The release date for the English version of 'Briar's Book' by
Tamora Pierce is Mar 2000. If you enjoy this novel, it is available for buy as a paperback from Barnes & Noble or Indigo, as an ebook on the Amazon Kindle store, or as an audiobook on Audible.
This book is available with a different cover here.
Retired "street rat" Briar has a nice existence at Winding Circle Temple, where Rosethorn teaches her plant magic. Even so, he still hangs out with homeless kids, and when one of them falls sick, she comes to Briar for support. Briar learns that the whole Summersea is in jeopardy as her illness becomes uncontrollable despite Rosethorn's intervention.
Sandry, Daja, and Tris team up with Briar and their professors to combat the unknown sickness as it spreads. But as things start looking up, the unimaginable occurs. Can Briar save the thing he values most?