THE ICE PICK

The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in the Middle Ages, by Sherrilyn Kenyon. Cincinnati: Writer’s Digest Books, 1995. ISBN 0-89879-663-6. $17.99. 232 pages.

If you write medieval fantasy, this well-illustrated book is a treasure trove of fascinating facts and details which can save you hours of research, help keep you from anachronisms, and may spark all kinds of ideas for you.

Recipes, kinds of foods, and common dishes for kings and peasants are presented. Clothing items, hairstyles, and colors worn by men and women are laid out by period. Medical treatments and common remedies are explained. The economy is described, including tidbits like who used carts and when wagons became popular, coins and their values, and weights, measures, and containers. Family relationships and the varying roles of women are discussed. Saints’ days are listed, major annual festivals are explained in detail, and musical instruments and dances are described.

Chronological lists of monarchs for England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, France, and Norway are given. There are explanations of knighthood, tournaments, and heraldry, along with tips for creating your own coats of arms. The chapter on castles not only describes the castle but lists servants, from acrobats and mat weavers to the woodward, who oversaw the forest, and local offices--like the sheriff’s--often found there.

The place and power of the Church is discussed, including details like the minimum age of priests; lists of religious orders, popes, and heretical groups; a discussion of pilgrimages; and a chapter on the ultimate pilgrimage--the Crusades.

All of the chapters include lists of useful vocabulary, but that in the chapter about weapons and war is perhaps the most extensive, and covers items rarely mentioned in detail elsewhere.

The final chapters cover the Saxons and the Vikings, and give more information about France and Normandy, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.

This is one of my favorite books, and I recommend it highly.

{Published in SF and Fantasy Workshop Newsletter, June 2002.}