A World Lit Only by Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance - Portrait of an Age
by William Manchester

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Book Summary Information

• ISBN13: 9780316545310
• Condition: New
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Book Reviews of A World Lit Only by Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance - Portrait of an Age

Book Review: A Refreshing Way to Learn
Summary: 5 Stars

I found the book to be extremely well-written and challenging -- in more ways than one. The reviewers here have done a good job of summarizing some of the finer points of the text, and yes, I found discrepancies with some historical facts. But, those discrepancies were minor in light of the overall message of the book. Mr. Manchester was clear about his purpose at the beginning -- demonstrating how all things are intertwined and related. One little-known piece of information in this book that illustrates this philosophy that I found rather intriguing: the mother of Prince Henry the Navigator was influenced greatly by Chaucer who had a deep interest in maps and star-charting. She, in turn, infused this interest in her son. How different would European navigation and discovery have been without that influence? Just an interesting what-if to ponder...

The negative reviews I have read on the book did not provide any good reason to avoid it. In fact, most stated that they they did not agree with what Mr. Manchester has written, but there is nothing wrong with disagreeing with a book. It is certainly does not make it a bad book. I have read many "bad" books, meaning poorly written, no purpose, no direction, lacking any real depth, and so on. In my opinion, this book does not match any of this criteria.

As one reviewer wrote, you really have to read many books on a given subject to get a more-rounded understanding. I would highly recommend using this book as a piece in the puzzle of understanding medieval life, and learning a bit more about the characters that we all have been exposed to in some form of education. It was refreshing to read some history in an entertaining format -- in story form and where the characters were more humanized.

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