The only other novel I'd read of Geraldine Brooks was Caleb's Crossing, which was historically interesting and not much more. Then I read Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women by Brooks, which was so revelatory and personal I thought ah, this is her true calling -- as a journalist and documentarian. So I was reluctant to pick up Year of Wonders, fearing this novel would fall short after reading Nine Parts of Desire and after remembering the mediocrity of Caleb's Crossing. I'm so glad I waded in despite all that... Year of Wonders is wonderful storytelling. 
 Brooks' novel was inspired by true events that took place in the small English village of Eyam in 1666 where, beset by the plague, the populace chose to quarantine itself in order to prevent the disease from spreading further from their village. It's a fascinating premise, and I knew that Brooks the researcher would give it a deserved authenticity... but what I didn't know was that Brooks' storyteller's voice would finally make itself known. 
 In this novel, Brooks exhibits a quiet simplicity in her writing style that is subtle and really quite lovely. It's possible that the same quiet tone told the story in Caleb's Crossing, but either I was too impatient to appreciate it completely (always a possibility), or she did not hold as much interest in the story as she did Year of Wonders. Coupled with the visceral horrors and agonizing grief that would define this story of the Blue Death (the plague), Brooks' ability to bring us carefully and compassionately through that deadly year is a little bit of a miracle, and a wonder in itself. 
 I finally closed the book feeling as if I had experienced a truly lyrical literary moment. Brooks is now solidly on my list of favorite authors, and Year of Wonders is worthy of a high 4-star rating.