A Journal of the Plague Year

ΓÇ£The surprise ΓÇÿmust-readΓÇÖ for people facing the Covid-19 epidemic.ΓÇ¥ ΓÇöThe Telegraph In 1665 the plague swept through London,claiming over 97000 lives. Daniel Defoe was just five at the time of the plaguebut he later called on his own memoriesas well as his writing experienceto create this vivid chronicle of the epidemic and its victims. A Journal (1722) follows Defoe’s fictional narrator as he traces the devastating progress of the plague through the streets of London. Here we see a city transformed: some of its streets suspiciously emptysomeΓÇöwith crosses on their doorsΓÇöoverwhelmingly full of the sounds and smells of human suffering. And every living citizen he meets has a horrifying story that demands to be heard. For more than seventy yearsPenguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1700 titlesPenguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authorsas well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.