Medieval Travel and Travelers: A Reader

“Into this pedagogical new frontier comes a well-curated and original volume of primary sources, Medieval Travel and Travelers. The book is in University of Toronto Press’s very readable, useful, and economical series of translations and collations of sources suitable for classroom use and the general reader, Readings in Medieval Civilizations and Cultures.” Courtney Luckhardt, University of Southern Mississippi, Speculum

"Our investigations of travel and travelers in the pre-modern age continue to thrive at an amazing rate, but we also. need to didacticize curate the countless texts for the classroom. John F.. Romano here . comes to our rescue with this marvelous reader which includes both texts and images, and maps. and also adds copies of relevant maps.

While some of the selections are quite familiar like Marco Polo and Margery Kempe (Marco Polo, Margery Kempe), he has made an impressive attempt to include especially. Arabic, Jewish, and Persian authors who traveled naturally much. further east (China)to China or west to Africa(Africa) than most Europeans.are also included. In a way,. Romano allows us to embark on a global examination of the medieval world and to leave the shackles of Eurocentrism behind., which is a natural process because most travelers have always crossed boundaries and explored new worlds.. Most intriguingly, the editor groups the text excerpts thematically, which makes possible to recognize significant parallels and shared experiences. This is not only a very pragmatic and. welcome textbook, it also opens new perspectives through the inclusion of many authors who have commonly been ignored in western scholarship."

Albrecht Classen, University of Arizona

"Medieval Travel and Travelers brings together a fascinating and diverse set of sources, which are sure to challenge readers to revisit their ideas about both the global experience of travel and the medieval world. Familiar travelers like Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta are placed alongside an expansive range of material, including maps, phrasebooks, itineraries, business letters, poems, and diplomatic reports, in ways which will lead to important questions and exchanges. While the volume remains accessible to students and newcomers to medieval sources, even specialists are likely to find something new and thought-provoking here, whether an unfamiliar text or a surprising juxtaposition."

Kate M. Craig, Auburn University