I am a student of English medieval history, reading histories, listening to lectures and traveling to historic English sites. Despite these efforts, what I recall are disassociated dates, names and events.
Then I picked up “When Christ and the Angels Slept” by Sharon Kay Penman. With imaginative but believable narratives anchored in a historical framework, Penman made those jumbled facts cohere in a logical saga. From Henry I through Richard the Lionheart, I can finally grasp (and remember) how and why this period of English history unfolded.
Historically accurate, these chronicles still make engaging novels. The sheer volume of this series recommends e-reader form. While reading them, it dawned on me what the author truly demonstrates. A story is unsurpassed for communicating information.
If we want to “tell the farmer’s story,” we need to literally tell stories, not repeat virtues. Less “how wonderful we are” pitches and more tales about the lingering effects of the ’80s or an ancestor named “Lyin’ Abe.” Books such as “The Bridges of Madison County” shape public opinion more than checkoff public relations campaigns.
