I stumbled across this tale of the Society for Creative Anachronism in a convoluted way, and I'm glad I did. O'Donnell is a journalist in real life, and decided to tell the story of an SCAdian's journey up the ranks. He picked my cousin, Tom Noble/Valharic Caligula Aurelius. Bear in mind that it's harder to be objective when reading about someone you know. Overall, the book was interesting but uneven, poorly edited and distractingly full of typos. There was a lot of fascinating information, but I had to work too hard to get it out. The parts about my cousin were riveting- there's nothing cooler than reading about someone you know from the viewpoint of a total stranger. ( )

I added this book to the Atlantian Reference Library because the author mentioned a number of Atlantians in the book, including His Grace Duke Valharic. An excellent read. ( )

If you are in the SCA this is a must read. ( )

Wow! Very well written. Even as a long-time member of the SCA, I'm thoroughly enjoyed this "visitor becoming an insider's look" at what the Society is all about. By the end, I began thinking how much more do I want to do? ( )