I’m a big fan of history so when I ran across The Year 1000, I had to have it. And having read it I would recommend it to the curious, but with reservations.

My recommendations: The book is easy for a layman to read. It is written in a bright, easy style and it covers a period in time that is not much looked at by the general public. In 1066 William the Conqueror invaded and took over England. Massive social change took place as what had been a largely Germanic and Nordic populace was ruled by a Norman French court. England in the year 1000 is very different even from England of the year 1100.

The way the book is organized it also interesting. Instead of organizing by topic this book is organized by the Julian Work Calendar. So instead of reading all about medical treatment in one chapter and all about farming and agriculture in another, Lacey and Danziger have attempted to discuss topics as they would have occurred month by month during the year. As I said, it’s interesting. That doesn’t mean it’s altogether effective.

My reservations: As I stated above, the organization stated above doesn’t always work. For one, women aren’t discussed until November despite the fact that society was much more equal in the year 1000 than it is even today. (It’s hard to be too unequal when everybody is grubbing for food.)

The other thing that bothered me about this book was the fact that the authors would go into great detail about someone or something and then tell you that the person or thing in question had either been dead 100 years before the millennium turned or came along after. If you’re going to focus on a particular year, I, as a reader, would appreciate it if you would stick to the year. If you must veer off that year for contrast or to clarify something, then let me know ahead of time.

And lastly, the book’s title is off. The title should have been The Year 1000 In England because they never discussed what was going on any where else. This isn’t really a bad thing, but the title is misleading. The Year 1000 Around the World would have been as thick as the Bible and the price of such a book would have been incredible.

So, if you are interested in English history and would like to see what influence the Normans had on the native culture get this book, just know that following it will be a little difficult.


Recommended: Yes