Okay, let's set the scene. It's the 14th century, and a bunch of people are meeting at an inn in Southwark, London. They're all about to make the pilgrimage to the shrine of Thomas Becket in Canterbury. To kill time on the road, the inn's host, Harry Bailly, suggests a game: each pilgrim will tell two stories on the way there and two on the way back. The person with the best story gets a free feast when they all return. While Chaucer planned for 120 stories, he only completed 24. But what we have is more than enough.

The Story

There isn't one single plot. Instead, it's a story about stories. We meet the pilgrims first—a brilliant cross-section of medieval England. There's the noble Knight, the worldly Wife of Bath, the greedy Pardoner who sells fake religious relics, the corrupt Summoner, and many more. Then, they start telling their tales. The Knight kicks things off with a lofty romance about two knights in love with the same woman. The Miller, drunk and rude, immediately follows with a filthy but hilarious story about a carpenter being tricked by a student. And so it goes: a saint's life, a beast fable, a sermon, a dirty joke. The tales often clash with each other and argue with the teller's own personality, which is half the fun.

Why You Should Read It

Don't let its age scare you. This is a living, breathing, and often riotous book. The characters feel incredibly modern. The Wife of Bath, with her five husbands and fierce opinions on marriage and authority, could headline her own podcast today. The Pardoner is a classic con artist we'd recognize instantly. Chaucer doesn't put anyone on a pedestal; he shows the greed, lust, hypocrisy, and also the genuine goodness, of ordinary people. Reading it, you get a front-row seat to the entire world of the Middle Ages—its faith, its social tensions, its humor, and its heart—all through the voices of the people living in it. It's history without the dust.

Final Verdict

This book is perfect for anyone who loves people-watching and great characters. If you enjoy shows or books with a large, interconnected cast where everyone has a secret and an agenda, you'll find the same thrill here. It's also a great pick for readers curious about history but who want a direct line to the past's gossip, jokes, and arguments. Get a modern translation (I recommend the one by Nevill Coghill for starters)—it makes all the difference. You're not reading a relic; you're listening in on the best, most chaotic group chat of the 1380s.