suspicious of books that try too hard to make their historical heroines, well, heroic. Make the heroine smart, sure. Even let her have learned how to read on her own, fine - though it's unlikely that a young 17th century mother would have the time to learn and the ready access to books. But please don't make her an overevolved Rhodes scholar with modern sensibilities. Please. My pleas were not answered.

Anyway, as the book progresses, it's clear that Brooks is imposing 21st century values on her characters. In addition, some very unwelcome Oprah-ization slinks in, mainly in the discussion of Anna's family, where it is revealed that Anna has an abusive father (with zero redeeming qualities) who is married to a woman, Aphra, who turns out to be bitchy, unloving, and also into witchcraft (?).

On the other hand, Elinor is just as perfect as can be. She doesn't believe in social divisions. She literally looks like an angel, all wispy and with silvery hair and whatnot. She teaches Anna how to read and write and read great scholarly volumes. Apparently, Anna has plenty of time to indulge in all these scholarly pursuits. Anna, as I'll discuss later, also turns out to be pretty perfect herself. I actually laughed during Elinor's faux deathbed scene when Elinor basically congratulates both herself and Anna on becoming ever so wonderful.

(The priest, Mompellion, is your average tortured artiste type. He is supposed to have chemistry with Anna. Scandalous!)

Anyway, even though this is a novel of the plague, there isn't really THAT much about how horrible the plague is. Mompellion visits plague families. There's an interlude in which Anna and Elinor pluckily mine a vein so that a little Quaker orphan girl can keep the claim to the vein (Elinor and Anna are easily able to get beyond those silly 17th century prejudices about Quakers.) Anna's half-sister, Faith, is mentioned in passing about 300 pages into the book. Then she dies. Anys, a saucy herbalist chick, is hanged by panicked villagers. Boy, is Mompellion mad about that! (By the way, Anna is totally cool with Anys sleeping around, because she's moderne like that.) There are other random mentions of the village being deserted and various coping mechanism employed by the distraught villagers, but Brooks never really sells the reader on how horrible the Year of Wonders is. Rather, the Year of Wonders is more like a prep course to make Anna even more exceptional.

Anna not only becomes an ace scholar, but she also becomes a terrific midwife in less than a year. After a very brief indulgence, she has the moral rectitude to primly burn Anys' poppy stash when she finds it, becuase opium is BAD. Her horrible father and horrible stepmother die horribly. Oh, she also learns to tame Mompellion's stallion, because she is just that good.

Mompellion is written as an amalgamation of nobility and unexpected nuttiness. His abstinence from Elinor really doesn't make much sense, but it does mean that Anna can sleep with him without much guilt after Elinor dies.

Anyway, Anna takes off at the end of the book. At this point, it seemed to me like the author sat around and thought "Hmm. I want my main character to continue her scholarly pursuits in medicine. Where can she do that? I know! Morocco!" Yes, Anna abruptly ends up as the wife to a well-regarded Arab doctor at the end of the book, where she studies in Arabic and raises her children (her new kids - her sons having died in the plague.) Wow, did that come out of nowhere.

Brooks has clearly done a lot of research and the book is quite readable. But I found Anna and her friends to be too modern and too perfect, much like the protagonist of Pope Joan (another disappointing historical novel) or, dare I say it? Jean Auel's Ayla, the most perfect woman ever to exist in all prehistory.) If you want to read some decent fiction set in this period, I can recommend Slammerkin. The only diseases in that novel are venereal, though.

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Wonderful book, Juil 17 2004

Now, for the bad...the ending did not disappoint me to the degree it did some of the other reviewers. I think maybe because someone gave it away in their review and so I was anticipating it all along (shame on you!!!!). However, it was a disjointed ending that didn't fit with the flow of the rest of the story.

No matter. I enjoyed the read and have left it feeling satisfied. Isn't that what we readers desire most?

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Fine historical novel, Juil 7 2004

Par	C. Myers "leanleaper" (Simi Valley, CA USA) - Voir tous mes commentaires

I won't argue with those who criticize the ending; while it may not measure up to the rest of the novel, I didn't find it as feeble as some other critics here. To my way of thinking, the abrupt change of locale serves as a contrast that jolts us out of our smug beliefs in the superiority of western culture. But that really isn't what this book is about and what we are really quibbling over is a 7-1/2 page epilogue. Read the novel.

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Historical fiction at its best, Jui 20 2004

Par	Cynthia K. Robertson (beverly, new jersey USA) - Voir tous mes commentaires

Based on a true story, this historical novel weaves a fabulous and heartwarming tale about how one small town in Derbyshire dealt with the plague. Year of Wonders is told through the eyes of a lowly and uneducated peasant girl named Anna Frith. Anna is a young widow with two young sons. She goes to work for the Anglican rector and his wife, Michael and Elinor Mompellion. Elinor takes Anna under her wing, and becomes not just a teacher and mentor, but also a friend. The town is thrown into chaos when it is discovered that the plague has struck. Rector Mompellion convinces the town that they must close their borders and that all residents must stay (to prevent it spreading to other villages). He also offers a promise that no one will suffer alone, and he convinces the earl from a neighboring town to provide food and other necessities. What follows is a tale of tragedy and triumph. The plague lasted over a year, and two thirds of the townspeople perished. Mompellion, Elinor and Anna take on the task of ministering to the town in ways that are heroic. They find themselves battling not only this dreaded disease, but also superstition, greed, and even murder. And despite their own tragedies, they discover that their efforts make them stronger and that they have more courage than they thought possible.

Brooks' writing is truly elegant, and Anna's thoughts and words are written in the lyrical but simple cadence of the 1660's. Anna describes her husband; "his hands were big, cracked things with broken, blackened nails, and his idea of lovemaking was a swift and sweaty tumble, a spasm and then sleep." I just couldn't turn the pages fast enough. There is also much historical research including not only the plague itself, but also of the living conditions in a small English village during the 17th Century.

While this is Geraldine Brooks' first novel, she has two nonfiction books to her credit including Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women. I will definitely be reading more of this talented author.

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