Heloise and Abelard may be the greatest love story that most people have never heard of. All I knew about Heloise and Abelard was that they were twelfth century lovers, who's romance ended in tragedy. Oh and their joint grave site is right next to Jim Morrison's in Paris. I knew that they had to more to their story then just tragedy if 900 years after their death, we are still talking about them. So, I was very excited to read James Burge's book Heloise & Abelard: a New Biography. In the interest of full closure, I am a history student so I find these types of books fascinating. I know they can be boring but Burge is able to work through the material and make it read like a novel. He allows the reader to get involved in their love affair. A nice departure from the usually history literature fare.

Heloise and Abelard romance plays out against the background of twelfth century Paris. Abelard was the star of the intellectual community. A wunderkind, who out debated his teachers and set up his own school before the age of thirty. Heloise was the niece of a Bishop in Paris. She was raised in a convent and was educated. She was fluent in Latin and well versed in classical works. It is unclear how they met but Abelard moved into Heloise's Uncle's house and began to tutor her. They soon fell in love and began writing each other. Their letters will filled with they lusts and passion and even details of their sexual activity as well as they philosophical discussion. After two years of keeping their love affair a secret, Heloise became pregnant. Heloise's Uncle was obviously unhappy and took his revenge by hiring men to castrate Abelard. So that is one way to end a love affair or at least the physical aspect of it. Heloise and Abelard both entered monasteries and did not talk to each other for fifteen years. It took Abelard to write his own autobiography to get them to start to write each other again. Even after all they went through and their distance, their love was still present. Their story will make any cynic become a romantic.