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The Middle Ages: Everyday Life in Medieval Europe
We consider the Middle Ages barbaric, yet the period furnished some of our most enduring icons, including King Arthurs Round Table, knights in shining armor, and the idealized noblewoman. In this vivid history of the time, the medieval world comes to life in all its rich daily experience. Find out what peoples beds were like, how often they washed, what they wore, what they cooked, how they worked, how they entertained themselves, how they wed, and what life was like in a medieval village, castle, or monastery. Contemporary artworks and documents further illuminate this fascinating historical era.
328 pages, Hardcover
First published November 5, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
August 6, 2017
This is quite an interesting introduction to the minutiae of daily life in medieval North-Western Europe.
While providing some very interesting and somewhat surprising facts, and supplying a good overview of several aspects of medieval life (especially in its more mundane and material aspects), I must say that this book left me a bit dissatisfied in the end: it just doesn’t go deep enough into any specific subject to be really useful to a reader with a previous good knowledge of the period, and its focus is a bit too much on material aspects rather than on more interesting (to me) ideological aspects such as the inner world of thought of the medieval mind (only the last chapter addresses this fascinating element, and only to an unsatisfactorily limited extent).
The book is generally well-researched; however I found that the choice of samples, driven almost exclusively by the availability of extensive and reliable primary sources, might have been somewhat limiting, and not necessarily very representative of the multifarious environments and set of circumstances of the complex medieval world: for example, the choice of The Dover Castle and the Cluny Abbey as environments representative of aristocratic and monastic life left me a bit perplexed - they can hardly be seen as typical examples of such institutions. The same can be said about the choice of Paris as the representative of urban life.
The analysis is also limited to the High Middle Ages - there is some passing reference to the Early Middle Ages, but the focus is primarily on the period between the late 11th and the 14th century.
I must also say that I was hoping for a much more vivid compelling portrait of this fascinating period (after all, many of the cultural symbols and mental images representative of the Medieval World live on and are deeply embedded into the substrate of the modern European culture), but this book sometimes did feel a bit dry, more like a tourism guide rather than a close and heartfelt introspection into this beguiling world.
3 stars - not bad, but it could have been much better.
While providing some very interesting and somewhat surprising facts, and supplying a good overview of several aspects of medieval life (especially in its more mundane and material aspects), I must say that this book left me a bit dissatisfied in the end: it just doesn’t go deep enough into any specific subject to be really useful to a reader with a previous good knowledge of the period, and its focus is a bit too much on material aspects rather than on more interesting (to me) ideological aspects such as the inner world of thought of the medieval mind (only the last chapter addresses this fascinating element, and only to an unsatisfactorily limited extent).
The book is generally well-researched; however I found that the choice of samples, driven almost exclusively by the availability of extensive and reliable primary sources, might have been somewhat limiting, and not necessarily very representative of the multifarious environments and set of circumstances of the complex medieval world: for example, the choice of The Dover Castle and the Cluny Abbey as environments representative of aristocratic and monastic life left me a bit perplexed - they can hardly be seen as typical examples of such institutions. The same can be said about the choice of Paris as the representative of urban life.
The analysis is also limited to the High Middle Ages - there is some passing reference to the Early Middle Ages, but the focus is primarily on the period between the late 11th and the 14th century.
I must also say that I was hoping for a much more vivid compelling portrait of this fascinating period (after all, many of the cultural symbols and mental images representative of the Medieval World live on and are deeply embedded into the substrate of the modern European culture), but this book sometimes did feel a bit dry, more like a tourism guide rather than a close and heartfelt introspection into this beguiling world.
3 stars - not bad, but it could have been much better.
December 29, 2016
This book does exactly what it says on the cover. It’s divided into chapters (“Village Life,” “Castle Life,” “Monastic Life,” “Town Life”). Each chapter explains what daily life was like for people in these environments. The book includes photographs of artwork and architecture that was made during medieval times.
I took a European history class and a German history class in high school, but other than that, I don’t know much about the middle ages. This book provides a good introduction to the time period for people like me.
The Middle Ages: Everyday Life In Medieval Europe lives in that weird gray area of educational books. It doesn’t go deep enough into any subject to be useful for serious academic research, but it’s too textbookish for casual reading. There were a few times where I felt my eyes glazing over with boredom while reading. (Spoiler alert: medieval taxes were just as dull as modern taxes.) The book has a lot of pictures, but I actually think it could have used more. In history books, a picture is worth a thousand words. For me, drawings and diagrams would have been more useful than long descriptions of clothing and buildings.
I did learn a lot, though, so the book is worth reading.
**Some fun facts about everyday life in medieval Europe**
1. Apprentices often ran away. There were laws about how many days an apprentice’s boss and parents had to spend looking for him if he ran away from his job.
2. Manufacturing was hard and expensive. Medieval people didn’t own many clothes or household items. Rich people who owned multiple houses didn’t furnish every house. When they moved from one house to another, they dragged all their stuff with them. Old or broken items were recycled and made into something new.
3. Part of a doctor’s job was to taste the patients’ pee to see if it tasted healthy. The book neglects to explain what healthy pee tastes like.
4. The diet of medieval peasants was more nutritious than the diet of modern Americans. Medieval people also had more time off work than modern Americans. They did have to deal with famines and widespread disease, though.
5. Forks and plates didn’t really exist. People ate with knives, spoons, and fingers. They used slices of bread as plates. Rich people gave their bread-plates to the poor or to the servants after they ate all the good food off them. That’s kind of disgusting, but I guess it’s better than starving to death.
6. Tourism existed. Rich people made pilgrimages to holy sites and bought souvenirs.
7. College students have always been idiots. One university was shut down for two years after a series of violent clashes between angry townspeople and drunken students.
Despite being dull in places, I learned enough from The Middle Ages that I want to find the other books in the Everyday Life series. I think the others are about ancient Greeks, ancient Egyptians, and Vikings. I’m looking forward to them.
I took a European history class and a German history class in high school, but other than that, I don’t know much about the middle ages. This book provides a good introduction to the time period for people like me.
The Middle Ages: Everyday Life In Medieval Europe lives in that weird gray area of educational books. It doesn’t go deep enough into any subject to be useful for serious academic research, but it’s too textbookish for casual reading. There were a few times where I felt my eyes glazing over with boredom while reading. (Spoiler alert: medieval taxes were just as dull as modern taxes.) The book has a lot of pictures, but I actually think it could have used more. In history books, a picture is worth a thousand words. For me, drawings and diagrams would have been more useful than long descriptions of clothing and buildings.
I did learn a lot, though, so the book is worth reading.
**Some fun facts about everyday life in medieval Europe**
1. Apprentices often ran away. There were laws about how many days an apprentice’s boss and parents had to spend looking for him if he ran away from his job.
2. Manufacturing was hard and expensive. Medieval people didn’t own many clothes or household items. Rich people who owned multiple houses didn’t furnish every house. When they moved from one house to another, they dragged all their stuff with them. Old or broken items were recycled and made into something new.
3. Part of a doctor’s job was to taste the patients’ pee to see if it tasted healthy. The book neglects to explain what healthy pee tastes like.
4. The diet of medieval peasants was more nutritious than the diet of modern Americans. Medieval people also had more time off work than modern Americans. They did have to deal with famines and widespread disease, though.
5. Forks and plates didn’t really exist. People ate with knives, spoons, and fingers. They used slices of bread as plates. Rich people gave their bread-plates to the poor or to the servants after they ate all the good food off them. That’s kind of disgusting, but I guess it’s better than starving to death.
6. Tourism existed. Rich people made pilgrimages to holy sites and bought souvenirs.
7. College students have always been idiots. One university was shut down for two years after a series of violent clashes between angry townspeople and drunken students.
Despite being dull in places, I learned enough from The Middle Ages that I want to find the other books in the Everyday Life series. I think the others are about ancient Greeks, ancient Egyptians, and Vikings. I’m looking forward to them.
May 16, 2019
Terrific insights into medieval culture and society with emphasis on England and Paris. Proper review to follow.
July 6, 2022
I'm a sucker for books that go into what real life was like -- not just the epochal events, the history-making changes -- for people in various eras. This book takes on the Middle Ages, specifically the High Middle Ages, and covers a lot of the mechanics and routines of people's daily existences in different settings, from a castle to a village to a town or city, during that time. The implements, the rituals, the rising from bed and going back to it at night, the work day (and year), the celebrations and joys, they're all here. And as a bonus at the end of the book we get a glimpse of what a person in this era might have thought and how they might have made sense of the world they lived in.
Interestingly -- perhaps not that surprisingly -- humans seem to be humans, regardless of the time when they live. They all want the best for themselves and their families, they all want to be able to work as well as relax, they all want to understand their reason for being, they all want to be respected (or at least considered) by their leaders. We're not that different from our forebears in the Middle Ages; we're the same furless apes but with better tech.
Bonus: I looked at the author's bio and saw that he was affiliated with the Higgins Armory Collection in Worcester, MA; though that is closed down, items from it are displayed in the Worcester Art Museum, and my family made a stop there to see what's on view as we traveled homeward from our vacation this summer. I'm really glad I did a little research and we were able to make an enjoyable visit and support the museum.
Interestingly -- perhaps not that surprisingly -- humans seem to be humans, regardless of the time when they live. They all want the best for themselves and their families, they all want to be able to work as well as relax, they all want to understand their reason for being, they all want to be respected (or at least considered) by their leaders. We're not that different from our forebears in the Middle Ages; we're the same furless apes but with better tech.
Bonus: I looked at the author's bio and saw that he was affiliated with the Higgins Armory Collection in Worcester, MA; though that is closed down, items from it are displayed in the Worcester Art Museum, and my family made a stop there to see what's on view as we traveled homeward from our vacation this summer. I'm really glad I did a little research and we were able to make an enjoyable visit and support the museum.
December 29, 2025
Out of all of the medieval history books that I've read, this one has been one of my favorites. I really liked the clear, concise way that Singman writes. Even though they were lists of facts, it was written in such a way that was not boring, but informative. I've read a few books where they have good information, but the writing style is so dry and overwhelming that I hardly gleaned anything from them. This one took me half a year to read, but only because I wanted as much information as I could get. It was very easy to follow along and had so much information.
I recommend this book for homeschoolers, readers or medieval history enthusiasts alike because it had everything. Each chapter was dedicated to one area of medieval life, from the castle to the manor to the town. Sections were broken down in each chapter clearly labeled so they're easy to comprehend. in addition to daily life, the book also included a few chapters on miscellaneous things such as travel, maps, etc. It wasn't just hung up in 14th century, either. It covered a wide variety of mid-Early to Late Medieval period.
For each chapter, the author chose one place of known existence. Dover, for the castle chapter, Paris for the town chapter, etc to illustrate where the research came from. In addition to that, he also chose one prominent family or person per chapter to illustrate medieval life of individuals as examples. It was great to have a vantage point, and I found it to be more personal than just reading about life in general.
I also recommend this book for authors and writers who are writing medieval fiction. It's easy to write about castles and knights because there's a lot of information about them, (not to mention, you can make up an adventure to send them off into the wilderness and not have to worry about daily life,) but as an author, I'd found it difficult to craft a story centered around a peasant's everyday life. It's hard to come up with the nitty-gritty details; what did they talk about, what occupied their every waking hour? I like to immerse myself in a character's life, so when writing about peasants, I look for something other than hauling water or making bread. I have to say this book made it so, so easy to really immerse myself into a peasant's life. I found that my writing of their daily lives improved because the book had so much information about everything, down to the simplest detail.
My only two complaints are these: one chapter made a rather broad statement about the Jewish religion for the time, saying it had become/been at this time "a religion concerned primarily with the present life and with governing conduct in the material world." I feel like the statement was very generalized and skimmed the surface of a much deeper topic; though I didn't find it to be hateful, just a statement of traditional fact. I also wish that the author had chosen a different town other than Paris to illustrate how town life worked back then. Paris is a very unique town and while it shares many attributes with other towns back in the day, there were some things that were different because, well, it's Paris. They had the best sewer systems. (Yes, I know, I picked that topic.) They had a larger population. I felt as I read the chapter on the town life that I wasn't getting the full idea of how an average town operated. Best way I can explain it is like reading a book that used New York City as an example of how our town systems work rather than choosing Denver or Anchorage. Some things are the exact same, yes, but it's hard to separate New York's unique features from the other towns in our country.
This book will be a re-read for me next year with pen and paper. Thank you, Jeffery Singman, for crafting something so easy to read, and enjoyable as well.
I recommend this book for homeschoolers, readers or medieval history enthusiasts alike because it had everything. Each chapter was dedicated to one area of medieval life, from the castle to the manor to the town. Sections were broken down in each chapter clearly labeled so they're easy to comprehend. in addition to daily life, the book also included a few chapters on miscellaneous things such as travel, maps, etc. It wasn't just hung up in 14th century, either. It covered a wide variety of mid-Early to Late Medieval period.
For each chapter, the author chose one place of known existence. Dover, for the castle chapter, Paris for the town chapter, etc to illustrate where the research came from. In addition to that, he also chose one prominent family or person per chapter to illustrate medieval life of individuals as examples. It was great to have a vantage point, and I found it to be more personal than just reading about life in general.
I also recommend this book for authors and writers who are writing medieval fiction. It's easy to write about castles and knights because there's a lot of information about them, (not to mention, you can make up an adventure to send them off into the wilderness and not have to worry about daily life,) but as an author, I'd found it difficult to craft a story centered around a peasant's everyday life. It's hard to come up with the nitty-gritty details; what did they talk about, what occupied their every waking hour? I like to immerse myself in a character's life, so when writing about peasants, I look for something other than hauling water or making bread. I have to say this book made it so, so easy to really immerse myself into a peasant's life. I found that my writing of their daily lives improved because the book had so much information about everything, down to the simplest detail.
My only two complaints are these: one chapter made a rather broad statement about the Jewish religion for the time, saying it had become/been at this time "a religion concerned primarily with the present life and with governing conduct in the material world." I feel like the statement was very generalized and skimmed the surface of a much deeper topic; though I didn't find it to be hateful, just a statement of traditional fact. I also wish that the author had chosen a different town other than Paris to illustrate how town life worked back then. Paris is a very unique town and while it shares many attributes with other towns back in the day, there were some things that were different because, well, it's Paris. They had the best sewer systems. (Yes, I know, I picked that topic.) They had a larger population. I felt as I read the chapter on the town life that I wasn't getting the full idea of how an average town operated. Best way I can explain it is like reading a book that used New York City as an example of how our town systems work rather than choosing Denver or Anchorage. Some things are the exact same, yes, but it's hard to separate New York's unique features from the other towns in our country.
This book will be a re-read for me next year with pen and paper. Thank you, Jeffery Singman, for crafting something so easy to read, and enjoyable as well.
September 28, 2020
Fascinating!
July 3, 2015
Not scholarly enough for an academic audience but not lively enough in its detail to fully satisfy the layman, this is still a good overview of the framework of medieval life. The text of Joseph and Frances Gies’s Life in a Medieval Village brings you more vividly into the present tense of the times, but Singman’s book has better pictures (and “better pictures” is no frivolous compliment, as good illustrations can really bring home the unique sense of beauty with which that period represented itself) and transmits a larger body of information. Indeed, perhaps too much information, as some passages go on and on. I’d prefer that the whole were tightened into something shorter, but definitely lots of good material for those seeking information on life in the Middle Ages.
July 11, 2016
This book was very informative and at times very interesting, but it's major flaw lies somewhat in the concept; the daily minutiae of people's lives gets tedious to the point of boredom at times. This book is worth taking a look at, although most of the insights are common sense. I did appreciate the way it ended, which felt satisfying. I could tell the author was trying to show that our idea of womens' roles at this time we're not as constricted as a popular narrative sells it, but he seemed very half-hearted about it. This shows especially when he mentions nuns, who get one page in a thirty page chapter about monks. It felt half-assed.
Also, major editing error- modern was consistently and almost always misspelled as modem! Who missed that mistake, and why did they miss it 25 times?
Also, major editing error- modern was consistently and almost always misspelled as modem! Who missed that mistake, and why did they miss it 25 times?
May 5, 2014
Another example of how history can...and should...go hand-in-hand with concise, crisp writing. An absolutely superb, condensed primer on everything you need to know about the Middle Ages in the Western European world. Only two issues keep this from complete greatness: (1) the lack of illustrations and photos (compounded by the beautiful few that DO exist between the covers of this book); (2) the lack of a proper conclusion -- this book simply comes to a sudden, screeching HALT. It was disconcerting, to say the least.
September 1, 2016
Written too dull for me, even though I have an interest in learning about history and this time of history.....One thing that stood out was that the author states that the aristocracy held 1% of the population but all the power (and wealth) in this society......How little has changed in that the 1% in our society hold all wealth and power and pay very little in taxes, and this book was written in 1999 before we were speaking of the 1%.......
December 23, 2013
Really great introduction to medieval material culture and daily life. Use with the Gies' books on the same topics, and you'll be pretty well set.
October 22, 2019
3.5 stars and pretty darn good for what’s essentially an entry-level survey in life in the European High Middle Ages. Singman's goal as stated in the introduction was to provide an intro to the period "from the ground up" and he succeeds at that - providing some nicely specific details of day-to-day life, admittedly for a very specific part of the time period and with specific, well-studied examples.
The book is divided into chapters which each take a look at different aspects of medieval life: Medieval Society (overview of social structure), The Life Cycle (childhood into old age), Material Culture (clothes, household items, food money; sidenote: might have been my favorite chapter, lots of great tidbits!), Village Life (rural landholdings; example: Cuxham), Castle Life (architecture & function; example: Dover), Monastic Life (how monasteries arose & maintained knowledge; example: Cluny; sidenote: made me want to re-read this fantastic historical fantasy book, The Deepest Sea), Town Life (the rise of guilds & urban life; example: Paris), and The Medieval World (travel and maps). There are a good amount of pictures, lists and tables throughout the book.
The strengths of this book are the accessible writing and the emphasis on concrete details. Yes, you will learn how often different groups of people bathed. Yes, you will learn their toilet and traveling habits. You will learn about systems of money. You will even be able to follow a couple of specific individuals: Eleanor de Montfort, countess of Leister in the chapter on castle life, and Pierre le Normant, a Parisian baker, in the chapter on town life.
What kept this from getting fully up to 4 stars was stuff that I suppose you can't blame a book originally published in 1999 for: this is the most mainstream of all the mainstream info there is on the medieval era. Singman chose to focus on the most "middle ages" section of the Middle Ages: the period from 1000-1300. He also chose to focus on northern Europe and England. He also took examples that are not at all "typical" - for example, the castle chapter is about Dover, a HUGE castle of strategic importance. The town chapter is about Paris, and nothing's ever been "typical" about that place, lol. Essentially, he chose to focus on places where there's a deep written record - which is understandable, but still seems to showcase the exceptional rather than the day-to-day. Maybe it's because I'm a bit of a history nerd, and/or a child of current trends, but I really craved something a bit more marginal, specific and off the beaten path.
This isn't a book for people who don't like history; it's a still a little too "textbook" for that. But it would be a good one to give to folks with an interest in the area who've never read or studied the period before. Those little nuggets of the concrete details of life during these times can be found throughout. My main takeaway is that more than we realize actually has roots back in this period.
The book is divided into chapters which each take a look at different aspects of medieval life: Medieval Society (overview of social structure), The Life Cycle (childhood into old age), Material Culture (clothes, household items, food money; sidenote: might have been my favorite chapter, lots of great tidbits!), Village Life (rural landholdings; example: Cuxham), Castle Life (architecture & function; example: Dover), Monastic Life (how monasteries arose & maintained knowledge; example: Cluny; sidenote: made me want to re-read this fantastic historical fantasy book, The Deepest Sea), Town Life (the rise of guilds & urban life; example: Paris), and The Medieval World (travel and maps). There are a good amount of pictures, lists and tables throughout the book.
The strengths of this book are the accessible writing and the emphasis on concrete details. Yes, you will learn how often different groups of people bathed. Yes, you will learn their toilet and traveling habits. You will learn about systems of money. You will even be able to follow a couple of specific individuals: Eleanor de Montfort, countess of Leister in the chapter on castle life, and Pierre le Normant, a Parisian baker, in the chapter on town life.
What kept this from getting fully up to 4 stars was stuff that I suppose you can't blame a book originally published in 1999 for: this is the most mainstream of all the mainstream info there is on the medieval era. Singman chose to focus on the most "middle ages" section of the Middle Ages: the period from 1000-1300. He also chose to focus on northern Europe and England. He also took examples that are not at all "typical" - for example, the castle chapter is about Dover, a HUGE castle of strategic importance. The town chapter is about Paris, and nothing's ever been "typical" about that place, lol. Essentially, he chose to focus on places where there's a deep written record - which is understandable, but still seems to showcase the exceptional rather than the day-to-day. Maybe it's because I'm a bit of a history nerd, and/or a child of current trends, but I really craved something a bit more marginal, specific and off the beaten path.
This isn't a book for people who don't like history; it's a still a little too "textbook" for that. But it would be a good one to give to folks with an interest in the area who've never read or studied the period before. Those little nuggets of the concrete details of life during these times can be found throughout. My main takeaway is that more than we realize actually has roots back in this period.
July 25, 2018
Excellent overview of Medieval-era Europe. Areas highlighted are primarily in France, Italy, and England. Large sections about the feudal system, taxes, buildings, formations of cities, and the monastic life. Particularly enjoyed the details about the everyday life of people, including peasants and the aristocracy. Very insightful. Appreciated the authors ending chapter about the outer and inner world of Medieval times. Easy to read, not too academic, but lots of new insight and information. Highly recommend this book to those who want to visualize what it was like to live during the Middle Ages.
February 2, 2021
Interesting but inconsistent, in that some topics are discussed at length and with abundant details while others are merely mentioned and glossed over. I especially enjoyed the section on life in the monastery, as I knew very little of that setting.
Also, the printing of the book was strange. In some words (like "modern") the 'r' and the 'n' were joined so closely they resembled an 'm,' as in " modem." At first I assumed this was a quirk of the font, at least until I saw words like "posterns," in which the two letters are separated. After that, "modem" was pretty irritating.
Also, the printing of the book was strange. In some words (like "modern") the 'r' and the 'n' were joined so closely they resembled an 'm,' as in " modem." At first I assumed this was a quirk of the font, at least until I saw words like "posterns," in which the two letters are separated. After that, "modem" was pretty irritating.
August 7, 2017
Really enjoyed this as a refresher. There wasn't anything in this book I didn't already know - but that doesn't mean the book wasn't wonderful, it really was. A great and accurate introduction into the middle ages. I really enjoyed how he took each section and used particular details of people's actual lives for examples, it grounded all the facts into reality and settled the information much better into memory than just boring "lecture" type texts.
November 11, 2018
This book does a great job of bringing to life the circumstances and details of living in medieval times, without the technological conveniences and resulting trash and pollution that we deal with today. The Abbey of Cluny is described also, which is a fascinating place to visit if you have a guide/historical interpreter who has studied it.
January 27, 2020
Fascinating description of lives of peasants, clerics, nobility, and students. Lots of detail and specifics from a village, a monastery, and a neighborhood in Paris. Not for everyone, but an excellent read for me. This is a more or less introductory level book for those of us without detailed knowledge of the middle ages.
March 4, 2023
Compelling book on an often dry topic. Singman breaks down everyday life in the Middle Ages into an engaging structure across monastic, village and castle life. Throughout the book, Singman illustrates similarities and differences between how people lived in England and Northwestern Europe in the 12-14th century and today. Solid read for history lovers.
October 30, 2018
Admirably clear and informative. Broad scope but systematic and detailed enough to be useful. Moreover, unlike most books claiming to represent 'the Middle Ages', Singman's work focuses on the high Middle Ages, not the late period, which increases its utility.
December 2, 2017
More of a history book than a look at everyday life. However, well written and illustrated.
February 17, 2021
A fascinating and detailed insight into Middle Ages life centered on British and French experiences, it is (at times) a difficult but always engaging read. Well worth the time and effort.
April 17, 2021
This book is incredibly enjoyable start to finish, doubly so for its many charts and comparisons of currencies, lifestyles, etc.
July 20, 2021
An easily accessible overview of the hidden aspects of existence in medieval Europe. Focuses primarily on central and western Europe.
February 18, 2024
This was an insightful book and I learned some new things I had not known about the medieval time period. The illustrations were a nice guide.
November 15, 2024
Some minor spelling issues (“modern” as “modem” and “corner” as “comer”), but still a decent read.
April 15, 2025
Quite detailed for a book that tries to summarize medieval life and culture. Superb read
September 20, 2025
If someone had no clue where to start on medieval life, this wouldn't be a bad start. The focus it has on material matters would also likely be a boon to many who might only have some sketch of the history of ideas or just some romantic illusion of knights and kings. While i didn't learn nothing from this, i can say that i'm a bit underwhelmed by it for sure. It suffers from the typical English/French bias of survey that is typical in anglophone sources, so if you were looking for any departure from that (as i am) you will be even more disappointed. This does well as an introduction, no doubt, and has very well thought out charts and illustrations of its subject matter, but is perhaps below the level i personally am at and am looking for, so partially my own fault.
August 6, 2015
This book had some really good information in it. Seriously. If you want to learn about the middle ages then this is your book! It discusses everyday life for all classes of people, including the monks in the monasteries. There is a lot about castles and lords too. I did find it a little dry and slow in many parts. It is packed with information, and it reads like it does. It reads like a text book, which is good, but not always that engaging or captivating. I learned a lot, and I'm glad I read it. You may read my full review on my book blog: www.the-readathon.blogspot.com.
December 1, 2015
The author states in his introduction that he wants to set out a midlevel introduction for the unfamiliar, but adult, reader, and more or less he accomplishes that goal. This is a focus on the daily life of that time period (focusing mostly on 1100s and 1200s), so there's little here about the larger world events at play. Still, it's fairly comprehensive for a non-academic text, and it's gorgeously illustrated.
November 15, 2015
If you want to understand how everyday life was like in the Western Europe (more specifically England and France) during the High Middle Ages, this is the book you want.
The writing is good, not being dry or monotone. The author analyzes the everyday by presenting concrete examples, which is the best way of presenting the material.
The writing is good, not being dry or monotone. The author analyzes the everyday by presenting concrete examples, which is the best way of presenting the material.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews