Review: 'The Middle Ages: A Graphic History' by Eleanor Janega, Illustr. by Neil Max Emmanuel
Pub. Date: 9/14/2021
Publisher: Icon Books
The Middle Ages: A Graphic History busts the myth of the ‘Dark Ages’, shedding light on the medieval period’s present-day relevance in a unique illustrated style.
This history takes us through the rise and fall of empires, papacies, caliphates and kingdoms; through the violence and death of the Crusades, Viking raids, the Hundred Years War and the Plague; to the curious practices of monks, martyrs and iconoclasts. We’ll see how the foundations of the modern West were established, influencing our art, cultures, religious practices and ways of thinking. And we’ll explore the lives of those seen as ‘Other’ – women, Jews, homosexuals, lepers, sex workers and heretics.
Join historian Eleanor Janega and illustrator Neil Max Emmanuel on a romp across continents and kingdoms as we discover the Middle Ages to be a time of huge change, inquiry and development – not unlike our own.
The Middle Ages experienced a major imagery make-over in the past two decades. When I was in primary school there was still the whole "Dark Ages" thing going on, as if everyone stopped thinking, reading, and let themselves be guided by God only, with a side dish of witch hunting. (Witch hunts were actually a thing of early Enlightenment, not the Middle Ages!) Since then, thankfully, a wider awareness of the culture, skill and progress of the Middle Ages has reached popular culture. From international trade, to the preservation of Greek Philosophy and the building of awe-inspiring cathedrals and castles, the Middle Ages have a lot to offer. Of course the Middle Ages were also a period of warfare, of the Plague, of misogyny, antisemitism, and much more. This complexity is what makes the period so fascinating and Janega's The Middle Ages is a brilliant introduction, for newbies and the experienced.
In The Middle Ages Eleanor Janega takes us through the period of roughly 500 to 1500. I say roughly since historians can't entirely agree on when the Middle Ages started and ended. Different historians focus on different aspects and any historical categorization is of course hindsight. By laying this out so clearly from the beginning, Janega is able to give her readers an insight into not just history but also historians and how they see, and argue about, the Middle Ages. The Middle Ages highlights not just the key events and the trends we see throughout this period, but also the groups that were traditionally excluded. As a Medievalist, I still found things in The Middle Ages that was new to me, but it is an invaluable resource for those completely new to the period. Not only is it full of interesting and useful information, it is presented in a highly accessible way that makes the learning fun.
Eleanor Janega is not only very knowledgeable academic, she's also a very fun author. The Middle Ages is an introduction, a primer, full of fascinating information, fun jokes and great illustrations. Even though this is technically the period I know most about, I still learnt something new in every chapter. Janega shows what's so fascinating about the Middle Ages and is bound to kindle a passion in some future historians. I also had the pleasure of attending a talk by Janega on her online presence as a Medievalist and I can say she is as great in (digital) person as she seems in The Middle Ages. Neil Max Emmanuel's illustrations are a big reason why The Middle Ages is as much fun to read as it is. They bring extra energy to the facts, while the quippy asides and the detailed imagery brings it all to life.
I give this book...
4 Universes!
The Middle Ages is a great introduction to a fascinating period of history. Janega and Emmanuel have created a fun and beautiful book that is bound to enlighten its audience.
I'll have to check this one out! I don't read a lot of graphic novels but ones like that this that introduce a non-fiction topic seem like a good place to start with.
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