This is a very fascinating book. As the title suggest, this book is a collection of primary sources involved in the events known to history as The First Crusade. The chronicles are presented in a chronological order. With the bulk of the them coming from the crusaders themselves (or pilgrims as they called each other), with a much smaller portion belonging to Byzantine, Jewish, and Muslim sources.

It was very intriguing reading how the different factions of this conflict viewed each other. Mainly the problems between the Byzantines and the Latins. But perhaps the most striking was the Jewish component surrounding the events, and how it affected them.

I’m somewhat fairly knowledgeable of the history of the crusades, however reading these primary sources definitely gave me a much better understanding of the myths and legends surrounding The First Crusade. I don’t think the translations themselves were literal, since I found this book to be very easy to read and understand. Overall, this is an excellent book that gives you a full narrative of The First Crusade. It is an absolute must read for anyone interested in the history of the crusades.