"...Skinner has succeeded in creating a detailed picture of life in the region between Rome and Naples....The heart of Skinner's political narrative is her careful and highly successful reconstruction of local families in the manner typical of studies of the north, but unusual in local studies of the south....through a thoughtful consideration of what resources were necessary for town life, as well as grains, tenants, and market crops, Skinner is able to create an image of a relatively robust economy that continued to flourish in the twelfth century." American Historical Review