"Books on "Dark Ages" Help Needed" Topic

My sister in law has asked me for help finding a book on the 'Dark Ages".

She is not a wargamer and has no interest in military history.

She is looking for a cultural history and one that covers the role of the church in dark ages society.

She asked me, and to be honest this is a period I have never really studied. I'm much more a Classic Period or Englightenment person.

What would you recommend?

1066 Year of the Conquest was good as I recall.

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Is she interested in a European history, an English history or some other geographical area? Where she is interested in will affect which books should be recommended.

Paul Cavill's Anglo-Saxon Christianity is a good starting point for looking at religion in England in this period. It's quite short and easy to read and can point the way for further reading.
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Sally Crawford's Anglo-Saxon England in the Shire Living Histories series is cheap and might be a good starter for history.
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The Anglo-Saxon Age: A Very Short Introduction is also worth a look, being both short and cheap.
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With these under her belt she would have the basics for Anglo-Saxon England and could pursue more detailed reading from the reading lists in these books or by checking out the reading lists for university undergraduate modules on the subject. You can usually google those from a lot of universities. Obviously, if she is interested more in European history, then the starting point would be different.

Would also suggest 1066… it is about the conquest, but covers a lot of the churches influence on the events.

I really enjoyed Howarth's 1066 as mentioned by others. If your sister-in-law is after a cultural history from the viewpoint of the church how about Bede's "Ecclesiastical History of the English People" link
A couple of older general books, you could try the "Penguin History of the Church"
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or the "Pelican History of England"
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"The Anglo-Saxon World:An Anthology"
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For European History, try Davis's "A History of Medieval Europe"
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138sqn,

Does she mean "Dark Ages" as the period before the Conquest, or is she speaking more colloquially? I don't mean to impugn anyone's knowledge of history, but sometimes in casual conversation, people use the term much more broadly. As a general-purpose introduction to Medieval society, I like Morris Bishop's "The Middle Ages" (American Heritage, 1968). it may not reflect the latest scholarship, but it is a lively, accessible read.

Ron

Thanks for the initial responses. She seems to be interested in the interaction between church and state in the early modern period.

Doesn't have to be specifically English.

Cahill's HOW THE IRISH SAVED CIVILIZATION shows the collapse of civilization in the west, its preservation in the DA, and then its recovery. Good stuff.

Roger Collins

Early Medieval Europe 300-1000

Is a good modern overview
Has both Thematic and narrative chapters
Inspired me to get back into the period

Cheers
David