Customer Reviews

The Age of Conversation

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The description on the synopsis of the book provided by the "Book reviews" is fairly accurate. Therefore, I will only point out that the book is no very engaging, but it is not dry either. It can be savoured by the professional historian, and by the educated layperson too. Therefore, my rating is 5 (content) and 3/4 (pleasure). In addition to this work, other books that I would recommend reading would be 1) "Nobilities in Transition 1550-1700 : Courtiers and Rebels in Britain and Europe" by Ronald G. Asch; 2 and 3)"Myths of Power. Norbert Elias and the Early Modern European Court " and "Vienna and Versailles : The Courts of Europe's Dynastic Rivals, 1550-1780 (New Studies in European History)" by Jeroen Duindam (whose books present a more accurate view of monarchy, nobility, the court and the state contrary to that provided by Elias's "The Court Society"); and 4) "The Pleasures of the Imagination: English Culture in the Eighteenth Century" by John Brewer.

Thoroughly enjoyed this hundred year plus survey of women who influenced French culture and the world through their skillful handling of men of letters and men of power. It is well-written, not ponderous or academic like many histories. Anyone who is interested in France, nobility, women's history, or the art of living well will find this an intriguing look into the beautiful drawing rooms of Paris. I can think of several friends to whom I would recommend this book. Truly satisfying.

This is an excellent study of the salon movement in France during the 17th and 18th centuries. It is both scholarly and readable. After many years of reading about this phenomenon during the Enlightenment, I feel that I have begun to understand how it came to be and why it was so important. Ms Craveri has put the intellectual contributions of women in the 17th and 18th centuries into a comprehensible context. I especially enjoyed the citations from primary sources which give texture to her work.

A very detailed study about how some women in the XVIII century France became leading "locomotives" in society, dictating the ways people shoud behave, talk and even think. It's interesting but a little too long and too detailed.