In the superb edition of an early fifteenth-century collection of saint's lives, Waters (English, University of California, Davis) presents a complete analysis of the three base manuscripts, their probable provenance and the social and religious reasons for their creation. The choice of saints and the miracles described say a great deal about the aristocratic milieu of the author and his patrons. The edition is given in facing-page Middle and Modern English transcription, fully annotated with manuscript variants. An appendix suggests sources the author may have drawn upon in his creation of the text. This is an excellent example of careful, thorough scholarship, beautifully written. Distributed in North American by the David Brown Book Co. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)