Short Reviews of a Couple Medieval Books

I recently grabbed a couple books on medieval subjects and thought I might as well say something about them to someone.

I got this one thinking it might be useful in compiling my fantasy RPG fieldbook, but that’s not really what it’s about. This is a small (and inexpensive) book that’s more suited to display, your coffee table, or a gift. It’s not RPG/fantasy source material. That said, it’s a pleasant, leisurely, quick read and has an illustration on every spread, with quotations (mostly to do with gardens) from medieval and renaissance sources. I did get one module idea from it and am glad I bought it, just not for the purpose I had in mind when I did.

This is a standard reference when you ask the internet what you should read about castles. As far as it goes, I think it’s fine. I haven’t researched things extensively, but the main criticism of it that I have seen is that it’s outdated. I don’t suppose that’s my problem with it.

The good:

• interesting and funny historical anecdotes

• modern pictures of ruins

• glossaries of feudal and architectural terms

• information about life surrounding the castle, not just in the castle itself

The bad:

• needs way more maps, floorplans, reconstruction illustrations

• not footnoted (at least in my edition), which means they could just be making stuff up, and you’d have no way to check

• a political standpoint that, while not pervasive, I found annoying

• needs more numbers and detail, supported by documented sources

I did like this book; I just wanted it to be different. The best parts are the “day in the life” bits and the glossaries. There was nothing new to me in this book except for a few anecdotes (and a recipe for meat goo dumplings that I might end up making), but, then again, I’m more into this subject than most people are.

Should you get this book? If you don’t know much about castles, sure, if it’s cheap. If you already know stuff about castles, no need to grab it.