Mae woont nog alleen met haar vader, de dorpsapotheker, in het Engelse stadje Eyam nadat haar moeder en zusje Leah allebei zijn gestorven. Mae's vader Wulfric is streng en weet niet dat zijn dochter stiekem bezoekjes brengt aan Isabel, de vroedvrouw van het dorp. Isabel was de beste vriendin van Mae's moeder en vertrouwt Wulfric helemaal niet. Isabel is door hem zelfs al eens als heks bestempeld. En dan dreigt de pest naar Eyam te komen...

A Moral Ballad of the Plague of Eyam by Francis McNamara (1884–1946). This was published as an Irish broadside in 1910. [53] The real history of Eyam’s plague is different from the heroic version reported in these news stories and retold in countless histories, novels and plays. Its lesson for fighting epidemics is not a simple one about the value of valiant leadership and the virtue of self-sacrifice. The true story of the plague village shows the problem of drawing on half-remembered histories for guidance on how to respond to extraordinary and rare events like the coronavirus outbreak we are now living through. Most of the secondary characters are based on actual people who lived there at the time, but for artistic licence the author has based the main storyline around fictitious characters. was not a good year for England with bubonic plague killing 100,000 people followed by The Great Fire of London which destroyed 80% of London or about 13,000 homes. It is hard for us to conceive of a disease that can show up one day and within a few short months kill 75% of the people we know. To survive is fortuitous, but to actually acquire the disease and survive is nothiThe villagers took every precaution to keep the plague at bay. They burned rosemary and wore masks stuffed with herbs. Doors and windows were kept closed so the plague spores could not enter and fires were lit in the village streets to drive them away. When they realized that smoke and herbs would do little good, some people even took to sitting in the sewers, in the hope that the foul odors would succeed where sweet had not and drive off the disease. However, it was all in vain. Death of the Tailor. Detail from the Plague Window of St Lawrence’s Church, Eyam. Google Images. The village of Eyam, while undoubtedly saving the lives of thousands in the surrounding area, paid a high price. Percentage wise they suffered a higher death toll than that of London. 260 Eyam villagers died over the 14 months of the plague out of a total population of 800. 76 families were affected by the plague; many such as the Thorpe family were wiped out completely. However the impact on medical understanding was significant. The sacrifice Eyam made did stop the disease from spreading to outside villages (and potentially saved thousands of lives) but at a great cost to their own. Many thanks to Netgalley and Little Brown for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review. But, it’s worth the walk as it’s an interesting stop to learn about this part of Eyam’s history. 11. Mompesson’s Well

Australian-born Geraldine Brooks is an author and journalist who grew up in the Western suburbs of Sydney, and attended Bethlehem College Ashfield and the University of Sydney. She worked as a reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald for three years as a feature writer with a special interest in environmental issues. When Mae makes a horrifying discovery, Isabel is the only person she can turn to. But helping Mae will place them both in unspeakable peril. I could not help but feel for Mae throughout the story. I was constantly worried what was going to happen to her and did not trust her father at all. At points I was almost scared to read on for fear of Mae’s life! This was a slow burning read where all the small events lead up to a dramatic finale. I kept hoping and praying that Mae would finally be free of that dreadful home but I hadn’t quite imagined events to unfold as they did. But he would continue to be tainted by the plague. Unsurprisingly he was not welcomed at his next parish, in Nottinghamshire. He did marry a widow, Elizabeth, and they had two daughters and two sons. Today, a Plague Commemoration Service is still held here annually. You can walk to it quite easily from the village in around 10-15 minutes.It's so easy for characters like Wulfric to be on their pedestal, praised for their work; and never looking too close at his own sins. Eyam Museum was opened in 1994 and, besides its focus on the plague, includes exhibits on the village's local history in general. Among the art exhibits there are painted copies from different eras of a print (taken from a drawing by Francis Chantrey) in Ebenezer Rhodes' Peak Scenery (1818). These depict the sweep of the road by the 'plague cottages' where the first victims died, with the church tower beyond. [28] The local amateur John Platt painted in naive style and is represented by depictions of the Riley Graves (1871) [29] and the old windmill (1874). [30]