Customer Reviews

A World Lit Only By Fire

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At last an author who has "joined the dots" and filled gaps in my knowledge that have puzzled for years. A truly sweeping historical kaleidoscope of the "47 generations" from the fall of Rome to the rise of Humanism, together with brief sketches major historical figures, which adds perspective and insight to a tumultuous period of man's history

William Manchester collects all the anecdotes to support his view of the Middle Ages: it was a terrible time (he defends the now abandoned term "Dark Ages") when nothing of value had happened. According to him, no innovation took place and everyone was backward and brutal. He supports this bleak and inaccurate view through carefully selected tidbits of facts and throws them at the reader without giving a complete picture. This leads to an incomplete understanding of this era and I pity the reader who gets their complete view of the Middle Ages from this book only. This book is VERY misleading and downright dishonest, but aims at sensationalizing and confirmation of the worst stereotypes that exist among the uneducated about the Middle Ages. It's classic yellow journalism masquerading as history.

In addition, Barrett Whitener who's voice we hear in this recording has a peculiar way of pronunciation that may be hard to get used to. For example he pronounces "Medieval" as two separate words: "Midi - evil" and confuses the listener by reading dates in an add fashion: for example year 840 becomes "forty-eight-hundred" but at other times the years are read more conventionally. Otherwise he does a good job and is quite convincing.

Overall it's a book to endure for a fanatic of the Middle Ages who wants to fish out some new info or for a person who would like to confirm their preconceptions about "the set back in human history called The Dark Ages".