content: 'Year of Wonders' is a fantastically well-written novel based on the real English village of Eyam, where fictional residents chose to seal themselves off from the rest of the country in an effort to quell the spread of the plague in 1665. As conditions in the town worsen and the residents begin to die overnight and in mass numbers, resident and widow Anna Frith must help the Mompellions cope with the disasterous effects of disease, fear, religious zeal and murder. While the book was far more graphic than I expected, I was very affected by it -- it's not a novel you'll soon forget. I found myself doing a lot of research on the Plague and English history after finishing Brooks' fine work.