God's Battalions, by Rodney Stark

I liked this history of and apology for the Crusades. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading history, especially to those who think the Crusades were colonial in motivation, or are confused by what the rational for the Crusades could possibly be. Mr. Stark summarizes the arguments in favor of the Crusades, and then tells the history of the Crusades. I thought some of his summaries were a little too short; I would have preferred to read a more developed treatment of the arguments. I really enjoyed the telling of the history, though, and learned that I have a lot still to learn in this life. That's hardly surprising, however, as that fact stares me in the face no matter the direction I turn.