Customer Reviews

French Revolution

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

 

 

I am convinced "the French Revolution" should always be placed in quotation marks, as there were many revolutions in France, spanning decades, and the last is arguably still under way. Hibberts chooses the period between the beginning of the trouble in the reign of Louis XVI and the coup d'etat of Napoleon Bonaparte.

The French Revolution is a narrative history, not an academic one. This means the average reader will enjoy reading it without being bogged down by copious footnotes and constant hemming and hawing about different opinions of this or that event. In this case, the result is a riveting story about the blood, sweat, and tears of "The French Revolution," along with some perspective and insight into the real tragedies that occurred on the way to French democracy.

I read The French Revolution while visiting Paris, and it added immensely to my enjoyment of the city. For example, I visited the Palais Royale and imagined it a hotbed of vice and insurrection, the Place de la Republique and imagined the ground muddy with the blood of victims of the Terror. The French Revolution allowed me to experience Paris as if I already knew the place, to some extent.

Anyone interested in "getting up to speed" on the French Revolution would be well-served in reading this book.

I don't know what the previous reviewer was thinking when he gave this book one star. I've never written a review for a book here before, but I just had to counterbalance the negative review below.

This is one of THE best historical narratives that I have EVER read. In fact, it is so well-written by such a respected historian, that it was one of the required texts for my European History 1788-1914 class. It inspired me to major in French history, actually. It is extremely interesting and easy to read - more of a "story" with all of the relevant details and engaging characters than just a boring textbook that spouts dates and events without the all-important context and interrelationships. Christopher Hibbert has such an intriguing writing style and point of view, that I never tire of reading his books (and there are a LOT of them out there).

So don't one bad review turn you off - this is definitely a book worth reading whether you are already well-versed in revolutionary France in the 1780s or if you would like an exciting and easy to read narrative introduction to the subject. It's just a great book. :)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Hibbert, only recently passed on, can render even the most complex historical situation (and the French Revolution is certainly this) comprehensible to the lay reader. I have read several of his books and recommend them highly. He writes in a lucid, elegant style, packing rich explanatory detail in each of his sentences.

George Snider

I also feel I must counterbalance the negative review below. I strongly recommend this book as a good and readable overview of the French Revolution. Mr. Hibbert is a wonderful writer. He brings history to life by finding the human element in a story, by giving us interesting details about the people involved, instead of just reciting dates and events and providing dry analysis. I also highly recommend his book Redcoats and Rebels, which tells the story of the American Revolution with emphasis on the British point of view.

This book is absolutely horrible. Its too taxing on your attention span,boasts little significant facts and is full of random information about the most trivial "events" in the revolution.Im afraid this is another literary work displaying the authors 'skills' in writing unnecessary complicated unorganized paragraphs that show us he went to all the right places for his education.Unfortunately the author boasts no talent for inventive history telling...now i gotta go buy another book on the revolution and hope its not as unsatisfying...:(