商品簡介
Barratt (humanities, University of Waikato, NZ) has taken one manuscript of the British Museum, MS Harley 494, and created a history of its time, owners and content. Until quite recently, devotional books for women were largely ignored by historians. They were considered nothing but compilations of known prayers and saints' lives. Recently they have come to be recognized as individual pictures of a particular person and place. Barratt, through masterful detective work, found records on the owner of the book, Anne Bulkeley, a Birgittine nun in early Tudor England. Anne and, presumably, her book were sent packing with the dissolution of the monasteries. Barratt managed to find where she went, who her family was and what may have happened to her. The history of the dissolution is told, as well. Barratt discusses the genre of devotional books and the importance of understanding what women chose to read. Along with the canonical Birgittine prayers there are also excerpts from the work of late medieval female mystics. The remainder of the book is devoted to a full transcription and translation of the manuscript with the source of each entry traced and a commentary. This masterful work would be a fine introduction to an undergraduate class. It will also be of great interest to serious scholars of Tudor history. Distributed in North America by The David Brown Book Co, Annotation c2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
