References for readers of classics and historical fiction
Explore our curated list of classic and historical fiction books—essential references for readers seeking timeless literature and immersive historical narratives.
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What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew
by Daniel Pool
Essays provide a view of British life during the nineteenth century.
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An Elegant Madness
by Venetia Murray
The Regency period was one of the most turbulent ages in British history, one that spanned the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, that witnessed unprecedented industrial progress, artistic accomplishment, and violent social unrest and--paradoxically--the most sparkling social scene English high society has ever enjoyed. Under the influence of the obese, loose-moraled Prince of Wales (to whom Jane Austen dedicated Emma), the Regency was the apex of British decadence, an era of lavish parties and relentless bed-hopping that set a standard for elegance and vulgarity. With wit and lively style, Venetia Murray chronicles the scandals, courtships, and daily life of these aristocrats, and evokes the tempestuous times of the early industrial and French revolutions. Sumptuously illustrated with rare contemporary cartoons, prints, diaries, and caricatures, An Elegant Madness is a book readers of social history and historical romance alike will devour.
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English Society in the 18th Century
by Roy Porter
This text offers a picture of eighteenth-century England. It ranges from princes to paupers, and from the metropolis to smallest hamlet. It offers vivid images of the thought, politics, work and recreation of Englishmen at his time.
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The Regency Underworld
by Donald A. Low
This is the second revised edition of 'Thieve's Kitchen: Regency Underworld', detailing the underworld, where crime and vice flourished, in Regency England. The book presents a vivid picture of pleasure seekers, criminals and body snatchers at work.
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1700
by Maureen Waller
More than a capital city, Londoners had witnessed the unthinkable - the public execution of a king at Whitehall. Thousands had died in the Plague of 1665, then the Great Fire of 1666. But from the ashes rose a modern city, rebuilt with the shining dome of Christopher Wren's St Paul's Cathedral, symbolising a new strength and confidence. London, with a population of over half a million, was now Europe's largest, richest and most cosmopolitian city. Maureen Waller describes a familiar yet alien world. Using anecdotes, detail and amusing contrasts, she draws on court records newspapers, and recorded eyewitness accounts to create a vividly colourful vision. of a city at a unique moment in its history.
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Tudor Women
by Alison Plowden
"In this book the women of the royal family are the central characters; the royal women set the style and between them they provide a dazzling variety of personalities as well as illustrating almost every aspect of life as it affected women in Tudor England. We know what they ate, how they dressed, the books they read and the letters they wrote. Even the greatest of them suffered the universal legal and physiological disabilities of womanhood - some survived them, some triumphed over them and some went under."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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The Victorian Underworld
by Donald Thomas
William Makepeace Thackeray once wrote that the wonders of the Victorian underworld "have been lying by your door and mine ever since we had a door of our own." Donald Thomas here pushes open that door to reveal a world at once both strange and strangely familiar, inviting casual voyeur and serious historian alike to cross its threshold. Applying his talent for colorful biography to chronicle an entire age, Thomas shows us an underworld through the eyes of its inhabitants. Defined by night houses and cigar divans, populated by street people like the running-patterer with his news of murder, and entertainers like the Fire King, the underworld was an insular yet diffuse community, united by its deep hatred of the police. In its gin shops and taverns, thrived thieves and beggars, cheats, forgers, and pickpockets, preying on rich and poor alike. Career criminals often showed a craftsmanship that would put their descendants to shame. It took true professionals to remove the modern equivalent of twenty million dollars from the Bank of England. In one case, conspirators even recruited officers from Scotland Yard. Those who failed in such enterprises found themselves in the convict hulks, where the annual mortality rate might reach 40 percent, or in the new prisons, their faces masked and identified only by numbers. Rich in anecdote and vividly recounted, The Victorian Underworld brings the past alive like few recent works of history.
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In the Wake of the Plague
by Norman F. Cantor
The Black Death was the fourteenth century's equivalent of a nuclear war. It wiped out one-third of Europe's population, takingmillion lives. And yet, most of what we know about it is wrong. The details of the Plague etched in the minds of terrified schoolchildren -- the hideous black welts, the high fever, and the awful end by respiratory failure -- are more or less accurate. But what the Plague really was and how it made history remain shrouded in a haze of myths. Now, Norman Cantor, the premier historian of the Middle Ages, draws together the most recent scientific discoveries and groundbreaking historical research to pierce the mist and tell the story of the Black Death as a gripping, intimate narrative.
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Marriage and the Family in the Middle Ages
by Frances Gies
From bestselling historians Frances and Joseph Gies, authors of the classic “Medieval Life” series, comes this compelling, lucid, and highly readable account of the family unit as it evolved throughout the Medieval period—reissued for the first time in decades. “Some particular books that I found useful for Game of Thrones and its sequels deserve mention. Life in a Medieval Castle and Life in a Medieval City, both by Joseph and Frances Gies.” —George R. R. Martin, author of Game of Thrones Throughout history, the significance of the family—the basic social unit—has been vital. In Marriage and the Family in the Middle Ages, acclaimed historians Frances and Joseph Gies trace the development of marriage and the family from the medieval era to early modern times. It describes how the Roman and barbarian cultural streams merged under the influence of the Christian church to forge new concepts, customs, laws, and practices. Century by century, the Gies follow the development—sometimes gradual, at other times revolutionary—of significant components in the history of the family including: The basic functions of the family as a production unit, as well as its religious, social, judicial, and educational roles. The shift of marriage from private arrangement between families to public ceremony between individuals, and the adjustments in dowry, bride-price, and counter-dowry. The development of consanguinity rules and incest taboos in church law and lay custom. The peasant family in its varying condition of being free or unfree, poor, middling, or rich. The aristocratic estate, the problem of the younger son, and the disinheritance of daughters. The Black Death and its long-term effects on the family. Sex attitudes and customs: the effects of variations in age of men and women at marriage. The changing physical environment of noble, peasant, and urban families. Arrangements by families for old age and retirement. Expertly researched, master historians Frances and Joseph Gies—whose books were used by George R.R. Martin in his research for Game of Thrones—paint a compelling, detailed portrait of family life and social customs in one of the most riveting eras in history.
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Castles and Fortresses
by Robin S. Oggins
Leads the reader on a tour through the history of the castle, from Europe in the early Middle Ages to North America in the twentieth century.
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Anatomy of the Castle
by John Gibson
This volume traces the origins of castles -- the fortified structures that were built by nobility in Europe and the Middle East, during the Middle Ages -- from Iron Age hill forts to feudal kingdoms through the Crusader era, post-Medieval, and into early modern times, when longbows, battering rams, and catapults were replaced by cannon and mortar. The author details all the key castle types, and includes examples from all over the world. This work features more than two hundred full-color photographs and provides close-up details and diagrams that illustrate the evolution of elements of the castle from dungeons to battlement.
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The Medieval Cathedral
by William W. Lace
This book discusses the history of the medieval cathedrals, products of more than a thousand years of both religious and architectural evolution, that were built as testaments of faith by the people of the Middle Ages.
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The Medieval Castle
by Don Nardo
Describes how medieval castles were built and examines the daily lives of those inhabiting them.
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Life in a Medieval Castle
by Joseph Gies
Learn about the facts behind the myths of what castle life in the Middle Ages was all about.
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Life in a Medieval City
by Frances Gies
For students, researchers, and history lovers, a look at day-to-day life in a rarely explored era. "About life and death, midwives and funerals, business, books and authors, and town government."--Choice
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Medieval and Early Renaissance Medicine
by Nancy G. Siraisi
Western Europe supported a highly developed and diverse medical community in the late medieval and early Renaissance periods. In her absorbing history of this complex era in medicine, Siraisi explores the inner workings of the medical community and illustrates the connections of medicine to both natural philosophy and technical skills.
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Magic in the Middle Ages
by Richard Kieckhefer
How was magic practised in medieval times? How did it relate to the diverse beliefs and practices that characterised this fascinating period? In Magic in the Middle Ages Richard Kieckhefer surveys the growth and development of magic in medieval times. He examines its relation to religion, science, philosophy, art, literature and politics before introducing us to the different types of magic that were used, the kinds of people who practised magic, and the reasoning behind their beliefs. In addition, he shows how magic served as a point of contact between the popular and elite classes, how the reality of magical beliefs is reflected in the fiction of medieval literature, and how the persecution of magic and witchcraft led to changes in the law. This 2000 book places magic at the crossroads of medieval culture, shedding light on many other aspects of life in the middle ages.
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The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome
by Chris Scarre
More than fifteen centuries after its fall, the Roman Empire remains one of the most formative influences on the history of Europe. Its physical remains dot the landscape from Scotland to Syria. Its cities are still the great metropolises of the continent. Its law and institutions have shaped modern practice, and its ideal of a united Europe has haunted politicians ever since. Fully illustrated and featuring more than sixty full- colour maps, this atlas traces the rise and fall of the first great multinational state. It looks at its provinces and cities, its trade and economy, its armies and frontier defences; follows its foreign ward and internecine struggles; and charts its transformation into a Christian theocracy and its fall in 476.
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Life, Death, and Entertainment in the Roman Empire
by David Stone Potter
"Life, Death, and Entertainment in the Roman Empire gives those who have a general interest in Roman antiquity a starting point informed by the latest developments in scholarship for understanding the extraordinary range of Roman society. Family structure, gender identity, food supply, religion, and entertainment are all crucial to an understanding of the Roman world. As views of Roman history have broadened in recent decades to encompass a wider range of topics, the need has grown for a single volume that can offer a starting point for all these diverse subjects, for readers of all backgrounds."--Page 4 of cover.
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Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome
by Lesley Adkins
This handy reference provides full access to the 1,200 years of Roman rule from the 8th century B.C. to the 5th century A.D., including information on art, literature, law, and engineering. 150 illustrations.
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The Ancient City
by Peter Connolly
Recreates the public buildings, temples, shops, and houses of ancient Athens and Rome, providing a window through which to look at the development of the cities and their architecture, and to discuss various aspects of daily life, including religion, food, drama, games, food, culture, and entertainment.
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Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves
by Sarah Pomeroy
"The first general treatment of women in the ancient world to reflect the critical insights of modern feminism. Though much debated, its position as the basic textbook on women's history in Greece and Rome has hardly been challenged."--Mary Beard, Times Literary Supplement. Illustrations.