Customer Reviews

A Compendium of Common Knowledge, 1558-1603: Elizabethan Commonplaces for Writers, Actors & Re-enactors

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For several years, Renaissance re-enactors have been using Secara's online version of the "Compendium" to educate themselves about the everyday knowledge of the historical characters they portray. Just as 21st century people know that "text" is a verb and what a "blog" is, so did the people in the English Renaissance know the value of an "angel" and who the "recusants" were. From husbandmen to merchants to the nobility, these are the things all Elizabethans would have known.

What Daniel Pool's "What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew" did for the nineteenth century, Secara's "Compendium" provides for the reader who wants to know more about the world of the English Renaissance. While the information contained within this accessible volume was originally designed for re-enactors, it would also be useful for actors, readers (and authors!) of historical fiction, students of literature (impress your English and History profs!) and armchair historians of every stripe.

A few caveats: the layout of the book is sporadic, reflecting its online origins. On the one hand, it feels less methodical (the devalued coinage of Scotland and Ireland is mentioned in the section on gambling), but on the other hand, the connection of diverse areas leads to some wonderful insights (so don't gamble with Scots unless you account for the difference in the coinage). Furthermore, there are both a topic index and a thorough general index in the back to help locate specific information.

The tone of the book is conversational and light, but the information is sound. While the author is upfront about her lack of footnotes and citations, she also provides notes about primary and secondary source materials for those who want to follow up on a detail or question. In consultation with other researchers in the re-enactment community, Secara is also continuing to update the online site with corrections and sources as they become available. Similarly, Secara doesn't pretend to more thorough examinations of the complex areas of religion, politics and economics than she provides. When she is giving a superficial, generalist description, she says so, and refers the reader to other sources for more complete information.

All in all, this is a very useful book for anyone interested in the everyday, common-man aspects of history. It can be read straight through from cover to cover, dipped into at random, or searched for specific details. Better still, it provides a portable version of an online reference that countless people have come to know and rely upon.

For the actor or re-enactor interested in Elizabethan England, this book is a practical, look-it-up-now tool for checking historical facts or correct linguistic usage (the term for a barrel-maker or the pronunciation of "Southwark, for instance). For those with a general interest in the Elizabethan era or the history of day-to-day life, the book provides a compelling view of a bygone era, ranging as it does from the broad structures of Elizabethan society to the details of weights and measures, foods and fabrics. (In this sense, it resembles Daniel Pool's What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew; readers who enjoyed that book will almost certainly enjoy this one as well.) It is full of both basic information (such as a list of the Elizabethan peerages) and fascinating details (we learn that a seven-pound quantity of wool is a "clove," that Southwark prostitutes are nicknamed "Winchester Geese," and that one of the favorites of the bear-baiting pit is a bruin named Sackerson.) An especial strength of the book is the author's ability to describe differences between the Elizabethan and modern worlds clearly and succinctly. (A longer and more detailed version of this review can be found at the Troynovant review website.)

This is a lovely read about the Elizabethan era, and at the same a serious source for knowledge about the everyday life in 16th Century England.

Maggies book is easy bed table reading. But at the same time has an index at the back to look up a specific reference or issue.

If you just saw a movie or play set in the 16th century this is the book for you! Unless you are already a devotee of the time period, a lot that is presented in a film or play may perplex you.

This book will "un-perplex" most.

Do you love rennaissance faires? Then this again is a great resource. If you are a participant, then it is filled with the tidbits that you either forgot or eluded you ( there is so much to know!).

If you are new to the fair experience, this can give context and meaning to what you see and hear.

Three hearty cheers for The Compendium!!

This book is indispensable for folks new to re-enacting. I find it has information that average history books might not have. The subjects are concise, clear, and have many references if you desire further information on any subject. I am very happy to have this as a resource.

Many historical re-enactors and scholars have known of this indispensable resource on the web only, longing for the day when we could pen our own notes in the margins while enjoying a G and T on the veranda. At last we have our chance!

This book by Maggie Secara is truly one of the finest introductions to the early modern world you're likely to find. Pithy, charming, and learned, this is a book that is hard to put down. As you might expect, it is filled with all the details of renaissance daily life you're looking for, but the book is so much more than mere lists of things. One feels as though the author is taking you by the hand and giving you her own well-informed and personal tour of the past.

If you are a lover of history, you will revel in its pages. If you are a writer with an interest in early modern Britain, you'll want to keep this book in a holster at your side. If you are someone merely with a love of knowledge for the intricate doings of another age: Welcome home!

Secara did something, way back when, that few others were willing to do (and I can say this having been there): she busted the Renn Faire mythologies and compiled for Elizabethan re-enactors a resource of astounding factual scope. After many years of being offered as snipets, handouts, and an on-line reference, this book has emerged organically from many long years of collection and research. It is THE actor's and historian's resource on daily Elizabethan life.

The word "Organically" is chosen for a reason - this volume is arranged based on interesting topics and not necessarily linear as one might find your average history book. Perhaps that is exactly why it works so well - because it naturally expands from questions and curiosity that arose from actors emersed in the period.

This Compendium is aimed at English history, with appropriate diversions to history beyond the realm of Elizabeth I. This focus is important. Yet, Secara notes in the introduction that this isn't the be-all, end-all of historical knowledge. That admission gives an additional credibility to the work since you can easily trust that the author isn't making it up - a problem many of us ran into in the early years of Elizabethan re-enactment - too much was simply made up.

This is the book that should be in the libraries of re-enactors everywhere. An easy to read, credible and likable book with a value well beyond the pages.

I can't live without this book! As someone who does re-enacting, works in theatre and film and is a history buff, the information in this book is invaluable. For me it's a one stop place Elizabetan era.

"The Compendium" is popular with the circle of Elizabethan/Renaissance reenactors that I play with because it is a useful resource to find general everyday knowledge about the time. This book is like a phrase book for a the traveller to Elizabethan England. It's not an exhaustive and detailed history and encyclopedia, but a way for someone to quickly get a bit of information about a topic and then see how that information may be connected to other bits of the Elizabethan world. Unlike a history text or a study of politics and religion, this book is about the everyday knowledge that most people would be familiar with - and helps the reenactor create a more believable world for our patrons at faire. When I am asked what kind of food we have or what I get paid for my work, I can rely on the information that Maggie has included here. Although the layout of the book is organic (some say disorganized) , the connections between topics is immensely valuable because those connections help to piece together how diverse parts of a person's life was connected. You can follow the thinking about how people married to household structure to how children were named and raised. At a recent workshop I attended, someone was asking about how to bees and another person whipped out the Compendium to find a detail. That is how this book works best - as a quick reference to the mindset of an Elizabethan citizen.

Maggie's Compendium of Common Knowledge is packed full of useful information for reenactors and artists portraying this time period. I absolutely love it and recommend it to everyone.

I keep several copies of this wonderful little Compendium in my classroom for my students' use. The manner of discourse in this book is perfect to catch and maintain a middle school student's attention. Using this book, a student can quickly identify an area of their own interest for further research. The Compendium covers the usual, day to day information and subjects that brings the common people to life for the reader and is a fabulous companion to the usual classroom history book. The reader can open the book to any page and be immediately drawn in to a subject.

The author's writing style is not remote or impersonal and perusing it's pages is like engaging in a friendly chat. The facts are well documented and I feel confident I am presenting a sound history to my students by having them use this book. I use the Compendium in arranging class lessons as well as preparing the students for our annual Renaissance Fair and Walk Through History. Thank you!