Rating: 
Summary: Personalized history
Review: Tuchman's A Distant Mirror is not only a wonderful historical book, it is a work of art. Tuchman avoided the dryness and lack of "reality" that is common to many historical books that merely list past events and describe them from the author's vantage. By contrast, she used historical events and setting, and related what actually happened through the thoughts and [probably] spoken words of those alive at that moment in time. She humanizes history. Of course she did not have actual transcripts from the 14th century, but with great skill and eloquence she puts words, thoughts, and feelings into actual principles of history that she skillfully brings alive. This is not a historical novel in any traditional sense. Rather, I'd say, it's a factual description of the 14th century, as felt and lived by actual people of the time. In fact I believe A Distant Mirror is the first acclaimed book of this type that most historians acclaim as very worthy. It's a must-read for all who are interested in medieval times, especially, medieval France. It's very hard to put down, once started.
Rating: 
Summary: Details and more details, not a light read but intriguing
Review: I must admit up front that about half way through this thick book of history I gave up. I will freely admit that I am often a lazy reader, but it isn't that I have never made it through a long book before. My problem, it seems to me, is that Tuchman keeps this book totally accurate, without fail it seems. There are tidbits and facts and dates and quotes. There seems to be little, if any, conjecture, and perhaps that is as it should be, but as a casual reader, fascinated by the time period, I couldn't bring myself to work hard enough to continue through to the end.I was glued to the page when she tackles the subject of "Youth and Chivalry" and found the explanation of how marriages of the time were arranged and how infidelity was justified to be my favorite part of what I read. It seems that with marriage coming at such a young age and being arranged by others, that to have a relationship with one's "true love" it must by definition come outside the scope of one's marriage, which was an establishment set up for the duty of family and the production of heirs. The place children fit into the society of the time was another facet I found very intriguing. This book, of course, covers Black Death, Kings, Popes, wars and battles and all kinds of foreign entanglements There is probably some topic here that would interest any reader that wants to delve into the period. For this reason I do recommend this book for those that are so compelled, but I do so with the caveat that it is not easy or light reading.
Rating:
Summary: I'm proud to be a Belgian!
Review: I read this splendid book although I already knew a lot about the first world war. This book covers the causes and the first 30 days of the "great war" on the western and eastern front, including battles like Tannenberg, the battle of the Marne..but for me as a Belgian above all the siege of Liège (I live less then 10 miles from Liege and visited several forts): A chain of already older fortresses around the Belgian city of Liege holding out in a heroic fight for a long time against the most powerful army of it's time : the Imperial German army! The Belgian fortresses were ultimately defeated by the legendary German supergun "Big Bertha". Anyhow that heroic defense gave the English and French army the time to organize themselves and gave the tiny Belgian army the possibility to defend itself behind the river "Ijzer" until the end of the war. All this is written vividly in this extraordinary book.
Rating: 
Summary: Too many battles.
Review: Original evocation of the 14th century in Europe through the life of one person, the French nobleman de Coucy.
This book certainly gives a good picture of this century: war, plagues, gangs of robbers, a corrupt Church, witch-hunt, devaluations ... but it is too long and contains too many detailed descriptions of battles.
For me, it remains too superficial compared to the magisterial work of Jean Delumeau 'Sin and Fear: the Emergence of the Western Guilt Culture 13th-18th Centuries', or 'The Waning of the Middle Ages' by Johan Huizinga. This latter work illustrates admirably the mentality change: e.g. cities bought condemned persons in order to organize their public executions as a big show for their inhabitants.
Rating:
Summary: A classic work for already 15 years
Review: I read this book more then 10 years ago. I can recommend it to everbody interested in history but also in adventure. It really wets your appetite to read more about this period and ancient and medieval history in general. In meantime I read books about different facts in this book : "1OO years war, battle of the Golden Spurs (1302), the last crusades, Burgundy.. two years ago I visited the castle of Enguerrand of Coucy in the north of France. I remember the words in the book about the big towers of the castle... and indeed it was like that!Although it is partly a ruin the castle is a superb example of a medieval fortress. Don't miss it when you're there..when I was there I thought "Enguerrand was once here where I'm standing now!"
Rating:
Summary: Excellent and readable
Review: When I came to this book, I was mainly interested in the chapter on the Black Death, which I was researching at the time. I was interested in researching the history of microbial disease and epidemics, and Tuchman's chapter turned out to be an excellent place to start on this subject. Since it's the only chapter in the book I've read, I'll confine my comments to that. There are several book-length treatments of the subject now, but I read the chapter in Tuchman's book to get a good introduction and overview of these events before reading the other, more specialized books. This doesn't mean the chapter was light reading. On the contrary, Tuchman packs a great deal of good and detailed information about the Black Death into this one chapter, dramatically chronicling and evoking the terror and horror of this plague as it swept across Europe. The story of the Black Death's ravages in Europe makes for perhaps the most dramatically morbid and gruesome historical tale of all time, with 60-70 million dead from the disease, and I enjoyed reading Tuchman's excellent account on the subject. After this, I was ready to go on to more serious researches.
Rating:
Summary: The Middle Ages come alive!
Review: Barbara Tuchman brings the Middle Ages to life in this fascinating and thorough depiction of the Middle Ages, during the Hundred Years War. The focus is on France, but it widely covers the background of that time; from the Black Death to the emerging "third estate" of merchants; from the contradictions of knightly "chivalry" to the daily living conditions of the common man. Tuchman illustrates many themes; the dominance of the Church, the great disillusionment in the wake of plague, war and banditry, and the whole mentality of the different classes. The nobility of the lords and knights is questioned, as brigands roamed France, sacking, pillaging, robbing and extorting. The treatment of children, women, Jews and heretics is described in detail, and it's not always a pleasant picture. At the same time, it was a time of change, of mankind becoming more aware, trade and commerce emerging from the darkness of previous centuries, and the seeds of nation-states and standing armies springing forth in the "calamitous 14th century". Tuchman entertains simply by her great knowledge of the subject as well as her fine writing. History comes alive and we realize that we truly are looking into a "distant mirror"; this is the way we were so long ago. Tuchman is also very thorough and comprehensive in this book, so this might not be for everyone; some might prefer a more condensed version. Still I heartily endorse this slice of history, it is well written and compelling.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating portrait
Review: With A Distant Mirror Tuchman has created a fascinating portrait of late-medieval Europe. She uses the life and career of a wealthy and talented French noble to give us a view of the principal events of the fourteenth century through the eyes of a contemporary. By doing this Tuchman not only provides herself with manageable material, but also depicts the historical narrative from the inside out, rather than from the outside in. Many historians have attempted to do this, but Tuchman is the first to avoid the trap of subjectivity. In addition to following the life and times of one person, Tuchman spends a large portion of the book illustrating the setting in which the story takes place. No other writer has depicted the troubles of the changing weather patterns and plague that brought about the chaos of the late-medieval period with the passion and humanity that Tuchman has. Tuchman has also endeavored to show life and history as they happened for peasants, serfs, and the urban poor in a way that is meaningful to the rest of the material. Finally, I would like to say that A Distant Mirror could make a great positive impact on the way history (as both the finite past and something that is always happening) is understood if it were used in schools -- and that is the highest praise I can give.
Rating:
Summary: A Delightful Read!
Review: A Distant Mirror is a delight to read, even for those who aren't terribly familiar with late Medieval France and England. This book is filled with unforgettable characters, including Barbara Tuchman's protagonist the Sire of Coucy. This chivalrous French noble rises to the top of the French aristocracy, and his fascinating life adventures take him to all corners of 14th century Europe and cause him to relate closely with most leading figures of the day including Kings, Princes, Popes, Knights, Outlaws, Nobles, and even celebrities like Chaucer. Barbara Tuchman's narrative is always informative and often entertaining and witty. She offers the reader some unforgettable images of French medieval events and life including the Hundred Years' War, Papal Schism, Black Death, 'Free Companies' Tournaments, Festivals, Ceremonies, and Courtly life and intrigues. Readers will learn about fascinating characters including: King Edward III of England and his son Edward, the heroic but ruthless Black Prince, the plotting King Charles "The Bad", incompetent French King Jean "The Good", English soldiers of fortune, extravagant and psychotic Dukes, corrupt Popes, and scores of other personalities such as Froissart and Chaucer. This is a book to read and treasure---don't miss!!
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't get past the price
Review: Another cassette I'll never hear. What's up with the cost?
Tapes cost a buck a piece......
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