Rating: 
Summary: Another fascinating book from Alison Weir
Review: In my humble opinion, Alison Weir is the best writer of accessible English history. She manages to write in a simple, accessible style without compromising detail or historical accuracy. Her books are fun to read, but so packed full of information.Taking a break from her usual subject of Tudor and Medieval English history, this book examines the life of Eleanor of Aquataine. It is easy to succumb to hyperbole when writing reviews, but it is NO exageration to say that Eleanor is one of the most interesting people to have ever graced this planet. Hieress of what is now southern France, she left her husband, the French king, for the English king and took her tremendous land holdings with her, thus prompting the 100 years war and causing the great English/French rivalry that has existed ever since. She botched the 2nd crusade by tagging along with her friends as "Amazons." She brought "the art of courtly love" to Paris and London, thus encouraging the creation of chivalry and the Aurthurian legend, and sponsored some of the most important advances in the arts during the early Middle Ages. She fathered 2 kings, acted as regent for one while he was on a Crusade, and was imprisoned by her husband for a decade because she helped her sons plan a coup d'etat. Are you starting to believe that I'm not exagerating? Weir brings all of her skills as a historian and writer to this book, and it is a fascinating read. If I have one complaint, it is that simply not enough detail exists about Eleanor's life. It's pretty hard to miss the major events, but when writing about a subject who lived 800 years ago it is simply a fact that very few letters, diaries, or personal accounts exist. These are the things that let us glimpse into the minds of great people, and it is sometimes maddening that there is no way to understand WHY things happened the way they did. Despite this, Weir manages to use the little she has to go on to great effect, and this is the best biography of Eleanor out there (though the Marion Meade one is also pretty good).
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