This seminal work of scholarship, which traces the development of literacy in medieval England, is now fully updated in a third edition.

• This book serves as an introduction to medieval books and documents for graduate students throughout the world
• Features a completely re-written first chapter, ‘Memories and Myths of the Norman Conquest', and a new postscript by the author reflecting on the reception to the original publication and discussing recent scholarship on medieval literacy
• Includes a revised guide to further reading and a revision of the plates which illustrate medieval manuscripts in detail

Michael Clanchy is Professor Emeritus of Medieval History at the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, and a Fellow of the British Academy. In the 1990s he held interdisciplinary seminars on the significance of literacy at University College London, the Warburg Institute, and the Institute of Historical Research. Before moving to London in 1985, he taught at the University of Glasgow. He is the author of the popular textbook England and its Rulers 1066–1307 (third edition, 2006), and Abelard: A Medieval Life (1997).