I just finished The Great Trouble: The Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel. This work of historical fiction starts off in August 1854, on the first day of a catastrophic cholera outbreak. During this time, people did not know how cholera was spread, but believed it had something to do with "bad air." Eel, and orphan living on the streets in the center of the outbreak, finds himself in the employment of a doctor determined to find the source of the outbreak and stop it from spreading. This is an amazing story, and the descriptions of life in London during this time period are accurate and it is enough to make anyone with even the smallest understanding of sanitation want to cringe. While the character of Eel may be fictional, other characters in the book (like the doctor) are actual historical figures, and this book might inspire you to learn more about this event in history. Check out this great book this summer!
From the publisher:
Eel has troubles of his own: As an orphan and a "mudlark," he spends his days in the filthy River Thames, searching for bits of things to sell. He's being hunted by Fisheye Bill Tyler, and a nastier man never walked the streets of London. And he's got a secret that costs him four precious shillings a week to keep safe.
But even for Eel, things aren't so bad until that fateful August day in 1854—the day the Great Trouble begins. Mr. Griggs, the tailor, is the first to get sick, and soon it's clear that the deadly cholera—the "blue death"—has come to Broad Street.
Everyone believes that cholera is spread through poisonous air. But one man, Dr. John Snow, has a different theory. As the epidemic surges, it's up to Eel and his best friend Florrie to gather evidence to prove Snow's theory before the entire neighborhood is wiped out.
