Charlemagne: King Of The Franks

by Cameron White

By the mid 8th century no centralized European authority had yet arisen to take the place of the place of the Roman Empire since its collapse. But in Germany, the Frankish dynasty began to establish itself and eventually their kingdom covered most of modern day France as well as other parts of Central and Eastern Europe. In the midst of all of the chaos to control the land, one individual stood at the heart of the Franks’ Charlemagne. A pious and arrogant leader, he made such an impact on the world he is still arguably one of the greatest kings to have ever ruled. Charlemagne established his dynasty and elevated his family’s influence throughout Europe. His is a story full of violence and heroism, displaying political, social, and religious advances. It is a story that exhibits what it takes to be a king during a time in history where it was difficult to amount to anything at all. Author Cameron White in his book entitled King of the Franks captures the essence of the warrior King Charlemagne, the time period in which he ruled and the great impact he had upon the world.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History

261 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 2, 2015

Reviews

[Lynn Serafinn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reads Like a First-Year University Research Paper

I don't think I have ever written a review before actually finishing a book, but after having struggled through 12 chapters, I simply had to stop. I hate to say this, but the author is NOT a gifted writer and is severely in need of a developmental editor. It is difficult for me to explain in a review all that needs to be changed in this book. Perhaps the most consistent flaw is his repetitiveness; however, this repetitiveness is largely due to his habit of making statements without bothering to develop the idea. Then, a paragraph or so later, he will make the statement again, perhaps with one more deatil. Then, perhaps a paragraph or whole chapter later, he will bring the subject up yet again, repeating all he had already said with perhaps a few more pieces.

Because the author fails to develop his ideas when he should, the paragraphs tend to be only one or two sentences long, and the ideas keep skipping back and forth.

There is little craftsmanship in the writing itself. Paragraph after paragraph might start with the same word (e.g. "Charlemagne), or the same phrase/words are used multiple times within the same short paragraph. Example (paraphrased, as I don't have the book open right now): "They were guilty of treason, which was punishable by death. Therefore there was no surprise they were executed because they were guilty of an offense punushable by death."

Many commas are missing, making it difficult to understand the meaning. Inconsistent spelling is used (e.g. "Pope Hadrian" in one paragraph and "Adrian I" two paragraphs later. Additionally, the author brings in opinions that, to me, feel like he was trying to impress his university professor.

The whole book reads like this. Frankly, it was doing my head in, as I was spending my entire time editing in my head, instead of reading and enjoying the book.

The author seems to have researched the subject (although there are no footnotes, so I cannot be sure), but it makes little difference until the text is completely rewritten/restructured by an experienced developmental editor, ghost-writer or co-author.

[Vikas Datta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite interesting..

[Marie Cinti · Rating 2 out of 5]

I learned what I wanted but writing is mediocre.

[Rhonda Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Thought Provoking Read

I think that this book was written in a way that it was not just a interesting topic, but also it was easy to understand. The reign of Charlemagne was filled with struggles to keep the government running around a sea of anarchy and invasions of Saracens and constant uprisings of different ethnic groups in his kingdom. The author has laid the case that made me think about how much Charlemagne was a great emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. I have thoroughly enjoyed this book and I will buy other books by this author.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting fast read. Longer than necessary I think and somewhat repetitive. Repetitiveness didn’t bother me too much but it will others.

[Matt Bracy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though interesting, it was too superficial for my tastes. I'm looking forward to finding a deeper dive into this.

[Claudia Geraets · Rating 3 out of 5]

it's interesting

[Fred Conrad · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have liked a lot more "day in the life" stuff. What did people eat in 800 CE? What were their shoes held together with? What were the crops and livestocks and homes of the day? Did he maintain house staff? He was a religious person but how often did he attend services and what were they like back then? What sort of horses did he ride or was he a carriage guy? It's nice to know he invaded this place and suppressed various uprisings in that place but a map or two would have been helpful since those kingdoms don't exist today. Don't even know what languages they spoke, and how did he communicate to them?

In other words, this was a bit too linear. Charlemagne moved from point A to point B. Then he died. Then his empire collapsed, which would have surprised him greatly.

More context next time please.

[Lemonpop · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay

It's hard for me to say if this is a good book or not. I don't generally read a lot of history book. I like historical fiction, but always struggled with a straight history book. I did like the set up of the book. It gave a generally overview of Charlemagne rule in each topic reference. I did struggle in some section, because I felt drag down, which is why I generally struggle with pure history book. I did like and I will try another.

[Marc Paquette · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy read but seems to portray Charlemagne simplistically

This book was easy to read. I felt the author portrayed Charlemagne too simply. It serves as a good introduction to Charlemagne none the less.

[Christopher Bennett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good basic read

I would probably suggest this book to anyone that has little to no knowledge of who Charlemagne was in history. A lot of repeating the same conclusions without fully delving into why would be my biggest critique.

[Sabrina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super easy read if you want a super basic overview

If you want more details about Charlemagne then read another book. I was disappointed in the depth and assumptions made by the author.

[Kenneth B Begun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlemagne

A very concise narrative about Charlemagne, about how has s life and reign effected his country then and throughout history.

[crystal barnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

great info

lots of great facts,some of which I never knew,a goodread if you are looking for a biography and historical read.