A well-written, original and thought-provoking book. URBAN HISTORY This is an important study of groups that have all too often been regarded as colorful but marginal institutions. . . . [This] rich study offers a new angle of vision on medieval Flanders and suggests areas worthy of further study. SIXTEENTH CENTURY JOURNAL ... Read more [An] excellent study.....This is an important book on a topic that most earlier literature has dealt with only superficially or in local studies. HISTORY A welcome addition [and] very readable. THE RICARDIAN With numerous examples and an eye for relevant detail Crombie offers us the first study integrally devoted to a comparative study of these Flemish guilds. Furthermore, she uses abundant secondary literature, and, more importantly, interesting source material, of which much was never consulted before by historians. In sum, Crombie has written an important work for scholars of guild activities and urban Flanders in particular, and late medieval community life in general. RENAISSANCE QUARTERLY Show Less