London : Oneworld, 2015.
xi, 180 pages : illustrations ; 20 cm
I guess it's just really, really hard to write a short and memorable introduction to a subject as sprawling and complex as the Crusades. It might be like asking someone to write a short introduction to contact between Europeans and American Indians - the first 200 years. There's just so much time and geography to cover, and so many important figures to include. I liked reading The Crusades by Jotischky, but after finishing it, I retained the broadest outlines of the history.
Perhaps that is the best a lay reader can hope for. Jotischky does a fine job of laying out the major events of the Crusades which spanned the period of 1095 to about 1291. He also provides some of the major forces underlying the Crusades (the complex web of papal, nobility, state and royal power, the role of religious belief, the cultural differences of both allies and enemies, etc.). It is an interesting period for certain, but I'm afraid it's just too much for one short book.
I would recommend this book to a student who is already interested in the Crusades, or one who is researching the Crusades, but I would hesitate giving it to a student who is just interested in a non-fiction work of history.
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