"Historians' English," Philip Guedalla asserted, "is not a style; it is an occupational disease." To this verdict Thomas B. Costain would add a fervent Amen. The author of "The Black Rose" and "The Moneyman" has turned from his triumphs in historical fiction to write a popular history ["The Conquerors"]. "The picture that emerges," he submits in a pugnacious preface, "is, in my opinion, an honest and complete one." On this point some critics may have their reservations, but few will deny that the picture is detailed, diverting, and undeniably dramatic.

"The Conquerors" opens a series which will be known as "The Pageant of England." It covers, as the tedious textbook writers would say, the period from 1066 to 1216….

Thomas Costain belongs to the school of Michelet in his conviction that history ought to be a resurrection of the flesh, and he is in the great tradition of Scott and...