#1 - Life in a Medieval City

A new year is upon us! Last year I fell a bit short at 26 (halfway there, and still 1 book every two weeks on average), but I also had forgotten to post a few books I read and lost track of the final tally... my guess was that it really ended somewhere around 35-38. Sometimes I am reading two books at a time, or one at home and one on the go or during travel, and sometimes I'll sit and read a book at a bookstore and forget to add it to the list. This year I will try to better capture the full list, and I've been making notes in my iPod Touch so that no matter where I am, I don't forget.

Starting off the year is another in the "Life in a Medieval..." series focusing on city life. Troyes to be exact. Thankfully there wasn't a lot of overlap with the previous castle title, and this really did give a different view and perspective on life and times in a bustling medieval city. Fair's were the big draw of the day and whole economies thrived around these festivities at specific times of the year. Trade, shops, commerce, food, homes, and all of the things that make up daily life are given a great overview with some aspects receiving much more in-depth coverage. Sometimes it feels like things get too glossed over, and some are covered again and again, but on the whole it pulls back the cover and affords a great peek at a time and life long passed. For anyone interested in the period this is a recommended read.

#24 - Life in a Medieval Castle

This book kicked off a whole chain of similar books written in a quasi-historical fashion based on the Medieval times, so I decided to start from the beginning. The book starts off a bit wordy and nebulous in the beginning and threatens to lose the reader, but then snaps onto the track and never derails with part history and part storytelling to convey each aspect of life in great detail. It is an excellent peek behind the curtain of what went on in daily life and manages to dispel some long-held beliefs of crude and barbaric lifestyles in favor of surprisingly modern conveniences and interactions. There are some tales, however, that do cement just how tough things could be at the time. A perfect blend of history and story that easily explains how this book could have spawned the legion of additional books in the series. I'm looking forward to the rest. Highly Recommended!