Customer Reviews
Beyond Imagination - By: Capt John Rowlands, 14 Dec 2007 
Imagine every other personin your social circle, family, friends, workplace & high street dropping dead. This was the reality of the Black Death, at leastin the more crowded settlements. A tragedy beyond imagination that Defoe brings alive.
It's not the mortality that grips you, catastrophic as they were, but how people, even close relatives, shunned each other because of the near-certainty of contracting the disease & ending up dead themselves.
It's probably my duty to highlight, too, that the Black Death was almost certainly not bubonic plague as it doesn't fit the facts of how the disease spread, but hemorrhagic fever. One of the key pieces of evidence is the outbreak of plaguein Iceland, which is known not to harbour a rat population at that time.
Rivetting factual account - By: A. J. Watson, 30 Jun 2002 
A Journal of the Plague Year argues its case better by a bald statement of facts, than by any elaborate literary devices. This reads like it is meant to be, a journal, bringing home the horrors of that awful timein a way that a second-hand description could never do.
Having said that, this account IS second-hand; it is only Defoe's journalistic expertise, boyhood memories & down-to-earth style that make it so believable.
BUT - anyone who reads this should not expect another Gulliver's Travels - it IS heavy going; it's not a book that one can curl up with & relax, you have to work for your entertainment.
The main point that comes across is the constant religious undercurrent, which was, I guess, typical of the time (if not of Defoe) & the willingness to attach blame for anything unusual to outsiders, or God's will, rather than examine their own circumstances (so what's changedin 337 years!?). As one of the few records of that terrible year, this deserves a place on any amateur historian's bookshelf.
Dark, gripping, and sad story based on a truthful account. - By: tamaramolina@hotmail.com, 10 Jun 2000 If you skip the depressing death bills, this story will grip you & won't let you go until the end. If you are a history major this story will give you insight into 1660's. Be it human nature, government setup, society setup, etc. A must read!
Fascinating 17th Century Docu-Soap account of the Plague. - By: rob@cooperbrown.com, 28 Apr 2000 I was interestedin this book because it promised an account by one who was there & not by student historians who make a living by guessing our past. The gripping eye-witness descriptions make up for the often tedious death toll listings which, once you've read one are best skipped over. A symapthetic view - not too dark.
Interesting and at times quite grisly - By: , 07 Aug 1999 What I like best about DeFoe is that he is very readable & can hold your attention for hours. Sure, he can contradict himself at times & he does have a flair for repetition & while he is not above pointing out the obvious, DeFoe is extremely interesting. "A Journal of the Plague Year" contains all the things DeFoe is noted for including a sharp eye for detail & sly humour. I liked this book & recommend it mainly because much of what DeFoe observed about human naturein the early 18th century is still relevant today.
