Michael Baizerman Author

Image: The Fair Death of Prester John in a Mounting Battle Against Chinggis Khan  http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=46452 The following chapter ushers in a new metamorphose of Prester John's character. A powerful potentate functions as an underdog in his fight against the Mongols. The new episode is connected to the all-out war in the eastern steppes, in the course of which Chinggis Khan managed to unite 'felt-walled' nomads into an invincible army. Here goes an extract: “A clever fighter is one who not only wins but excels in winning with ease.” (-Sun Tzu)        The steppe is a swath of grasslands extending east and west for thousands of unbroken miles between Manchuria and Hungary. The poor soil unable to sustain peasants toiling in their allotments suffers from the scorching sun in mid-summer and freezing cold in mid-winter.       The Mongols were a mixed blend of pa...

I have crossed a Rubicon meaning that my second book is complete.  It includes 29 chapters, to say nothing about summing-ups at the end of each of its 6 units.  The manuscript comprises over 90 K words,  hundreds of notes, and more than 30 images. 'The Enchanting Encounter with the East" tells a story of inter-cultural relations between Latin West and the Far East related from the European point of view. The scenario occurred in the Late Middle Ages when the actual dialog between the two opposite ends of the 'human planet' had become possible due to the opportunities of the Pax Mongolica. However, many European literati were still holding outdated views on the world beyond Islam and were fed by false rumors about the latest developments on the eastern rim of the known world. These legends are passed through generations until they eventually recede, giving up to the outlook based on personal experience of travelers and distinction between the sacred and the p...