by C. Warren Hollister, Judith Bennett
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Product Description
Marked by C. Warren Hollister's clear historical vision and engaging teaching style, this classic text has been judiciously revised by Judith Bennett; the tenth edition includes greater coverage of Byzantium and Islam, a revised map program, a new essay program on medieval myths, and more. In his preface to the eighth edition, Professor Hollister wrote of his realization, while in college, that our world today "is a product of the medieval past." Medieval Europe introduces today's students to the medieval roots of our own society..
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 an amazing little textbook, 2008-07-13
"Medieval Europe - A Short History" by Charles Warren Hollister, © 1990, 1982, 1978, 1974, 1968, 1964.
This book is an amazing little textbook. I was pleased to read the explanation of the growth and development of modern European nations. The most surprising part is the growth of civilization throughout the time we were taught were the Dark Ages. Something that is slurred across in most history classes is the age of Charlemagne, about 400 common era (c.e.) to about 900 or 950 c.e. I guess that it is not talked about because not much happened but invasions by Vandals or Attila or Saxons, but there were farms and communities developing (this is the era that beget villains from villagers). There was starvation, missionary work, development of monasteries and convents, etc. This book explained all this and more, making it a lot more interesting just by what it included.
There are not a lot of footnotes because this is a survey book, not a scholarly one. What is written about is well known and accepted as undisputed, so the footnotes would be unnecessary. He does have extensive bibliographies between sections for additional reading for concentrating on those issues or subjects. He does use footnotes to direct the reader to where he discusses the person or place otherwise, and to chide himself for errors he corrects. It is also very good that he explains where some of the names come from: Charlemagne or Plantagenet or Louis for example.
All in all, a really enjoyable book to read.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Solid history, at times overly prolific, bland., 2008-03-19
I used this book in an introductory medieval history class. The narrative in offered by this book is straightforward, coherent, and for the most part, an easy read. The chapters have clearly defined themes and chronologies, and the authors do a good job exploring many issues, events, figures, and concepts of the medieval ages.
At times it was difficult to keep track of all the various names, as many medieval figures shared similar names. I felt the authors could have done a better job laying out more distinct biographies of some of the figures.
There were also times when I had to reread parts because I lost interest due to the tendency of the book to devolve into a simple reiteration of events, ie: The church did this, then certain kings responded in this manner, which caused this event. Whether this is the fault of the writers, something endemic to the material, or my own indolence is debatable, but I still feel the book would benefit with some more color/vibrant writing.
Overall, I found it useful in my studies because it offered coherent organization (making content easily accessible), and it was an easy read (for the most part.)
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Great Short History, 2008-02-28
This book is a great overview of medieval Europe. It is packed with information and is a dense read, but worth it.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Decent Textbook, 2007-01-21
I am a graduate student who has recently begun teaching first-year undergrads. The Hollister and Bennett book is the main text book for a Medieval Period General course, and the students use it to supplement their core readings. The textbook, a general synthesis of the history of Western Europe, is decent and fairly comprehensive, written and updated by experts in the field. However, it has been a long time since I've read a general textbook, and found the lack of footnote references a bit unnerving. The book does, however, provide lists for further reading at the end of each chapter, but these are very selective.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Excellent. Written unlike any history book, 2007-01-09
I bought this to take on a trip around Western Europe. Mr. Hollister has excellent prose. Normally, history books are written in a convoluted style which is indecipherable and dry. Medieval Europe however, is infinitely readable and a great resource. It was a pleasure to read. I will definitely look for more of Mr. Hollister's work and would welcome the recommendation of other works by good history authors.
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