Title: worthwhile but annoying
Review: To Be a Pilgrim delivers exactly what the title promises. Comprehensive and well-researched, it divides this vast topic into sections dealing with the rise of the pilgrim tradition in Christianity, the most poplular sites and some not so well known, the joys and perils of the journey, the hopes and motivations of the pilgrim, signs and symbols, and the decline of the pilgrimage in the late middle ages. While I enjoyed reading this volume, which is beautifully illustrated, I also noticed numerous errors in vocabulary, choice of words (eg, "parody" rather than "parallel"), and proofing (someone was reported to have drunk the blood of St Thomas Becket!) These signs of sloppy editing were frequent enough to be distracting. Nevertheless, there is much to learn in To Be a Pilgrim, and it is worth a reading for the student of medieval history and religious practices.
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