Charlemagne's Mustache presents the reader with seven engaging studies,
'thick descriptions', of cultural life and thought in the Carolingian
world. The author begins by asking questions. Why did Charlemagne have a
mustache and why did hair matter? Why did the king own peacocks and
other exotic animals? Why was he writing in bed and could he write at
all? How did medieval kings become stars? How were secrets kept and
conveyed in the early Middle Ages? And why did early medieval peoples
believe in storm and hailmakers? The answers, he found, are often
surprising.