Sunday, December 10, 2017
Review: Book Three Fianna Trilogy by Megan Chance
In this third book of Megan Chance's Fianna Trilogy, events are coming to the climax as Grace struggles to learn the magic that is her destiny. The riots are now threatening violence all over the city and final decisions must be made. Will they choose love or duty to their people? Megan Chance brings this story to a conclusion that satisfies the mysteries of the magic and the realities of history.
Friday, February 24, 2017
Literacy in the Medieval period
Access to books and information in our modern times has become almost overwhelming. With smart phones, watches, and computers available at nearly all social levels communication has become instantaneous and information is at our fingertips. Even children are now given their own smart devices for learning and entertainment. This has only been possible in the last couple of decades. Prior to the industrial revolution the fastest form of travel or communication was by horse or boat.
When Victorian scholars dubbed the term Dark Ages, they did so because after the fall of Rome most of Europe fell prey to violence and a lot of knowledge was lost during the fighting. Libraries burned, scholars died or were enslaved, it was a time when most were struggling to merely survive with little thought to teaching the next generation to read and write. There were fortunate places of protection where learning did thrive in spite of the violence and once the fighting ebbed and the power vacuum was filled, they were able to spread once more. During this early period literacy rates dropped, although it was not to the total extent that many have believed. It is difficult to determine any sort of percentage or estimate due to the lack of census data, but documentation of wills bequeathing libraries and surviving letters written between nobles give evidence that the clergy were not the only literate people.
What exactly is literacy? Today it means reading and writing proficiency, usually in your native language. For the middle ages it mean reading and writing Latin. Latin was the only language that was universal and was the language of the Church and for most the law courts as well. It was not until the later middle ages that English and German grammar rules became consistent enough to use for official purposes. French quickly became the official court language for much of Europe due to the Norman invasions, and the earlier Carolingian reign which preceded both the Holy Roman Empire in Germany and the Frankish Kingdom in France. For medieval scholars and writers though, literacy during this time meant a basic understanding of Latin. All other languages were considered to be not as important.
As historians and writers, you must look at the time period you are researching and view it not through the lenses of modern life. If one were to look at the Catholic Church today, many would say that it is an ancient institution that needs a major overhaul to bring it into the 21st century. In fact the current Pope, Francis, seems to be doing just that. However if you look at it from the perspective of a 1st century European things would be very different. The word Catholic means universal and for a Europe divided by violence and power struggles it was the one unifying force. The Church also became the place where learning was centered. Cathedral schools, monasteries, even the first universities were all centered around Church funding and support. Many of the Roman schools became incorporated into these Church schools after the fall of Rome and continued to educate wealthy children well into the middle ages.
The crusades to the Holy Land in the Middle East sparked a renewed interest in exploration and ancient texts. The unfortunate by product to this increased travel was the Black Plague brought from China which struck Europe and killed over 25 million people. Although the records of the time were not as well maintained as they are today to give a proper estimate, we do know that it was devastating to the population. There was however a somewhat positive impact that occurred as it brought about unexpected growth and change. In some ways the plague was an equalizing force that allowed ambitious men and women the opportunity to create a middle class society were there wasn't one before. With so many nobles dead along side the lower classes there was a gap in trade, politics and landowning that needed to be filled and the upper lower class decided to seize the opportunity and fill it.
As this middle class grows, so does literacy. This new class of people have money and desire to show their status in a public way so many of them sponsor artists, scholars, and the church. Illuminated manuscripts are hand written and decorated books. During this time period they are mainly bibles, choral books for cathedrals and monasteries, transcribed texts for scholars, and miniature prayer books better know as books of hours. It is these book of hours that gain popularity among the middle and upper class during the crusades and plague eras. Each day was divided by the church into canonical hours of prayer that monks were required to stop and pray certain prayers at. To accommodate the rise in religious fervor they adapted the prayers into shortened segments for the lay person to participate in during the course of their own day. The artists in charge of creating these miniature books that could be carried with ease also made them as decorative as any painting.
As was the habit with the upper class to send children to the church for education, so too the middle class sent their children. They also sent them to be apprentices with tradesmen, to Universities to be scholars and artists, and abroad to explore and broaden their horizons. One such innovation was brought in from China in the form of block printing and the printing press, but carving solid wood blocks was time consuming and the blocks did not last long. Soon metal smiths became involved and the durability problems were resolved, but it was not until Johannes Gutenberg devised the movable metal type that the process began to really speed up production, and the cost of printing decreased to the point that even poor scholars could own many books. Other improvements printing made are the decrease in errors caused by hand copying, the clarity of the text with standardization of font style, and the increase in the use of vernacular in scholarly texts versus Latin.
Once the industrial revolution begins the historical chapter closes on the middle ages. This vast span of history covers several centuries of very different culturally significant events and peoples. To discuss the time period in generalities does not do justice to the rich variety that it contains. If you wish to learn more about this subject there is an entire series by the Utrecht Studies in Medieval Literacy that covers a variety of literacy subjects. There are many other resources I can recommend as well. I welcome questions and comments about anything I have written as well as suggestions for future topics. Happy writing!
When Victorian scholars dubbed the term Dark Ages, they did so because after the fall of Rome most of Europe fell prey to violence and a lot of knowledge was lost during the fighting. Libraries burned, scholars died or were enslaved, it was a time when most were struggling to merely survive with little thought to teaching the next generation to read and write. There were fortunate places of protection where learning did thrive in spite of the violence and once the fighting ebbed and the power vacuum was filled, they were able to spread once more. During this early period literacy rates dropped, although it was not to the total extent that many have believed. It is difficult to determine any sort of percentage or estimate due to the lack of census data, but documentation of wills bequeathing libraries and surviving letters written between nobles give evidence that the clergy were not the only literate people.
What exactly is literacy? Today it means reading and writing proficiency, usually in your native language. For the middle ages it mean reading and writing Latin. Latin was the only language that was universal and was the language of the Church and for most the law courts as well. It was not until the later middle ages that English and German grammar rules became consistent enough to use for official purposes. French quickly became the official court language for much of Europe due to the Norman invasions, and the earlier Carolingian reign which preceded both the Holy Roman Empire in Germany and the Frankish Kingdom in France. For medieval scholars and writers though, literacy during this time meant a basic understanding of Latin. All other languages were considered to be not as important.
As historians and writers, you must look at the time period you are researching and view it not through the lenses of modern life. If one were to look at the Catholic Church today, many would say that it is an ancient institution that needs a major overhaul to bring it into the 21st century. In fact the current Pope, Francis, seems to be doing just that. However if you look at it from the perspective of a 1st century European things would be very different. The word Catholic means universal and for a Europe divided by violence and power struggles it was the one unifying force. The Church also became the place where learning was centered. Cathedral schools, monasteries, even the first universities were all centered around Church funding and support. Many of the Roman schools became incorporated into these Church schools after the fall of Rome and continued to educate wealthy children well into the middle ages.
The crusades to the Holy Land in the Middle East sparked a renewed interest in exploration and ancient texts. The unfortunate by product to this increased travel was the Black Plague brought from China which struck Europe and killed over 25 million people. Although the records of the time were not as well maintained as they are today to give a proper estimate, we do know that it was devastating to the population. There was however a somewhat positive impact that occurred as it brought about unexpected growth and change. In some ways the plague was an equalizing force that allowed ambitious men and women the opportunity to create a middle class society were there wasn't one before. With so many nobles dead along side the lower classes there was a gap in trade, politics and landowning that needed to be filled and the upper lower class decided to seize the opportunity and fill it.
As this middle class grows, so does literacy. This new class of people have money and desire to show their status in a public way so many of them sponsor artists, scholars, and the church. Illuminated manuscripts are hand written and decorated books. During this time period they are mainly bibles, choral books for cathedrals and monasteries, transcribed texts for scholars, and miniature prayer books better know as books of hours. It is these book of hours that gain popularity among the middle and upper class during the crusades and plague eras. Each day was divided by the church into canonical hours of prayer that monks were required to stop and pray certain prayers at. To accommodate the rise in religious fervor they adapted the prayers into shortened segments for the lay person to participate in during the course of their own day. The artists in charge of creating these miniature books that could be carried with ease also made them as decorative as any painting.
As was the habit with the upper class to send children to the church for education, so too the middle class sent their children. They also sent them to be apprentices with tradesmen, to Universities to be scholars and artists, and abroad to explore and broaden their horizons. One such innovation was brought in from China in the form of block printing and the printing press, but carving solid wood blocks was time consuming and the blocks did not last long. Soon metal smiths became involved and the durability problems were resolved, but it was not until Johannes Gutenberg devised the movable metal type that the process began to really speed up production, and the cost of printing decreased to the point that even poor scholars could own many books. Other improvements printing made are the decrease in errors caused by hand copying, the clarity of the text with standardization of font style, and the increase in the use of vernacular in scholarly texts versus Latin.
Once the industrial revolution begins the historical chapter closes on the middle ages. This vast span of history covers several centuries of very different culturally significant events and peoples. To discuss the time period in generalities does not do justice to the rich variety that it contains. If you wish to learn more about this subject there is an entire series by the Utrecht Studies in Medieval Literacy that covers a variety of literacy subjects. There are many other resources I can recommend as well. I welcome questions and comments about anything I have written as well as suggestions for future topics. Happy writing!
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
Review: Crisanta Knight Protagonist Bound by Geanna Culbertson
Crisanta Knight is not your typical princess. In Geanna Culbertson's novel Crisanta Knight Protagonist Bound, Crisanta is in fact the daughter of Cinderella and Prince Charming, not that anyone could tell. Unlike her best friend SJ "Snow Jr" Kaplan, as in Snow White's daughter. SJ was everything a fairytale princess was expected to be, fair and graceful with a lovely singing voice that charmed all the animals. Crisanta, or as she prefers Crisa, is more inclined to weapons training than singing and absolutely refuses to believe that her life is to be dictated by a book and she has no say in the matter. Because of course that is how all the fairytales are created, the mysterious Author is the one who is in charge of creating the stories and once they start writing your life is no longer your own.
Follow Crisa on a quest to take back her life and find out what it means to truly be yourself. It won't be easy though when there are Fairy Godmothers trying to stop you and the occasional stalker prince, but a true princess doesn't quit.
Follow Crisa on a quest to take back her life and find out what it means to truly be yourself. It won't be easy though when there are Fairy Godmothers trying to stop you and the occasional stalker prince, but a true princess doesn't quit.
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
The Demon Catchers of Milan by Kat Beyer
The Demon Catchers of Milan is everything one would expect of Italy. Full of history, romance, mystery and magic. Our heroine finds herself unexpectedly thrown from her normal teenage life into an old family mystery that takes her from suburban America to the ancient streets of Milan. Kat Beyer brings to life a culture rich in history through this coming of age tale that young and young at heart will love to discover.
The History Major by Phillip Cash
I don't often find a book that is well written and yet so difficult to read. Phillip Cash did a wonderful job describing the various historical scenes that his characters learned about in the strange class the heroine found herself in, but I could never quite understand why they were there. It seemed as if there were two stories going on, but the one in which the history class took place was never really explained.
The History Major did not live up to it's description and only left the reader with questions only vaguely answered. It is a very intriguing read, but the ending was not as satisfying as hoped. Perhaps I am in the minority in this and someone can explain to me how the stories chosen affected the characters and outcome of the book.
The History Major did not live up to it's description and only left the reader with questions only vaguely answered. It is a very intriguing read, but the ending was not as satisfying as hoped. Perhaps I am in the minority in this and someone can explain to me how the stories chosen affected the characters and outcome of the book.
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
Review: The Web by Megan Chance
The Web is Megan Chance's second book in the Fianna Trilogy. In the first book, The Shadows, we were introduced to our main characters the Knox family, the Devlin family, and the Fianna or Finn's Warriors as they come to be known. Set in New York City in 1874, Megan Chance uses the turbulent times in Irish and American history as a backdrop for the introduction of legends and magic that these families had thought mere stories told to children. In the second book they have been confronted with the realities that these long ago legends pose on them in their present lives. In this Grace Knox must make a choice that will not only affect her life, but all of Ireland. In book one Grace thought that she knew exactly where her life was headed. She would enter society as planned, find a husband, and everything would be wonderful. The first part was going well, Patrick Devlin had come home from Ireland and made his intentions known and it seemed as if Grace's plans were set. Until an ancient ritual was set in motion and the Fianna were summoned from their long slumber. Now Grace was caught between the safe, comfortable life she thought she wanted and a powerful but dangerous magic that was her birthright. As a if that wasn't enough, she was also caught between two men who loved her and wanted to protect her, but were also fighting on opposing sides. They each wanted what was best for Ireland, but had very different ideas about what that meant.
Megan Chance weaves a beautiful web of mystery and magic In this series that not only keeps you guessing, but draws you in and makes it believable that elves and Irish legends could be roaming the streets of New York unbeknownst to the average citizen. She captures the atmosphere of the city during the late 1800s in a very vivid way. Not only do you see how the very rich live, or the very poor, but every type in between. In this series Megan Chance takes the reader from one side of the city to another in a variety of travel modes. The descriptions of people and places give you insight to the era as if you were there and the unrest and riots were happening in your city. Megan Chance incorporates everything you could want in a fantasy book with everything you could want in an historical fiction.
Megan Chance weaves a beautiful web of mystery and magic In this series that not only keeps you guessing, but draws you in and makes it believable that elves and Irish legends could be roaming the streets of New York unbeknownst to the average citizen. She captures the atmosphere of the city during the late 1800s in a very vivid way. Not only do you see how the very rich live, or the very poor, but every type in between. In this series Megan Chance takes the reader from one side of the city to another in a variety of travel modes. The descriptions of people and places give you insight to the era as if you were there and the unrest and riots were happening in your city. Megan Chance incorporates everything you could want in a fantasy book with everything you could want in an historical fiction.
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Review: The Shadows by Megan Chance
Set in New York in the late 1800s The Shadows by Megan Chance paint a picture of the economic and cultural issues being faced during that time of economic depression, specifically for those of Irish descent. The incorporation of the myths and legends into this novel pull the magic of Ireland's past into the more modern setting. Chance manages to balance the two in a believable fusion.
Grace Knox, seventeen year old Victorian debutante, is the focus around which the stories she had heard as a child have come to life in a time when she wants nothing more than to live without the fears the economic distress has had on her family. To her Ireland is very far away and has no bearing on the choices affecting her future, but there are many other Irish Americans who do not hold that opinion and are in fact helping the rebellion in Ireland to overthrow Britain and gain their Independence.
Megan Chance creates a rich world for readers to dive into. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
Grace Knox, seventeen year old Victorian debutante, is the focus around which the stories she had heard as a child have come to life in a time when she wants nothing more than to live without the fears the economic distress has had on her family. To her Ireland is very far away and has no bearing on the choices affecting her future, but there are many other Irish Americans who do not hold that opinion and are in fact helping the rebellion in Ireland to overthrow Britain and gain their Independence.
Megan Chance creates a rich world for readers to dive into. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
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