130,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿 

Happy Long Weekend! We're open all 3 days! 📚 Open 7 days, 8:30am–5pm

Middle English Romances

A Norton Critical Edition
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
This Norton Critical Edition presents eleven complete Middle English romances, including titles such as Havelok, Ywain and Gawain, and The Sege off Melayne. The volume features an updated introduction and explanatory footnotes, providing rich historical and literary context. Additional sections offer detailed headnotes, comparative analogues, and eight critical essays to deepen understanding of these medieval narratives.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$5799
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 3-4 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for students, scholars, and enthusiasts of medieval literature and English cultural history seeking comprehensive texts and critical resources on Middle English romantic narratives.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

"Thank heavens for Stephen Shepherd: his wit, expert editorial finesse and, not least, his critical judgment clear a path for us not only to fascinating texts, but also to an evergreen genre. The second edition of Middle English Romances guarantees pleasure and illumination." - James Simpson, Harvard University

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

This Norton Critical Edition includes:

  • The texts of eleven complete, authoritative romances—four new to the Second Edition: Havelok, Ywain and Gawain, Of Kyng Robert of Cisyle, Hou Pride dude Him Begyle, Sir Orfeo, Sir Launfal, Athelston, The Awntyrs off Arthure at the Terne Wathelyne, The Weddyng of Syr Gawen and Dame Ragnell for Helpyng of Kyng Arthoure, The Grene Knight, The Sege off Melayne, and The Taill of Rauf Coilyear, How He Harbreit King Charlis.
  • A thorough introduction accompanied by updated and expanded explanatory footnotes by Stephen H. A. Shepherd.
  • In "Sources and Backgrounds," detailed contextualizing headnotes and comparative analogues (many complete) for each of the eleven romances.
  • In "Criticism," eight essays—four new to the Second Edition—that help students analyse the themes of Middle English romances.
  • An updated selected bibliography.

Series: Norton Critical Editions

View all
  • The Arabian Nights
    Few works of literature are as familiar and beloved as The Arabian Nights. Yet few remain also as unknown. In English, The Arabian Nights is a literary work of relatively recent date—the first versions of the tales appeared in English barely two hundred years ago. The tales are accompanied by a preface, a note on the text, and explanatory annotations....
    Paperback
    $4799
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Odyssey
    This Norton Critical Edition includes: Emily Wilson's authoritative translation of Homer's masterpiece, accompanied by her informative introduction, explanatory footnotes, and book-by-book summaries. Four maps, created especially for this translation. Contextual materials including sources and analogues by Homer, Sappho, Pindar, and others. Also included are carefully chosen passages from (mainly) ancient texts that provide insight into The Odyssey and its reception...
    By Homer
    Paperback
    $10100
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • Alice in Wonderland
    This Norton Critical Edition includes: The texts and original illustrations from the 1897 editions of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass as well as the 1878 edition of The Hunting of the Snark. Revised and updated footnotes, headnotes, and introductory materials by Donald J. Gray. Selections from Carroll's diaries, letters, and other source materials examining three distinct periods...
    Paperback
    $4199
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • Paradise Lost
    This Norton Critical Edition includes: The 1674 text of Paradise Lost, with emendations and adoptions from the first edition and from the scribal manuscript. Spelling and punctuation have been modernised for student readers. An illuminating introduction and abundant explanatory annotations by Gordon Teskey. Source and background materials, including Milton's greatest prose work, Areopagitica, in its entirety and key selections from...
    Paperback
    $5899
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Secret Agent
    This Norton Critical Edition includes: - The first English book edition of the novel (1907), accompanied by explanatory footnotes. - Four illustrations. - Contemporary sources that informed Conrad's writing of the novel, including newspaper accounts of the "Greenwich Bomb Outrage," articles from the anarchist press, earlier fictional treatments of the Martial Bourdin case (the inspiration for Adolph Verloc), and important...
    Paperback
    $3399
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Mill on the Floss
    The text of The Mill on the Floss, based on the 1862 third edition for which Eliot made her last revisions, has been annotated to assist the reader with obscure references and allusions. Backgrounds includes fifteen letters from the 1859-69 period centring on the novel's content and composition; Brother and Sister (1869), a little-known sonnet sequence; and eight Victorian reviews...
    Paperback
    $3599
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The House of the Seven Gables
    This Norton Critical Edition includes: The first edition of the novel, published in 1851 by Ticknor, Reed, and Fields. Robert S. Levine's insightful introduction, revised headnotes, expanded explanatory footnotes, and note on the text and annotations. A generous selection of carefully chosen primary materials—three of them new to the Second Edition—intended to provide readers with essential backgrounds on the novel's...
    Paperback
    $4099
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Pilgrim's Progress
    Briefly imprisoned for preaching without a license, John Bunyan is believed to have begun writing the most famous Christian allegory, The Pilgrim's Progress, while in jail. The Pilgrim's Progress was published in 1678 (Part I) and 1684 (Part II). Edited and annotated with the student reader in mind, this Norton Critical Edition is the indispensable guide to the language, allusions,...
    Paperback
    $4299
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Coquette and The Boarding School
    Hannah Webster Foster's two major Early American works with a wealth of primary materials are now available in a Norton Critical Edition. Published anonymously in 1797, Hannah Webster Foster's The Coquette grabbed American interest with its ripped-from-the-headlines story of sex and scandal. A steady bestseller for decades, the seduction novel was passed down through generations; indeed, its heroine became better...
    Paperback
    $3699
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Conjure Stories
    Fourteen conjure tales by one of America's most influential African American fiction writers. This Norton Critical Edition of The Conjure Stories arranges the tales chronologically by composition date, allowing readers to discern how Chesnutt experimented with plots and characters and with the idea of the conjure story over time. With one exception, the text of each tale is that of...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Blithedale Romance
    This Norton Critical Edition of The Blithedale Romance is based on the Centenary Edition of the Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne, widely considered the best available edition. It is accompanied by explanatory annotations to help readers with Hawthorne's many historical and literary references, as well as with other possible sources of difficulty in the text. The section on "Contexts" is thematically...
    Paperback
    $4999
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
    Known only as the "Ex-Colored Man," the protagonist in Johnson's novel is forced to choose between celebrating his African American heritage or "passing" as an average white man in a post-Reconstruction America that is rapidly changing. This Norton Critical Edition is based on the 1912 text. It is accompanied by a detailed introduction, explanatory footnotes, and a note on the...
    Paperback
    $3799
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780393934168

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 25 October 2023

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Edition: Second Edition

Contributors:

  • Edited by Stephen H. A. Shepherd

Audience: Tertiary education

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 48.0mm

Width: 132.0mm

Height: 216.0mm

Weight: 707g

Pages: 864

About the Author

Stephen H. A. Shepherd is a professor of English at Loyola Marymount University. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Queen’s University at Kingston and his doctorate from the University of Oxford. His honors include fellowships from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Bibliographical Society of America, and the Huntington Library. He is the editor of the Early English Text Society edition of Turpines Story and of the Norton Critical Edition of Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Darthur, and he is a coeditor of the Norton Critical Edition of William Langland’s Piers Plowman. The primary focus of his research and publication is the critical, codicological, and historical contexts of medieval English literature.

More from Arts & Culture

View all
  • Dylan's Pick
    Bold Types
    A tribute to 32 truly independent bookshops throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, from north of Auckland down to Dunedin, and coast to coast. Jane Ussher's photographs show every bookstore in its unique nature - including behind the counter, smoko rooms, the mess which tells the hardworking story behind the joy of matching books with customers. Jemma Moreira's careful editing has crafted...
    Hardback
    $5999
    Elsewhere:
    $7000
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • New Release
    I’ll Believe in Anything
    From Jacob Tierney, the creator of Heated Rivalry, in partnership with Brendan Brady and Accent Aigu, comes I’ll Believe in Anything, an official and complete collection of annotated scripts for the biggest cultural sensation of the year, with all new exclusive behind-the-scenes content.Based on Rachel Reid’s blockbuster Game Changers book series, Heated Rivalry premiered on Crave and HBO in late 2025 and immediately took the world by storm. I’ll...
    Hardback
    $5499
    Elsewhere:
    $6000
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • On Sale
    16% off
    New Release
    Home Again
    Join rock-legend, former Shihad frontman and lead singer of The Adults, Jon Toogood in this unflinching and no-holds-barred memoir Home Again.This is more than a rock story. Toogood looks back on a 37-year career that helped define New Zealand rock music, and the personal cost that came with it. From a music-obsessed childhood in Wellington to the deafening roar of international stages, this...
    Paperback
    $2700
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • On Sale
    20% off
    The Odyssey
    Composed at the rosy-fingered dawn of world literature almost three millennia ago, The Odyssey is a poem about violence and the aftermath of war; about wealth, poverty and power; about marriage and family; about travellers, hospitality, and the yearning for home. This fresh, authoritative translation captures the beauty of this ancient poem as well as the drama of its narrative....
    By Homer
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $3599
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • On Sale
    21% off
    The Iliad
    When Emily Wilson's translation of The Odyssey appeared in 2017—revealing the ancient poem in a contemporary idiom that was "fresh, unpretentious and lean" (Madeline Miller, Washington Post)—critics lauded it as "a revelation" (Susan Chira, New York Times) and "a cultural landmark" (Charlotte Higgins, Guardian) that would forever change how Homer is read in English. Now Wilson has returned with an...
    By Homer
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • New Release
    A Life in Lyrics
    Freddie Mercury was one of the greatest showmen of the twentieth century. With his unparalleled voice and searing on-stage energy, he was a great pretender, a killer queen and a champion of the world. But behind the glamour lived a musician and lyricist talented beyond measure, and the creative force behind one of the most culturally significant and musically diverse...
    Hardback
    $5000
    Elsewhere:
    $6500
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • Disney Moana: The Official Cookbook
    On Sale
    20% off
    Disney Moana: The Official Cookbook
    Embark on a culinary adventure with Moana of Motunui with Pacific recipes inspired by Moana and Moana 2! After a long day of sailing to see how far you’ll go or keeping the demigod Maui out of trouble with Te Fiti, catch a break with the delicious dishes in Moana: The Official Cookbook! Featuring more than 50 recipes spanning the...
    Hardback
    $3600
    Elsewhere:
    $5299
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • Birdlands Birdlands
    New Release
    Birdlands
    A rare, intimate journey into the wild islands where Aotearoa's birds live beyond the reach of most human lives. In the most remote outposts of Aotearoa, our islands are populated not with people, but with birds. From the storm-lashed Subantarctic Islands in the deep south to the scattered volcanic islands of Tikapa Moana/Hauraki Gulf in the north, Birdlands offers a...
    Hardback
    $4199
    Elsewhere:
    $5000
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • On Sale
    21% off
    This Angry Pen of Mine
    This Angry Pen of Mine by Layne Staley invites you to dive into the untold creative world of Layne Staley, the legendary voice behind Alice in Chains. This extraordinary collection showcases his handwritten lyrics, deeply personal poetry, stunning original artwork, rare photos, fan tributes, and so much more. Step into the world of Layne Staley like never before. For the...
    Hardback
    $5800
    Elsewhere:
    $8999
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • Beautiful Chaos
    New Release
    Beautiful Chaos
    Featuring five exclusive new poems, this stunning foil-embossed hardback edition is a collector's item and a gorgeous gift. The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller. Selected poems on motherhood from bestselling author and Instagram poet, Jessica Urlichs. 'Reading Jess's poems makes me feel like she's somehow reached into my own personal reflections and articulated them in a way I never could.' –...
    Hardback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • Split Enz
    New Release
    Split Enz
    'My favourite band. Ever! And certainly the best dressed.' Sam Neill Split Enz were never designed to fit. Emerging from art school mischief in early-1970s New Zealand, they turned pop into surreal theatre: costume, character and melody colliding in a rock band that refused to behave like one. At the centre of that vision was Noel Crombie—percussionist, performer and the...
    Hardback
    $5199
    Elsewhere:
    $6500
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday
  • Mah Jong Player's Companion
    Since the arrival on the market of Patricia Thompson and Betty Maloney's two previous books, The Game of Mah Jong Illustrated and Improve Your Mah Jong, a wide range of hands from many parts of the world has been sent to them. In this player's companion, the authors have put together a cross-filled reference guide where over 120 hands, illustrated...
    Paperback
    $1999
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Tuesday

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.