So I see this Cantor name all over the medieval history section all of the time and I finally decided to buy one of his books. I didn't wholly regret it because I did get it 35% off at the closing Borders in Billings, but it wasn't a great book. I was expecting a book about the Black Death, but I believe the title was misleading. It was more of a buffet of different aspects of medieval life, with no clear thesis.
He jumped from topic to topic, sometimes without warning. I felt this book was a collection of random lectures he gave on a set of different topics. Another troubling aspect of the book was that there were no footnotes or reference notes. How can you read this as a book of scholarship without these certain notes. The answer it is not a book of scholarship. This is just another entry into the genre of popular history for those who only want to hear about some interesting things that went on back then. I feel at this point in my learning I have progressed beyond popular history and need to read more serious fare. Sorry Norman F. Cantor, I gave you a shot, and I can only assume your middle initial stands for FAIL.
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