I agree with the.ken.petersen - this book was SERIOUSLY dry. The information contained within it is useful, but for anyone interested in learning about the Middle Ages - unless you've no other option I think you'd be better off looking for a different book. ( )

The editor of this book states in the forward, that he was concerned that this should not be seen as a populist book. In this, he succeeds admirably. This book is so dry that the reader is in danger of crumbling to dust in the act. Simple statements are backed up with documentation of niggardly nerdism.
It is a pity that this could not inject some excitement into a story seldom told and worthy of greater attention. The middle ages were a crucial time in the passage to the present day when many of the concepts that we now take for granted were born. It is one that was glossed over in my school days and, from what I can learn from my teenage son, is not given much prominence now. Anybody coming across the history of this period for the first time in this tome will take some persuading to persevere. ( )