Top Books of the Middle Ages (AKA Medieval Period for Beginners)

Рет қаралды 14,312

Жыл бұрын

Here are some of my favourite books on the Middle Ages. Some of these are great introductory books to the period and perfect for beginners.
I compiled this list for #historathon2023, an event in which readers are encouraged to read one history book each quarter of the year using the timeline below:
Jan to Mar - Prehistory to AD 500
Apr to Jun - 500 to 1500
Jul to Sept - 1500 to 1820
Oct to Dec - 1820 to Present
My fantastic cohosts are as follows:
@revenantreads (Creator of the event)
@billruttenberg
@TheHistoryShelf
@NicholasOfAutrecourt
@bookssongsandothermagic
@marianamasbooks
@BookTimewithElvis
Books mentioned:
Powers and Thrones (Jones)
The Plantagenets (Jones)
The First Crusades (Asbridge)
The Greatest Knight (Asbridge)
The Greatest Traitor (Mortimer)
King of the North Wind (Gold)
Constantinople (Crowley)
Queens of Jerusalem (Pangonis)
The Perfect Heresy (O'Shea)
The Dark Queens (Puhak)
You can also find me on
Instagram: Knightlyrants
Voxer:epries544

Пікірлер: 87

@jorgelopez-pr6dr 7 ай бұрын

You are the only girl I have seen that likes and specializes in the Medieval times. Keep up the good work. I will search for those books that you mention.

@passageoftime8561 7 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching!

@demonorse 3 ай бұрын

This is a woman.

@TheLinguistsLibrary 14 күн бұрын

Thanks, I added three books to my cart

@passageoftime8561 11 күн бұрын

Awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed this. Which books did you add?

@TheLinguistsLibrary 10 күн бұрын

@@passageoftime8561 Powers and Thrones (Jones) , Queens of Jerusalem (Pangonis) and The Dark Queens (Puhak)

@binglamb2176 Жыл бұрын

Wow! What a treasure trove of medieval history. I have a mania for the history of the Middle Ages so I was furiously writing down titles to locate. If my bank balance survives, they should be very interesting. Thanks for highlighting them for me!

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Let me know what you think if you pick any of these up. Which are your current favourites? Thank you for watching!

@StephanieJCohen Жыл бұрын

Great recommendations. I’ve read the Plantagenets and really enjoyed it as well. Have Power & Thrones on my TBR for upcoming quarter.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Oo I hope you like it! Thank you for watching.

@ToddSmith23 8 ай бұрын

Nice

@johnfleming5470 7 ай бұрын

Thank you! I loved your selections and reviews. I put most of them in my cart

@passageoftime8561 7 ай бұрын

That's awesome, I hope you enjoy them. Thank you for watching!

@tomlabooks3263 Жыл бұрын

Excellent video! Very intrigued by Powers and Thrones. Thank you.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching! Powers and Thrones is definitely worth a read.

@sharonlarson5331 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the great recommendations. Power and Thrones will be my next history read.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

You're welcome! I hope you enjoy it. Thank you for watching.

@marya4632 6 ай бұрын

Thanks! Really enjoyed all these recommendations!

@passageoftime8561 6 ай бұрын

You're most welcome! Thank you for watching.

@DavidWiley7 Жыл бұрын

What a wonderful idea for a video! Like you, I'm a casual enthusiast for the Middle Ages, and there's more than a few of these I am putting on my radar to track down in the future!

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Thank you! I'll be doing more of these over the next quarter. Thank you for watching!

@revenantreads Жыл бұрын

Great recommendations! I plan to finally get to The Plantagenets in the next quarter.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Thanks! It's a great book.

@jonthompson3279 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for recommending Power and Thrones by Dan Jones. I ordered it and love it. I read a lot of history. Unfortunately just because you have a PHD doesn't mean you can write a readable book. I am really happy to find a readable book like Dan Jones's book that is hard to stop reading.

@passageoftime8561 2 ай бұрын

Jones definitely knows how to write exciting history, I'm so glad you're enjoying PaT. Thank you for watching!

@kaitlynstewart7672 11 ай бұрын

Thanks for reminding me that I wanted to read The Plantagenets! It's going right to the top of my reading list.

@passageoftime8561 11 ай бұрын

It's such a great book. Thank you for watching!

@andreyevstavew 27 күн бұрын

Thank you for video)

@passageoftime8561 18 күн бұрын

You are welcome. I appreciate you stopping by!

@charlesubaldi4566 5 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for rekindling my interest in reading about the middle ages!! Chuck

@passageoftime8561 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching, Chuck! Are you currently reading anything on the Middle Ages?

@nedmerrill5705 Жыл бұрын

The one book on my TBR for the coming quarter is _A Distant Mirror,_ by Barbara Tuchman. I read the first few chapters years ago but never finished it and historathon 2023 will be a good reason to go back to it.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

I sometimes need a good push to go back to books (or even pick them up in the first place) and find reading events to be the perfect motivation. Thank you for watching!

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

@Bryan M.R. The calamitous century, indeed!

@kaitlynstewart7672 11 ай бұрын

This was the book that kicked off my love of medieval histories and I loved it. For me it was the right amount of covering a lot of ground and giving a primer to the era that made me feel prepared to dive into more specific areas with enough context to not feel lost.

@demonorse 3 ай бұрын

Anything by Tuchman is good.

@markf9138 7 ай бұрын

Thank you for these recommendations. I only listen to audio books these days and finding titles in my genre (early-high medieval) on Audible can get hard. But I just found/bought Queens of Jerusalem, the Plantagenets and the Dark Queens thanks to your recommendation. 👍

@passageoftime8561 7 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching! I hope you enjoy those titles. I just got into audiobooks myself, it's certainly a skill that needs practice!

@christinaalvarez332 11 ай бұрын

Wow, I just added a TON of books to my TBR list on Goodreads. Thank you! 🥳😄

@passageoftime8561 11 ай бұрын

I'm glad to hear it. Which do you think you might read first? Thank you for watching!

@christinaalvarez332 11 ай бұрын

@@passageoftime8561 I prefer to buy books in person so when I come across them in the wild, that's when I'll get my hands on them. 🥰

@lindawalker2451 Ай бұрын

Thanks so much for this video. I love the Middle Ages. I have just ordered King of the North Winds because of this video.

@passageoftime8561 18 күн бұрын

I'm so pleased to hear that, I hope you like it. What do you like to read about with respect to the Middle Ages? Thank you for watching.

@willk7184 Ай бұрын

I'm interested in this time period but actually know few details about it, thanks for the intriguing recommendations!

@passageoftime8561 18 күн бұрын

It is a fascinating period. Which time periods interest you the most? Thank you for watching!

@Ozgipsy Жыл бұрын

Your channel is a fantastic discovery for me. I’m a big fan of medieval England particularly. That’s actually the first book I’ve seen reviewed about Outremer 👍

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Welcome to my channel! I'm still a bit of a newb with medieval history but I really enjoy it, especially High-Late Middle Ages. Any books you would recommend?

@Ozgipsy Жыл бұрын

@@passageoftime8561 Lost to the West by Lars Brownworth tracks the Byzantine Empire from its beginnings, through to the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The date that is referred to as the end of the Middle Ages. It also tracks some of the fleeing scholarly works into Europe where it sparked the renaissance. My favourite book. Period. He has another work called Normans, from raiders to Kings. His two podcasts were pioneers in the history field and I recommend them to you strongly. In particular - 12 Byzantium Rulers.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

@@Ozgipsy thank you for this, I am going to check this book out as well as his podcasts!

@alexduggan68 27 күн бұрын

A great book is We Appy Few. The story of a hundred year old man telling a young Henry 8th his account of the battle of Agincourt. Its funny, touching, and deals with the nature of history, truth, faith and language.

@passageoftime8561 18 күн бұрын

This sounds fantastic, I am going to look for this now. Thank you for watching!

@josmith5992 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the reminder of The Dark Queens, I noted that down when you talked about it before. I’m hoping to also read something on the Vijaynagar Empire in India, probably Robert Sewells A Forgotten Empire.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

That sounds like a great book, I need to expand my geographical horizons over the next few quarters for Historathon. Thanks for watching!

@YaFeya13 5 ай бұрын

If you are interested in Plantagenets, Sharon Kay Penman is absolutely unmatched! My favorites are the Sunne in Splendour, and When Christ and his Saints slept, incredibly good ❤️But also her Welsh trilogy, cannot recommend those more

@passageoftime8561 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for these recommendations, I will check them out. And thank you for watching!

@strangementalitypaperYT 4 ай бұрын

When Christ and his Saints Slept is a better version of Pillars of the Earth. I wish it was more popular. I'll be reading The Sunne in Splendour soon. I hate Richard III. Lol. We'll see if my mind changes.

@YaFeya13 4 ай бұрын

@@strangementalitypaperYT oh I’d love to hear your thoughts after! Also, how’s it that the audio version never been produced? I’d love that 🙏

@Gamking29 4 ай бұрын

I love you ♥️

@ToGamesItMayConcern Жыл бұрын

Fantastic selection. Have you ever heard of The Ice-Shirt by William T. Vollmann? It covers the interactions between the Norse and the Inuit in Greenland around the 10th century A.D. Historical fiction, but densely-packed and well-researched. I know the book ventures beyond the geographical areas you seem to focus on, but it's truly wonderful, and-considering your knowledge of the time period-you may have a better grasp of the cultural clash that takes place in the events of the book. It's great to find a worthwhile book-focused channel. I'll be sure to subscribe and check out some of your other recommendations. Thanks for taking the time to share!

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

I haven't heard of it but it sounds right up my street. Thank you for the recommendation and for watching!

@michaelchandler490 3 ай бұрын

You mentioned Dan Jones’ “The Plantagenets” started you on reading about them. I’m older and the author who got me interested in the Middle Ages, was Thomas B. Costain who wrote a number of books on the Plantagenets. His books had been around for awhile even when I started to read them in the early ‘60s, and he doesn’t seem to be known today, but you might enjoy having a look at him. Thanks for the “Powers and Thrones” recommendation. That one slipped by me, but I’ll have to pick it up.

@passageoftime8561 3 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching! I've read a couple by Costain and I do enjoy his work. I should have mentioned him but didn't have any physical copies to show. I liked The Three Edwards and The Conquering Family.

@bigaldoesbooktube1097 Жыл бұрын

This was very helpful, thank you 🙏

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

I'm glad you liked it. Thank you for watching!

@audreyapproved Жыл бұрын

If I don't know anything about the Crusades, which of Asbridge's books would you recommend to check out first - The First Crusade or The Crusades? Always love your videos!!

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

I haven't read his other book The Crusades so I'd have to say The First by default. I might need to squeeze The Crusades in now, I do like Asbridge's work. Thank you for watching!

@user-yj4ip4il5f 2 ай бұрын

I love your focus on the Middle Ages. I'm passionate about the Plantagenets too. Please note that THE GREATEST TRAITOR by Ian Mortimer is not a novel. It's nonfiction.

@passageoftime8561 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! I misspoke. 😊

@strangementalitypaperYT 4 ай бұрын

My last name is Norman. How could I not love The Middle Ages? Haha

@passageoftime8561 4 ай бұрын

Nominative determinism strikes again! 😁

@strangementalitypaperYT 4 ай бұрын

@@passageoftime8561 Blame Maude. She shouldn’t have been such a badass!!

@jeromestafford3089 2 ай бұрын

Is that St. Nektarios in the icon?

@passageoftime8561 2 ай бұрын

St Dionysios. I picked it up from a tourist shop in Zakynthos. 😊

@jorgelopez-pr6dr 7 ай бұрын

You are one of the few people I've seen who recommend books about Medieval history, a period so unjustly maligned. What biography of Richard III , my favorite Shakespeare villain, recommend me? Take care!

@passageoftime8561 6 ай бұрын

Welcome to my channel! The Middle Ages are so fascinating. Shockingly, I haven't got one to recommend on Richard III. I want to read Matthew Lewis' biography, though. Thank you for watching!

@derekgreenwood9672 6 ай бұрын

"The Daughter of Time" by Josephine Tey.

@lisanorth4934 5 ай бұрын

‘Richard III: Loyalty Binds Me’ by Matthew Lewis. It puts Richard firmly within the context of his time, and actually portrays him as a human being rather than a caricature.

@jorgelopez-pr6dr 5 ай бұрын

@@lisanorth4934 Thanks! Have a happy New Year!

@dalestreeter341 3 ай бұрын

Richard III: A Study in Service by Rosemary Horrox. Richard III was truly a Shakespearean villain, but that was because WS had to toe the Tudor line (see A Daughter of Time for a good argument about that). Richard was a loyal retainer to his brother, Edward IV, and a good king. Yes, he probably usurped the throne, but the old saying "woe betide a kingdom with a child king" spoke of the problems that a regency could instigate.

@richarddelanet Жыл бұрын

Queens of Jerusalem... has a magic looking cover! My selection for the 2nd quarter of #historathon2023 will probably be the New Cambridge Medieval History vol.I Although the Prestwich biography of Edward I is a contender. I have already started this; there is a stupefying instance when 17 years old he arranges a breakfast with the Duke of Gloucester and the Duke's brother to discuss peace terms, and during the said breakfast they are both poisoned and he isn't! Not to be missed. 🤔

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

It's such a beautiful cover, I love the blue with gold pomegranates and Jerusalem crosses. I will need to check out Prestwich's bio on Edward I, I find him really fascinating and have read only one standalone bio on him so far (A Great and Terrible King). I wonder how much of his personality derives from him seeing his father (and their royal perogative) being pushed around. Thank you for the recommendations and for watching.

@nursemain3174 4 ай бұрын

Have you read Phillipia Gregory ?

@passageoftime8561 4 ай бұрын

I've heard a lot of good things about Gregory but I don't think I have. If I had to read one, which would you recommend?

@melissamybubbles6139 Жыл бұрын

This seems like a great collection. I need to read about the middle ages but 18th century America is calling me again.

@passageoftime8561 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching! Which books do you plan on reading re: 18th century? I'm looking for recommendations for this time period.

@thecarguy4304 2 ай бұрын

Fiction?

@passageoftime8561 18 күн бұрын

I don't read a huge amount of fiction when it comes to the Middle Ages to warrant a standalone video, I'm afraid. Only two come to mind (not including contemporaneous fiction). Thank you for watching!