What people recommend, in their own words, with the receipt.
Historian of the Renaissance at the University of Chicago and science-fiction novelist, author of Terra Ignota and Inventing the Renaissance
10 things
Clerical Households in Late Medieval ItalyBook Roisin Cossar
Book cover of Roisin Cossar's brilliant book "Clerical Households in Late Medieval Italy." It's packed with fantastic stories about efforts to enforce clerical celibacy, and the myriad people who flouted them!
Blog post surveying LGBTQIA+ figures and themes across the Renaissance
exurbe.com ↗·2025-02-14Wrong?
The Renaissance in Italy: A Social and Cultural History of the RenaissanceBook Guido Ruggiero
It's hard to express how good this book is — comprehensive, well written, illuminating and thought provoking on both small and large points.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
Virtue Politics: Soulcraft and Statecraft in Renaissance ItalyBook James Hankins
Giant comprehensive masterful examination of what Renaissance humanists & philosophers were really trying to achieve.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval EuropeBook Matthew Gabriele & David M. Perry
Matthew Gabriele & David M. Perry, The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe, freshly published 2021 and so so fun and so so brilliant!
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
The Birth of the Modern Mind: The Intellectual History of the 17th and 18th CenturiesCourse Alan Kors, The Teaching Company
This is not a book but a set of lectures, an absolutely brilliant overview of the changes in western thought over the course of the 17th to 18th centuries that were so pivotal to the development of the modern world, especially science, democracy, and current ideas of ethics and politics.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
The Enlightenment: The Rise of Modern PaganismBook Peter Gay
Peter Gay has a beautifully warm and human way of writing about history that makes him a joy to read.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
The Autobiography of Benvenuto CelliniBook Benvenuto Cellini
One of the most entertaining primary sources ever written.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
The Noisy RenaissanceBook Niall Atkinson
A terrific book about the soundscape of Renaissance Florence. This is well written, thorough, scholarly, and also a ton of fun.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
The ReformationBook Diarmaid MacCulloch
This particular Reformation overview is thorough, well written, comprehensive, and reliable.
Ada Palmer's standing page of history book recommendations for readers of her blog
exurbe.com ↗·2022-01-05Wrong?
Forbidden Friendships: Homosexuality and Male Culture in Renaissance FlorenceBook Michael Rocke
My friend Michael Roche's brilliant book "Forbidden Friendships" shows how 40% to 60% of Florence's male population was indicted for sodomy (a capital offense!) at some point in their lives, yet practically all indictments ended with a fine. I cannot recommend this book enough!!!!
Blog post on a 1503 duel challenge between Galeazzo Sanseverino and Francesco Gonzaga, digressing into how Renaissance justice was enforced
exurbe.com ↗·2025-02-05Wrong?
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