The Great Plague

A People's History

By: Evelyn Lord

Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon

Focusing on Britain's peasants, shopkeepers, and other commoners, this history of the deadly Black Plague is a "local account of the countrywide calamity" (The Times).

In this intimate history of the extraordinary Black Plague pandemic that swept through the British Isles in 1665, Evelyn Lord focuses on the plague's effects on smaller towns, where every death was a singular blow affecting the entire community.

Lord's fascinating reconstruction of life during plague times presents the personal experiences of a wide range of individuals, from historical notables Samuel Pepys and Isaac Newton to common folk who tilled the land and ran the shops. The Great Plague brings this dark era to vivid life through stories of loss and survival from those who grieved, those who fled, and those who hid to await their fate.

©2014 Evelyn Lord (P)2022 Tantor

A solid read with slightly boring narration

A relatively quick read filled with statistics and facts weaved into stories that I won’t remember after reading, but which are still appreciated for the “big picture” stuff.

Well researched

Well researched history of the plague in Cambridge. It’s a very dry account but the story is so horrifying that the details need no embellishment. A lot of work went into this. This gery hard work is marred by a very faulty last chapter on the science and epidemiology of plague. It’s full of errors that such a skilled historian should never have made. Plague is caused by a bacterium, not a virus. It is spread by fleas and its causes are well known. The genetics of resistance are also well researched. Such a shame.

Wonderful

I've listened to this book several times to get an immersive experience. the plague is incidental.

Great.

The strings of names and dates should read dry as toast but somehow it fleshes out the period in bright colors as the black shadow of the plague draws in. The sweetness of the snapshots of their lives when not under threat, and again when they are, act like a sort of time machine. Wonderful read.

Very interesting

An engrossing look at The Great Plague of 1665-66 in Cambridge, England. The Great Plague was not as severe as the Black Death of the 14th century, although to those who lived through it, this was probably a difference without a distinction. The reader really gets a feeling of what it must have been like to be there and how terrifying it was. Awesome research and splendid narration.