Bernardsville Library’s book discussion group, Saturday Samplers, will meet on Saturday, June 4 at 3:30 pm to discuss Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague (2002) by Geraldine Brooks. [The author will not be present.]
A fine piece of historical fiction, this novel tells of story of the spread of the plague, in an infected bolt of cloth, from London to a small, isolated village named Eyam in 1666. A housemaid named Anna Frith emerges as an unlikely heroine and healer, and it is through her eyes that the reader follows how she and her fellow villagers confront the spread of disease and superstition. As death reaches into every household and villagers turn from prayers to witch-hunting, Anna finds the strength to confront the disintegration of her community. As she struggles to survive, a year of catastrophe becomes instead annus mirabilis, a "year of wonders." A reviewer for The New Yorker wrote: "The novel glitters . .[It is a] deep imaginative engagement with how people are changed by catastrophe."
Geraldine Brooks is the author of two acclaimed works of nonfiction, the bestselling Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women and Foreign Correspondence: A Penpal's Journey from Down Under to All Over. She is also a former war correspondent whose writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Washington Post.Led by Readers’ Services Assistant, Evelyn Fischel, Saturday Samplers is a book discussion group dedicated to sampling various kinds of literature, including short stories, nonfiction, new and old novels, and even teen fiction. Its goal is to search out interesting, noteworthy, and sometimes overlooked books. Readers can find information about the group and about the books and authors on the reading list at http://saturdaysamplers.blogspot.com/. No sign-up is needed to join the discussion. Call the library at 766-0118 for more information.
There is no charge to attend the discussion, and no sign-up is needed. The group will meet in the Library’s Community Room.
A fine piece of historical fiction, this novel tells of story of the spread of the plague, in an infected bolt of cloth, from London to a small, isolated village named Eyam in 1666. A housemaid named Anna Frith emerges as an unlikely heroine and healer, and it is through her eyes that the reader follows how she and her fellow villagers confront the spread of disease and superstition. As death reaches into every household and villagers turn from prayers to witch-hunting, Anna finds the strength to confront the disintegration of her community. As she struggles to survive, a year of catastrophe becomes instead annus mirabilis, a "year of wonders." A reviewer for The New Yorker wrote: "The novel glitters . .[It is a] deep imaginative engagement with how people are changed by catastrophe."
Geraldine Brooks is the author of two acclaimed works of nonfiction, the bestselling Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women and Foreign Correspondence: A Penpal's Journey from Down Under to All Over. She is also a former war correspondent whose writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Washington Post.Led by Readers’ Services Assistant, Evelyn Fischel, Saturday Samplers is a book discussion group dedicated to sampling various kinds of literature, including short stories, nonfiction, new and old novels, and even teen fiction. Its goal is to search out interesting, noteworthy, and sometimes overlooked books. Readers can find information about the group and about the books and authors on the reading list at http://saturdaysamplers.blogspot.com/. No sign-up is needed to join the discussion. Call the library at 766-0118 for more information.
There is no charge to attend the discussion, and no sign-up is needed. The group will meet in the Library’s Community Room.
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