false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172413932m/173258.jpg 173258 9 One-third of Western Europe's population died between 1348 and 1350, victims of the Black Death. Noted medievalist Norman Cantor tells the story of the pandemic and its widespread effects in <I>In the Wake of the Plague</I>. <p> After giving an overview, Cantor describes various theories about the medical crisis, from contemporary fears of a Jewish conspiracy to poison the water (and the resulting atrocities against European Jews) to a growing belief among modern historians that both bubonic plague and anthrax caused the spiraling death rates. Cantor also details ways in which the Black Death changed history, at both the personal level (family lines dying out) and the political (the Plantagenet kings may well have been able to hold onto France had their resources not been so diminished).<p> Cantor veers from topic to topic, from dynastic worries to the Dance of Death, and from peasants' rights to Perpendicular Gothic. This makes for amusing reading, though those seeking an orderly narrative may be frustrated. He also seems overly concerned with rumors of homosexual behavior, and his attempt to link the savage method of Edward II's murder to a cooling in global weather is a bit farfetched.<p> Cantor wears his considerable scholarship lightly, but includes a very useful critical biography for further reading. While not an entry-level text on the Black Death, <I>In the Wake of the Plague</I> will interest readers looking for a broader interpretation of its consequences. <I>--Sunny Delaney</I> 167341 1 4 2001 In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World It Made total:545|5:69|4:185|3:178|2:89|1:24| 545 1821 816 112 4 1 false false Sun Sep 07 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 08 15:47:39 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 08 16:23:20 -0700 2008 1
Cantor did talk about possible causes of the Plague mostly in the beginning and end of the book. The current theory seems to be the Y. Pestis carried by black rats with a simul...more...]]> 1 1 false false Sun Sep 02 15:10:27 -0700 2007 Fri Jan 11 23:41:59 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Jul 07 19:17:40 -0700 2007 Sat Jul 28 12:47:28 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Oct 26 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Jan 03 21:46:14 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 03 22:03:42 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Sat Jul 25 20:31:16 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 25 20:31:42 -0700 2009 Black Plague so I was thrilled to receive
this book from a fellow BCer. Then I
read several bad reviews of the book.
I am happy to say that t...more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Mar 05 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 27 20:39:59 -0800 2009 Sat Mar 07 20:15:31 -0800 2009
An interesting read, which focuses highly on the political, social, economic, and...more...]]> 4 1 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Aug 18 11:23:17 -0700 2007 Sat Aug 18 11:26:38 -0700 2007 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sun Dec 21 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Nov 28 13:33:34 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 21 12:13:14 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Apr 13 18:00:48 -0700 2007 Sun Apr 22 20:21:14 -0700 2007 5 1 true false Thu Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Fri Jun 01 17:22:41 -0700 2007 Fri Jun 01 18:51:51 -0700 2007 2 0 false false Sat Oct 03 07:25:50 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 03 07:30:08 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Dec 24 23:21:31 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 24 23:26:43 -0800 2008
Learn what happened to europe when people stopped 'bringing out their dead' en masse. 25% of humanity later, it changed everything.

Fun book tidbit: they now think that Anthrax was a major player around the same time as the Bubonic plague. The Black ...more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Thu May 14 07:09:08 -0700 2009 Thu May 14 07:25:23 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Apr 16 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 04 11:50:06 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 16 20:49:27 -0700 2009 In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death & The World it Made is a concise work that looks at recent scientific discoveries to show the reader how the Black Death as a biomedical disaster affected Europe, in particular England.

Although In the Wake of the Plague is only 220 pag...more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Mar 24 18:20:29 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 24 18:25:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1 0 false false Sun Sep 28 20:44:28 -0700 2008 Sun Nov 30 10:17:52 -0800 2008 more...]]> 0 0 true false Sat Apr 26 08:17:55 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 26 14:27:10 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jun 09 22:38:42 -0700 2009 Fri Nov 13 13:08:25 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Sep 24 08:21:46 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 29 16:26:01 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Nov 10 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 10 14:33:58 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 10 14:56:01 -0800 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=173258