A Short History of the Middle Ages, Fourth Edition - Softcover

Rosenwein, Barbara H.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1442606118 ISBN 13: 9781442606111

Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division, 2014

Synopsis

Barbara H. Rosenwein's bestselling survey text continues to stand out by integrating the history of three medieval civilizations (European, Byzantine, and Islamic) in a lively narrative that is complemented beautifully by 70 full-color plates, 46 maps, and 13 genealogies, many of them new to this edition. The fourth edition begins with an essay entitled "Why the Middle Ages Matter Today," and the book now covers East Central Europe in some depth. This edition includes three "Seeing the Middle Ages" features, each discussing a work of art in depth: An Ivory Diptych of Christ and the Virgin, Saint Luke, Gospel Book of Otto III; and A Shrine Madonna. The sections for further reading have been updated, and ancillary materials, including study questions, can be found on the History Matters website (www.utphistorymatters.com).

About this title

About the Author:

Barbara H. Rosenwein is Professor Emerita, Department of History, Loyola University Chicago. She is the author of many books, including Generations of Feeling: A History of Emotions (600–1700), What Is the History of Emotions? (with Riccardo Cristiani), The Middle Ages in 50 Objects (with Elina Gertsman), A Short History of the Middle Ages, and Reading the Middle Ages: Sources from Europe, Byzantium, and the Islamic World.

Review:

The medieval world comes alive in this outstanding volume that engages students with a compelling historical narrative. Rosenwein's expert vision integrates exquisite illustrations and beautiful maps into a text that ably meets the instructor's academic demands. Well-researched and wide-ranging coverage of religious, cultural, regional, political, and social developments explode myths of a closed and colorless medieval world. A Short History of the Middle Ages is a real gem that blends utter readability with an impressive mastery of scholarship that will encourage further study. (Janice Liedl, Laurentian University)

The latest edition of A Short History of the Middle Ages has everything you want in a medieval survey text: the narrative is pithy, the maps are plentiful, and visual culture is fully integrated into the historical context with numerous, beautiful reproductions. Simplified genealogies are presented alongside the discussion of dynasties, as well as in the appendix, and there are useful summaries of key events at the end of each chapter. It is a rare gem of a book that is sure to satisfy the needs and please the minds of students and instructors. (Barbara E. Logan, University of Wyoming)

A Short History of the Middle Ages fully embraces the eastern portions of the European continent and the wider context of the Byzantine and Muslim Mediterranean worlds, making Rosenwein's dynamic account of the fitful emergence of medieval Europe the best on the market. The wonderfully rendered illustrations are deployed as learning tools and are intimately integrated into the book's smart yet accessible narrative. Timelines, maps, genealogies, and the accompanying website enhance learning and teaching. (John J. Contreni, Purdue University)

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1442606118
• ISBN 13: 9781442606111
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 4
• Number of pages: 384