I love Alberth's approach to history; he covers social aspects, cultural aspects, and critical interpretation. Aberth is very good at walking students through his thinking; they will really learn about historical argument construction and the use of source evidence by reading his book.
John Aberth received his Ph.D. in Medieval History from the University of Cambridge, UK. He has published ten books--mostly focusing on the history of the Black Death and disease--and has taught for twenty years at various colleges and universities in Vermont, Nebraska, and New York.