1066, The Year of the Conquest  •  David Howarth HISTORY •  1981 •  PAPER  • 207 PAGES A concise, lucid history of the Battle of Hastings, rich in anecdotal detail. Howarth relies on the few medieval sources available to reconstruct the events leading up to and the consequences of the famous battle. As much a master storyteller as an adept historian, he provides insight into the court intrigue, personalities and daily life in the Norman period. (GBR115, $14.00)
The Age of the Cathedrals, Art and Society 980-1420  •  Georges Duby HISTORY •  1983 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES The definitive historical study of the building of the great cathedrals. French scholar Duby, writing very accessibly, describes the cathedrals themselves, and the philosophical, religious, and political climate that enabled them to be built. (EUR01, $28.00)
The Autumn of the Middle Ages  •  Johan Huizinga HISTORY •  1997 •  PAPER  • 467 PAGES A pioneering work of social and cultural history, this classic volume is a richly detailed portrait of life, thought and art in 14th- and 15th-century France and the Netherlands. You may have read this book in your college history class, but this graceful new translation is well worth a re-visit before journeying to these regions. With 45 illustrations complementing Huizinga's focus on the art and architecture. (EUR17, $25.00)
The Bayeux Tapestry  •  David Wilson ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 234 PAGES The extraordinary Bayeux Tapestry is on display in the town of Bayeux in Normandy. Its colorful embroidery and Latin text tell the story of the Norman victory over England, led by William the Conqueror, at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. This full-color reproduction of the Tapestry highlights its lively illustrations, and Wilson gives an outline of this exciting point in Medieval history. (FRN445, $50.00)
Cathedrals and Castles, Building in the Middle Ages  •  Alain Erlande-Brandenburg ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1995 •  PAPER  • 175 PAGES • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE A slim encyclopedia of the art, architecture and culture of the Middle Ages. This volume in the acclaimed "Discoveries" series features hundreds of drawings and color illustrations, a brief chronology and more information than you would imagine between its slim covers. Take it along to gain a better appreciation of the Middle Ages and its legacy in Europe. (MED07, $12.95)
The Confession of Saint Patrick, And Letter to Coroticus  •  Saint Patrick  •  John Skinner  •  John O'Donohue BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1998 •  PAPER The autobiography of the patron saint of Ireland, a short collection of his memories and ideas on the Christian faith written in the fifth century. This new translation also includes his "Letter to Coroticus," thus combining in one volume the two known works written by Patrick. (IRE102, $6.95)
A Day in a Medieval City  •  Chiara Frugoni CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2006 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES Frugoni's sketch of a single day in the homes, markets, fields and shops of 13th-century village is enhanced by well-chosen illustrations. (EUR251, $20.00)
Early Christian and Byzantine Art  •  John Lowden ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 448 PAGES An illustrated guide to the architectural heritage of the early Christian period (860-1453), including a survey of the philosophy, ideas and intellectual climate of the time. With hundreds of photographs of Byzantine art, decorated churches and illuminated manuscripts. (EUR23, $24.95)
Economic and Social History of Medieval Europe  •  Henri Pirenne HISTORY •  1936 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES Pirenne, an important economic historian, traces the economic and social development of Western Europe from the end of the Roman Empire to the middle of the 15th century in this classic book, first published in 1936. It gives a concise picture of medieval Western Europe, including social disturbances, economic and social catastrophes, famine and the Black Death. A separate section on the North Sea and the Baltic contains specific references to the Hanseatic League. (EUR18, $15.00)
The Fighting Kings of Wessex  •  G.P. Baker HISTORY •  1996 •  PAPER  • 299 PAGES This is the story of the attempt of the Saxon kings emerging from the mists of legend at the time of the fall of Rome to build a new nation around their own province of Wessex in southwest England. By the time they succeeded, the Normans had landed. Placing events in Scandinavia and England in the context of the fall of Rome and the emergence of Byzantium and the Holy Roman Empire, the author analyzes the role of prominent women, geography, economics and strategic thinking behind the military campaigns and sheds light on this dark age. (GBR77, $14.95)
Germany in the High Middle Ages, 1050-1200  •  Horst Fuhrmann HISTORY •  1992 •  PAPER  • 209 PAGES A masterly survey of 150 stormy years tracing German development through the first three crusades and the rise of the kingdom of Germany. Tightly written with useful chronologies of the various reigns from Heinrich IV to Lothar III, this volume connects events throughout Europe to developments in medieval Germany. It is an excellent introduction to a fascinating period in European history. (GER31, $39.99)
The Gothic Enterprise, A Guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral  •  Robert A. Scott ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2005 •  PAPER  • 307 PAGES Scott, whose interest in the history of cathedrals began when he first saw the magnificent Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Salisbury, England, takes his reader on a historical, architectural and sociological tour of the magnificent spires and stained-glass windows that dot the landscape of Europe. It's an accessible, personable overview. (EUR190, $17.95)
The Greenlanders  •  Jane Smiley LITERATURE •  2005 •  PAPER  • 608 PAGES • FAVORITE This marvelously researched novel recreates life in the Viking settlements in Greenland, which disappeared 500 years ago. Smiley delves in the medieval colonies, their struggles to survive in the harsh environment, contacts with indigenous people and causes of their disappearance. It includes the tale of the Norse discovery of North America. (ARC08, $15.95)
A History of Medieval Spain  •  Joseph F. O'Callaghan HISTORY •  1995 •  PAPER  • 728 PAGES This massive, wide-ranging book spans the Visiogothic era, the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the discovery of America, and the ascendancy of Islam. (SPN10, $29.95)
How the Irish Saved Civilization  •  Thomas Cahill CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1995 •  PAPER  • 236 PAGES Subtitled "The untold story of Ireland's heroic role from the fall of Rome to the rise of medieval Europe," this national bestseller tells the generally unknown story of Ireland's preservation of classical learning in the Dark Ages. This island of saints and scholars, monks and scribes labored to reproduce important texts and spread the learning as they evangelized Europe. This book is a very interesting look at this forgotten chapter in history. (IRE07, $14.95)
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame  •  Victor Hugo LITERATURE •  1976 •  PAPER  • 511 PAGES Evocative of medieval France, this is the compelling story of the deformed bell-ringer Quasimodo, the gypsy Esmeralda and their struggles with Dom Frollo, the cruel, lusty archdeacon. (FRN124, $5.95)
In a Dark Wood Wandering, A Novel of the Middle Ages  •  Hella Haasse LITERATURE •  1991 •  PAPER  • 594 PAGES With a cast of thousands including Joan of Arc and the Dukes of Burgundy, this 1949 historical novel renders the political intrigue, people and texture of 15th-century Europe. Haasse captures medieval court life during the Hundred Years War. (FRN86, $21.95)
The Letters of Abelard and Heloise  •  Peter Abelard  •  Betty Radice HISTORY •  2004 •  PAPER  • 309 PAGES The correspondence of the famous 12th-century lovers, translated from the medieval French. This Penguin Classic edition translated by Betty Radice. Peter Abelard's "Historia Calamitatum" is a classic. (FRN75, $15.00)
Life of St. Columba  •  Adomnan of Iona  •  Richard Sharpe BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1995 •  PAPER  • 395 PAGES An early account of the life of St. Columba (521-97), the 6th-century abbot who established the monastery on Iona. Written by Adomnan of Iona at the turn of the 8th century, it introduces the profoundly spiritual man as well as his famous abbey. A Penguin Classic. (IRE103, $17.00)
The Mongols (Peoples of Europe)  •  David Morgan HISTORY •  1990 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES A short, readable treatment of the medieval Mongols, their administration, military, religion and economy. Before the Mongols withdrew from central Europe in 1242, they had reached the Adriatic and become Europe's most formidable -- and dangerous -- neighbor. They once controlled the largest continuous land empire in history. Includes chapters on the predecessors of the Mongols in Central Asia, Chinghiz Khan's rise to power, and the Mongols in China, Russia and Persia. (MGL15, $34.95)
Mont Saint Michel and Chartres  •  Henry Brooks Adams HISTORY •  1986 •  PAPER  • 398 PAGES First published at the turn of the century, this classic work is a meditation on the Medieval world as reflected through its most famous religious structures. (FRN44, $16.00)
Mysteries of the Middle Ages, The Rise of Feminism, Science And Art from the Cults of Catholic Europe  •  Thomas Cahill HISTORY •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 343 PAGES • NEW Forgive the unfortunate title of this marvelous book. Cahill deftly evokes the historic glories of the major medieval (and the places they frequented) in this illuminating overview of philosophy, art and literature, the fifth volume in his series "Hinges of History" on the making of the modern world. Taking as its cue illuminated medieval manuscripts, the book is wonderfully decorated, including color reproductions of medieval masterpieces. Opening with the glories of cosmopolitan Alexandria and Rome, he quickly moves to Hildgard's Rhineland, the France and England of Queen Eleanor, Paris as filtered through the lovers Heloise and Abelard, medieval Oxford, the glories of Giotto's Padua, the Florence of Dante and Ravenna. It's an bold examination of the roots of modernity in medieval Roman Catholic thought. (EUR239, $32.50)
The New Penguin Atlas of Medieval History  •  Colin McEvedy HISTORY •  1992 •  PAPER  • 112 PAGES McEvedy deftly sketches the culture, history and society of Medieval Europe in this slim historical atlas. (EUR240, $15.00)
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight  •  Brian Stone LITERATURE •  1959 •  PAPER  • 185 PAGES Probably the most famous of the romantic tales of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, this is the 14th-century poem of chivalry and heroism that inspired many others in its wake. Composed by an unknown contemporary of Chaucer. (GBR247, $10.00)
The Story of the Moors in Spain  •  Stanley Lane-Poole HISTORY •  1990 •  PAPER  • 285 PAGES First published in 1886, this book has held its place as the classic work on the Moors in Spain: a scholarly, wonderfully readable and sweeping tale of splendor and tragedy. (SPN12, $18.95)
Sun Dancing, A Vision of Medieval Ireland  •  Geoffrey Moorhouse LITERATURE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 280 PAGES This wonderfully inspired book carries the reader back 1000 years to Ireland's early monastic tradition. Combing scholarship and historical fiction, Moorehouse traces the influence of Vikings, Romans and Anglo-Normans on Irish culture through an imagined story of life at the monastery on Skellig Michael. The second half of the book is a more traditional history of monastic traditions in Ireland, organized thematically. (IRE13, $14.00)
Templars: The Dramatic History of the Knights Templar, The Most Powerful Military Order of the Crusades  •  Piers Paul Read HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 384 PAGES A history of the Knights Templar from their formation immediately following the First Crusade to their forced disbandment under the jealouss auspices of Pope Clement V and King Philip IV of France. Read describes their political and economic significance, their daily lives, and their demise and current dismal reputation. (EUR192, $18.00)
Two Lives of Charlemagne  •  Nofker the Stammerer Einhard  •  Lewis G.M. Thorpe HISTORY •  1969 •  PAPER  • 227 PAGES Two 8th-century histories of Charlemagne and his military conquests. Both present a vivid account of his life and times, already establishing him as a legendary character. Thorpe's translation preserves the clarity and vividness of the Latin original. (FRN77, $15.00)
A World Lit Only By Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance, Portrait of an Age  •  William Manchester HISTORY •  1993 •  PAPER  • 322 PAGES In this wide-ranging study, Manchester evokes in vivid detail the great figures and daily life of the 16th century, with information on Henry VIII, Magellan, Borgia, da Vinci and Martin Luther. This is his 18th book and Manchester knows how to tell a great story. It's divided into three sections: Renaissance, Reformation and Discovery. (EUR06, $15.99)
The Wreath  •  Sigrid Undset  •  Tina Nunnally LITERATURE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 305 PAGES This masterpiece by the Nobel Prize-winning Norwegian author, first published in 1927, has never gone out of print. "The Wreath" is the first volume in Undset's trilogy of historical novels recreating a woman's life during the Middle Ages in devoutly Catholic Norway. The books combine scholarly knowledge of the era with keen psychological analysis to produce a vividly realistic picture of the past. In this installment, young Kristin Lavransdatter -- beautiful, wild, and passionate --engages in a romance with a man whom her father strongly dislikes. The other two parts of the trilogy are also available, "The Mistress of Husaby" (NOR16) and "The Cross" (NOR17). (NOR10, $15.00)