“While all of this is the sort of stuff that professional medievalists love to see, the thing I like most about Perry and Gabriele’s effort is that it is fun. The Bright Ages is written in such an engaging and light manner that it is easy to race through. I found myself at the end of chapters faster than I wanted to be, completely drawn in by the narrative. You can tell how much the authors love the subject matter, and that they had a great time choosing stories to share and evidence to consider.” ― Slate "Incandescent and ultimately intoxicating, for as the chapters progress, it dawns on the reader that those who lived in this period were more conventional than cardboard figures. . . . They were, in essence, human." ― Boston Globe "This revisionist history of medieval Europe takes apart the myth of a savage, primitive period . . . with passion and verve, [Gabriele and Perry challenge] the reader to tackle assumptions, bias and prejudices about the past to create a more joined-up, inclusive picture of the thousand years that followed the sack of Rome." ― Peter Frankopan, The Guardian "The Bright Ages is a necessary book. It does the hard work of introducing audiences to a world that we too often overlook for expressly political reasons. It is also a joyful work. The medieval period, Perry and Gabriele argue, has good news for us. The world can be beautiful without centralized and brutal imperial power." ― Los Angeles Review of Books "....a magic carpet ride around all manner of medieval places and moments....Perry and Gabriele are particularly keen to wrestle the Middle Ages from the clutches of white supremacists and other dangerous forces that yearn for a full return to a simplified version of the period. And so the authors present the doings of clever and durable women, too often overlooked among the churning dynasties of the early Middle Ages." ― Irish Examiner “The Bright Ages shines a light on an age too often obscured by myth, legend, and fairy tales. Traveling easily through a thousand years of history, The Bright Ages reminds us society never collapsed when the Roman Empire fell, nor did the modern world wake civilization from a thousand-year hibernation. Gabriele and Perry show the medieval world was neither a romantic wonderland nor a deplorable dungeon, but instead a real world full of real people with hopes, dreams, and fears making the most of their time on earth.” ― Mike Duncan, author of Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution and The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic “This book is perfect for people who are interested in the period but don't know where to start. Because the scale is sweeping but so well organized. . . . Most importantly, it's really entertaining, so. I recommend.” ― Brandon Taylor, author of Real Life and Filthy Animals "A lively, searing, and transformative reimagining of the medieval world, The Bright Ages is brilliant in every way, both lucid in its arguments and sparkling in its prose. A gripping and compulsive read." ― Bruce Holsinger, author of A Burnable Book and The Gifted School "In this engaging new history of the Medieval period Gabriele and Perry achieve a feat: they have written something eminently readable, suffused with academic rigor, and ethically responsible." ― Candida Moss, author of The Myth of Persecution "Historians Gabriele and Perry argue in this accessible revisionist history that the so-called Dark Ages was actually a period of innovation that helped pave the way for the Renaissance and Enlightenment. . . . They add nuance and complexity to popular conceptions of the Dark Ages and make clear that beauty and achievement existed among the horrors. This is a worthy introduction to an oft-misunderstood period in world history." ― Publishers Weekly "Although traditional politics-and？great-men history makes an appearance, the authors keep current by including a surprising number of great women and emphasizing their disapproval of racism, sexism, and slavery. The result is an appealing account of a millennium packed with culture, beauty, science, learning, and the rise and fall of empires." ― Kirkus Reviews "Noted medieval historians Gabriele and Perry provide an engaging overview of a complex, yet often oversimplified era....sure to become a new standard for those seeking a comprehensive and inclusive review of medieval times." ― Booklist "Matthew Gabriele and David M. Perry liberate the Middle Ages from stereotypes and half-truths in The Bright Ages, revealing that world as 'not simple or clean, but messy and human'....[a] lively account of a misunderstood era." ― Shelf Awareness "This accessible trip through the medieval world is well worth taking for anyone wishing to better understand its complexity." ― Library Journal "Chapter by chapter, Gabriele and Perry usher into view, from behind the curtain of the familiar grand narratives and from multiple locations, an eclectic cast of characters―many of them women―who exemplify, in a multitude of ways, a dazzling brightness where history has instructed us to see only gloom." ― First Things

Chapter Page Selected Key locations viii Introduction The Bright Ages ix Chapter 1 Shimmering Stars on the Adriatic 1 Chapter 2 The Gleaming Tiles of the New Rome 15 Chapter 3 Dawn in Jerusalem 33 Chapter 4 A Golden Hen and the Walls of Rome 47 Chapter 5 Sunlight on a Northern Field 61 Chapter 6 A Towering Ivory Tusk 75 Chapter 7 A Ship Aflame on the Volga 91 Chapter 8 A Golden Girl in France 107 Chapter 9 The Brilliant Jewels of the Heavenly Jerusalem 121 Chapter 10 The Sun-Dappled Towers in a City of Three Religions 133 Chapter 11 Divine Light Reflecting Off the Nile 147 Chapter 12 A Radiant White Hind with the Antlers of a Stag 161 Chapter 13 Cities on Fire 175 Chapter 14 Stained Glass and the Smell of Burning Books 189 Chapter 15 Glistening Snow on the Eastern Steppe 205 Chapter 16 Quiet Candles and Falling Stars 219 Chapter 17 Stars Above an Octagonal Dome 233 Epilogue The Dark Ages 243 Acknowledgments 255 Further Reading 257 Index 279