Becoming Charlemagne; Europe, Baghdad, and the Empires of A.D. 800

New York: Harper Perennial [An Ecco book], 2007. First Harper Perennial Edition [stated]. First printing [stated]. Trade paperback. Very good. Paul J. Pugliese (Map). The format is approximately 5.25 inches by 8 inches. xx, 284 pages. Map. Illustrations. Notes. Bibliography. Index. From the author: For ten years, I taught medieval literature for the University of Maryland University College. Since 1999 I've been part of the team at PhotoAssist, Inc., where I've helped the U.S. Postal Service research and develop more than 100 stamps and stamp sheets on a dizzying array of cultural subjects, including military history, Islamic holidays, Hollywood legends, and fine art. I've told the stories of a medieval warlord, a government agency, one of the country's most influential art centers, and a Reconstruction-era African American town. Becoming Charlemagne focused on five years in the reign of the real-life warlord who inspired centuries of legends and lore. From the beginning, I set out to write an accessible narrative, a goal that evolved from the college classes I was teaching at the time. While emphasizing the long-distance diplomacy between kings, emperors, and popes, I tried to portray medieval history on a human scale. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly praised Becoming Charlemagne for offering "dazzling glimpses of Charlemagne's life and times." The assessment of Kirkus Reviews was as positive as it was philosophical: "Debunking the myths that surround legendary figures is a tricky business, but Sypeck acknowledges the allure of the ways in which Charlemagne and his era have been romanticized, mitigating the sting and turning it into an educational opportunity." Booklist hailed Becoming Charlemagne as "an inspired, instantly readable work of popular history." On Christmas morning in the year 800, Pope Leo III placed the crown of imperial Rome on the brow of a Germanic king named Karl, a gesture that enabled the man later hailed as Charlemagne to claim his empire and forever shape the destiny of Europe. Becoming Charlemagne tells the story of the international power struggle that led to this world-changing event, illuminating an era that has long been overshadowed by myth. For 1,200 years, the deeds of Charlemagne inspired kings and crusaders, the conquests of Napoléon and Hitler, and the optimistic architects of the European Union. In this engaging narrative, Jeff Sypeck crafts a vivid portrait of the ruler who became a legend, while evoking a long-ago world of kings, caliphs, merchants, and monks. Transporting readers far beyond Europe to the glittering palaces of Constantinople and the streets of medieval Baghdad, Becoming Charlemagne brings alive an age of empire building that continues to resonate to this day. Author Jeff Sypeck considers the history and accomplishments of one of the more famous Frankish kings and Roman emperors in Becoming Charlemagne: Europe, Baghdad, and the Empires of A.D. 800. Charlemagne, whose life has taken on legendary status over the centuries, was indeed a monarch of considerable accomplishment. Although he is referred to in some sources as King Charles, Sypeck calls the great king Karl, noting in an interview with Peter C. Hansen on the Legal History Project Web site: "I went with the K because it's phonetic, it looks more Germanic to English speakers, and it's the spelling on documents from his later, imperial years." In the book, Sypeck "affectionately peers behind the legends surrounding Charlemagne and magnificently chronicles four significant years in the emperor's life," noted a Publishers Weekly reviewer. During the years 796 to 800 A.D., Charlemagne presided over a consolidation of his kingdom via a combination of military action, political treaty-making, and religious diplomacy with neighboring Muslims. He was a king with a great respect for others, with a reverence for books and education, and with a reputation for being fair but stern when needed. Charlemagne's greatest accomplishments, and the ones that followed him into legend, came after Pope Leo III made him Emperor of Rome in 800. In addition to chronicling the rise of Charlemagne, Sypeck also looks at the lives of the monarch's subjects, and details the everyday labors and activities that formed the underpinning of Charlemagne's restored Roman empire. He considers the emperor's many friends and supporters, and looks at several unique aspects of Charlemagne's personality and rule. Sypeck also uncovers much notable information about Charlemagne, including the fact that he was never referred to by that name when he was alive. "‘Charlemagne' is a name that the man himself never heard; it's the French contraction of the Latin Carolus Magnus, ‘Charles the Great,'" Sypeck stated in the interview with Hansen. "Charlemagne is a character in medieval poems and modern storybooks. Karl, king of the Franks, was the living, breathing historical figure." "Aimed at a general audience, this short, well-written book tells the story very accessibly," remarked Robert Harbison in the Library Journal. Booklist reviewer Gilbert Taylor called Becoming Charlemagne "an inspired, instantly readable work of popular history." A Kirkus Reviews contributor noted that Sypeck's account successfully "illuminates the shadowy corners of an era shrouded in the mists of legend."