Napoleon & Josephine: The Sword And The Hummingbird [Hardcover]

Gerald Hausman (Author), Loretta Hausman (Author)

Book Description

Series: Napoleon & Josephine | Publication Date: October 1, 2004

Acclaimed authors Gerald and Loretta Hausman weave together the stories of Napoleon and Josephine and their turbulent love affair in this lavish and beautifully written novel.

As Josephine grows up on the tropical island of Martinique, she dreams of moving to Paris to live a life of glamour. An arranged marriage to a French nobleman brings her to Paris, but not to the lifestyle she dreamt of. After a divorce and a terrible time during the French Revolution, she holds a party that Napoleon, the general who has grown famous after a series of military victories, attends. A tumultuous relationship develops that is filled with separations and fights and the most passionate declarations of love ever uttered.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up–This fictional treatment is sanitized and sentimental. The focus is on Josephine; events told from Napoleon's point of view seem awkward and out of place. The episodic chapters are frequently incomplete and lack continuity, providing only fleeting glimpses of these fascinating individuals and their motivations. There are major errors and omissions (such as the unhappy marriage of Josephine's daughter to Napoleon's brother) and problems with chronology. Dialogue is often stilted and silly. Although a few of Napoleon's affairs are mentioned, nothing is said of Josephine's romances or her shady business dealings. The final 13 momentous years of Josephine's life are hastily covered in four chapters; the authors depict her after the divorce as a recluse receiving occasional visits from dignitaries, but in reality she traveled and entertained extensively (and most of those royal guests arrived in the last month of her life, following Napoleon's abdication). Not enough background information is provided, and there are numerous, untranslated French terms and phrases. Napoleon and Josephine deserve better–and why, in this era of celebrating women, is there no young-adult biography of the influential, intriguing Josephine?–Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY
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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Orchard; First Edition edition (October 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439568900
• ISBN-13: 978-0439568906
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,396,980 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am an inveterate storyteller, which is to say: I love to do it, am helpless not to do it, and I do it all the time, even when I am by myself there is an inner monologue going on in my head. This habit of privately roving around in the land of legends is something I've done for as long as I can remember. My mom worried about me when she saw that I spent too much time by myself. I would creep into a closet and close the door and in the silence of the darkness I would spin tales of all kinds. I was never lonely as a kid because I had the imagination of a wild thing, and I was content to play in the fields and valleys and secret caves of that imaginary world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and Informative, January 3, 2005

By 

Gary H. Cassel "Flamingnet Teen Book Reviews" (Baltimore, MD, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Napoleon & Josephine: The Sword And The Hummingbird (Hardcover)

This is the story of the relationship between Napoleon Bonaparte and Josephine Beauharnais. After Josephine's original husband is killed in the French revolution by the guillotine, she seeks a new husband and finds one in Napoleon. He quickly falls in love with Josephine and creates what seems at times a one sided love. Napoleon must balance being a conquerer and being a husband. Yet Josephine, on the other hand, appeared to have more trouble in the relationship even though it did not seem she had many
distractions.

When I read the description of Napoleon and Josephine, I thought that there would be inappropriate content for children which made me very reluctant to read it. Fortunately, there was nothing of the sort. I found the story very interesting and informative, not only about Napoleon and Josephine, but also about the French Revolution. There were many twists and turns that made the book faster reading than your regular love story.

Reviewed by Flamingnet Book Reviews, www.flamingnet.com.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not an Enjoyabe Read, November 21, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Napoleon & Josephine: The Sword And The Hummingbird (Hardcover)

I was very excited to read this book because I love historical fiction, but I was not at all satisfied. I found Napoleon the most annoying character I've ever had in a book. He is self centered and arrogant. All he does is thimk about himself. Josephine isn't much better. She always lets Napoleon have his way. The only reason I finished this book was just for the sake of it. I would definitely not reccomend this book. It's a waste of time.

5.0 out of 5 stars Man and Woman, March 5, 2005

By 

David Kherdian (Spencertown, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Napoleon & Josephine: The Sword And The Hummingbird (Hardcover)

I have never had the slightest interest in Napoleon and Josephine, so for the authors to write a story with these people as the subject that I found interesting and enjoyable to read was quite a feat. The Hausmans pulled it off by tracing Josephine's life from childhood on, so that when she meets the ponderous, egomaniacal goof Napoleon, even he seems real and one is able to engage with interest in their topsy turvy relationship. The authors' use of interior monologue, quotations from Napoleon's letters, plus an intimate understanding of the period, makes for a great blend. I would be very surprised if this book doesn't do well for a very long period of time. -David Kherdian