A Medieval Castle (Inside Story)

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Summary: Basic information on the life and times in a medieval castle
Review: I finished reading Michael Crichton's "Timeline" recently, a novel which involves not only archeologists and historians trying to reconstruct a medieval castle but going back in time to engage in high adventure. Consequently I have been checking out several books like "A Medieval Castle" from the Inside Story series. Written by Fiona MacDonald and illustrated by Mark Bergin, this book shows how these castles were built and how they functioned. Young readers will learn some of the fundamentals of castle design as well as the sorts of people who lived within its walls.

Actually, this book looks at more than just castles in presenting details about medieval life. We learn about the community surrounding the castle, village fairs, and the function of religion. Of course lots of emphasis is place on the reasons castles were needed, such as how you became a knight and how fighting men laid siege to castles. "A Medieval Castle" provides lot of basic information, which should prove useful to young students researching the Medieval period. MacDonald often refers to specific events and people from history while Bergin fills his drawings with interesting details, if you take the time to look for them.