Our goal is the offer our readers an opportunity to evaluate new books about the middle ages, whether they novels or history books. Medieval studies books every student should read in 2017. Sep 07, 2017 the book of the maidservant by rebecca barnhouse johanna is a serving girl to dame margery kempe, a renowned medieval holy woman. What is also great about it is that, while it is definitely eurocentric like the other books on this list, it zooms out at certain points to illustrate what was going on across the world at the same time. I get asked a lot about the best audiobooks, so i made a list of historical fiction audiobooks for you today. Any non fiction books that read like a fiction or similar. From mary beard to ken follett, heres our list of the best historical fiction and non fiction to listen to on the go, spanning everything from the romans to the russian revolution, and from tudor to american history. Online shopping for medieval historical from a great selection at books store. The magic treehouse books are great for introducing your younger child to historical events. Historical fiction that is somehow also star trek would be the best, but that would involve time travel and might fuck with the spacetime continuum and then youd get the department of temporal investigation involved, and those guys are cranky. A handbook for visitors to the fourteenth century by ian mortimer. Wikipedia and if you dont like that you can suck it. Cambridge medieval history volume iv, the byzantine empire, part 1. The blurbs for the books about the middle ages have been taken, whole or in part.
What are the best nonfiction books written during the middle ages. In all of the following examples, the setting is as much a part of the book as the characters and plot. But id like to shine the spotlight on some nonmedieval settings or in the last case, a nontraditional medieval setting. In doing this, they create specific images of the middle ages. A captivating guide to the history of the great charter and its influence on medieval england and the rest of the world captivating history 4. Instead of putting together a list of the 223,546 best historical fiction books, i opted instead for adult historical fiction showstoppers that present a wide array of time periods, places, characters, and more.
Childrens nonfiction history medieval books alibris. Top 10 books of the year, graphic novels and audio books view photos book world critics pick the best reads of 2014 in fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels and audio books. Unfortunately, many dwell on the myths that have sprung up around the story of the warrior monks, and some are downright shoddy with respect to accuracy. Christopher givenwilson editor shelved 1 time as medievaltimesnonfiction avg rating 4. General histories, social histories, politicalmilitary histories, and biographies are included. The story of egypt, by joann fletcher, which like wilkinsons trafoae is a straightforward historical account and very readable. The 100 greatest nonfiction books best books the guardian. Inspired by all of the endoftheyear lists for this and that, particularly one in the independent entitled professors at americas elite colleges pick one book every student should read in 2017, i decided to ask medievalists from around the world and not only at elite colleges, whatever that means to compile our own list of mustread medieval studies. Baileys writing is smooth and easy to read, and her detective story makes the book feel like it could be fiction. Books not specifically about homosexuality, with no isbn or no citations will be removed. Free historical fiction books online for 2020 download. The notion of what is medieval and how the middle ages can be used as a site for crime fiction is the subject of the first part of this investigation.
Log in or sign up to leave a comment log in sign up. Medieval european history is a vast and evergrowing field, so coming up with a top ten booklist is no small task. I started it as a nanowrimo national novel writing month project, though its been years of on and off noveling. The noble mercenary is the second book in the fellowship of the ancient covenant series. Are there any interesting and lively books about the. A numbner of great authors have been writing mysteries, fantasies, romances and adventures set in a medieval backdrop. A century after the bolsheviks captured the winter palace, we round up the most illuminating new releases tackling the. General histories, social histories, politicalmilitary histories, and. Heres our selection of great nonfiction books and topic books for children about castles. What non fiction books about medieval times would you recommend for me to read. Culture books features the 10 best nonfiction audio books. Mar 11, 2015 thomas asbridges top 10 knights in literature. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. Children can lift the flaps to reveal a wealth of details and extra information about different types of castles.
Life in a medieval city by joseph gies, cathedral, forge, and waterwheel. In recent years, we have seen a dramatic growth in historical fiction set in the middle ages. To make the job manageable, what follows is a top ten of quite a particular kind of book. Booktopia buy medieval history books online from australias leading online bookstore. An illustrated history of late medieval england by christopher givenwilson, chronicles of the revolution, 1. Its also worth mentioning that this is a really quick and easy read for nonfiction. This list contains nonfiction books covering the middle ages also known as the medieval period which lasted from the 5th to 15th century. There are of course shelfloads of these, and many are.
Best nonfiction reference for writing medieval fantasy. The arab worlds greatest medieval traveller sets down his memories of journeys throughout the known world and beyond. Dame margery feels the suffering the virgin mary felt for her son, but cares little for the misery she sees every day. A subgenre of historical fiction is the family saga, which examines the exploits of a family or several allied families over a period of time. Tom hollands core bibliography comes to mind the historian, not spiderman. Michael jecks banded some of the writers of the crime writers association, namely, bernard knight, ian morson, susanna gregory, phillip gooden and cj sansom together to form the medieval murderers.
Set in the 5th century ad, in a preislamic egypt and syria, azazeel is a tale of extraordinary magical realism, depicting the tensions between the new christian religion and the timehonoured pagan beliefs. With these, you can learn about ancient rome, victorian murders or modern sexism all without turning a page. An accessible non fiction text to introduce young readers to the world of castles. Also, in general, if you want to write good fantasy, at the same time as reading fiction, read around the subject continuously non fiction history, whether academic texts or pop non fic. The 10 best nonfiction audio books the independent. Shop more collections related to medieval art history. For nonfiction i warmly recommend medieval lives by terry jones. I would really like to get a solid idea of how people lived in those days. See more ideas about nonfiction, medieval and reading. Search the worlds most comprehensive index of fulltext books. The pictures encompass medieval paintings, sculptures, books, and archaeological finds, and are accompanied by handy maps and timelines. Whittling all historical fiction books into one manageable list is impossible, truly. Persian fire, about the grecopersian conflict thermopylae but also all the rest of it rubicon, about the fall of the roman republic dynasty, about the ju.
Macdonalds writing is similarly gilded and faintly antiquarian as she pursues the medieval task of training the hawk, named mabel, to fly. This list is for nonfiction books covering the middle ages, c. There are a ton of books out there for any of these topics, and im hoping askme has some suggestions. Geoffrey of monmouth, the history of the kings of britain. These books may also explore chronicled events, social changes, and the ebb and flow of family fortunes from multiple perspectives. Nonfiction article on the german witch trials in the 16th and 18th centuries 1500s1700s source. Muslim treatment of nonmuslims in the 7th century and in the middle ages. After the fall of rome and the dark ages came an extraordinary period of invention and conflict that would change europe forever the medieval era and the renaissance. The 100 greatest nonfiction books books the guardian. There are a couple of people on the forum paging uazincourt. The arab worlds greatest medieval traveller sets down his memories of journeys throughout the known. A great deal has been written about the knights of the temple, and thanks to popular fiction like the davinci code a fresh wave of history books on the topic have been published. Plague black deathhistoryteen nonfiction, medieval.
To start off with, im not including textbooks or popular syntheses. Inspired by all of the endoftheyear lists for this and that, particularly one in the independent entitled professors at americas elite colleges pick one book every student should read in 2017, i decided to ask medievalists from around the world and not only at elite colleges, whatever that means to compile our own list of mustread medieval studies books for students. Shop medieval history books and collectibles abebooks. Popular medieval times non fiction books goodreads. The managing editor is frances andrews of st andrews university. Froissarts chronicles about the hundred years war are vivid, enjoyable and highly illuminating about the 14th and 15th century. Thomas asbridges top 10 knights in literature books the.
What are some good nonfiction historical books on medieval. How much of the content of asoiaf is unique and how much of it overlaps with fantasy series in general. Top 10 books on the history of medieval europe history matters. Id definitely recommend the secret rooms and now im eager to read baileys first book, black diamonds, too. The best audiobooks for history buffs pan macmillan. These tensions are encapsulated in the character of hypa, a monk who struggles internally between his faith and his pagan inclinations towards the magical, the erotic and the poetic.
The 10 must read books in the historical fiction genre i am frequently asked by people new to the world of the historical fiction genre the non romancenon fantasy world that is, or by people who are beginning to dabble their toes in its waters, what books should i read to get a feel for the genre. It is divided into chapters about different kinds of medieval people, peasants, knights, ladies, minstrels, monks etc, and tells you all about what kind of people they were and what kind of lives they led etc. Extras indybest books nonfiction books 6 best russian history books. For the wars of the roses, conn igguldens trilogy seems to be recommended, but its fiction and im looking for something a bit different.
Like polos travels it was a bestseller and is one of most exciting medieval books in existence. The series published approximately three books each year and had published 107 volumes as of november 2016. Clifton paul kip fadiman may 15, 1904 june 20, 1999 was an american intellectual, author, editor, radio and television personality. Shop childrens nonfiction history medieval books at alibris. These reading suggestions contain a range of books suitable for primary aged children aged 5. Using a wide variety of literary, historical and archaeological. Historical viking fiction novels that feature vikings whether as the main character or as the enemy in some cases, they are set historically in the dark or early medieval ages. The typical saga may record generations of family history in a series. Ive listened to a ton of audiobooks, some i couldnt make it very far because the narrator was so boring.
Norse fantasy a fantasy novel but which heavily features elements, setting and characters as well as objects from norse mythology. So, my favorite thing to read is probably medieval historical fiction. Our four heroes genesis story continues in jerusalem, constantinople, france, and ireland, as they attempt to thwart the machinations of thieves, pirates, and an ruthless clan chieftain. This is a list of nonfiction books about homosexuality ordered by author last name. And maybe even a source that lists words they used back then, if they arent in the books. Discover the best childrens medieval fiction books in best sellers. Any non fiction books that read like a fiction or similar in the renaissance, medieval ages, or middle ages. Nov 18, 2019 the 50 best nonfiction books of the past 25 years. Alison weir has a nonfiction history, but it was first published in 1995 and i wonder if its a bit dated. From mary beard to ken follett, heres our list of the best historical fiction and nonfiction to listen to on the go, spanning everything from the romans to the russian revolution, and from tudor to american history. Aug 14, 2016 in between nonfiction books, im working on a fantasy novel. The 10 must read books in the historical fiction genre. Im looking for something interesting that reads like a fantasy book or the way fiction is usually written, but is a true story following someone from somewhere around the middle ages.
Lovecrafts cthulhu, neil gaimans american gods arent set in a medieval world and most people would agree to place it on a fantasy. Lives of the ancient egyptians, which is a collection of minibiographies, and the rise and fall of ancient egypt, which is a more straightforward history. The medieval murderers are a group of popular historical fiction authors formed by none other than michael jecks. Among other things, this chronicle, written in latin in the twelfth century by a welsh monk, popularised the story of king arthur.