The Black Death cover art

The Black Death

A Personal History

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The Black Death

By: John Hatcher
Narrated by: Geoffrey Centlivre
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About this listen

 In this fresh approach to the history of the Black Death, John Hatcher, a world-renowned scholar of the Middle Ages, recreates everyday life in a mid-14th century rural English village.

By focusing on the experiences of ordinary villagers as they lived - and died - during the Black Death (A.D. 1345 - 50), Hatcher vividly places the listener directly into those tumultuous years and describes in fascinating detail the day-to-day existence of people struggling with the tragic effects of the plague. Dramatic scenes portray how contemporaries must have experienced and thought about the momentous events - and how they tried to make sense of it all.

©2009 John Hatcher (P)2009 Audible, Inc. Europe Village Middle Ages

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Critic reviews

"This book uses a bit of fiction, mixing it with [Hatcher's] vast knowledge to illuminate that catastrophe." (Bookviews.com)
"The core of the story - the plague's effect on the lives of everyday people - is as true as can be surmised, nearly 700 years later." ( Cleveland Plain Dealer)
All stars
Most relevant
Very good history, while combined with fictional dialogue. This is NOT historical fiction. It is good solid history, with a smattering of character development. This is a very creative, yet honest approach to a period where dialogue does not exist.

Unusual combination of history with fictional seasoning

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Long winded account of the effects of the plague on the economy of the middle ages. Well written and informative but don't expect an in depth history of the plague.

Economic consequences of Black Death

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I really enjoyed this book.
A clever mixture of fact and faction and very informative.
I’ve listened a few times.

Fascinating

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This work combines expert analysis with carefully constructed narrative. John Hatcher is a professor of History at Cambridge, so he knows of what he writes. It is a cliché to say that an author brings the history to life - but he does! He adds life to to the shocking but inevitably dry data of that culling of humanity of the Black Death. One also sees the seeds of the ending of the feudal system, its replacement by the market, and the emergence of Protestantism.

For those who care for an honest interpretation of the past based on the known facts, rather than sensationalism or pandering to modern prejudices, this is the way history should be written.

Outstanding

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hearing this at what, we hope, is towards the end of the Covid Pandemic (?). We are very fortunate to live in the 21st rather than the 14th century, please thankful for that..
My only criticism of the narration is the American pronunciation of dates - the author may be American but the ‘venue’ is English. Otherwise, great.

Instructive

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