Thomas Jefferson's Journey to the South of France [Hardcover]

Roy Moore (Author), Alma Moore (Author), Thomas Jefferson (Author), Lucia C. Stanton (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1999

The authors have taken the same route that Thomas Jefferson followed in 1787, recording on photographs the images and scenes he viewed some 200 years earlier. These are complemented with excerpts from his notes and letters.'

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This is no ordinary coffee-table book. It combines all the luscious photographs one would expect along with features that will please serious readers and scholarly specialists. Sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, photographer/ author team Roy and Alma Moore retraced the three-month journey through southern France that Jefferson made in the spring of 1787. Jefferson was an inveterate note taker and letter writer. He left hundreds of descriptions of the fields, rivers, buildings, and sights of Marseilles, Arles, and other spots in the region. The Moores have taken great pains to describe things as they must have appeared to Jefferson, that is, without today's automobiles, television antennas, and so on. Next to each photo, map, or engraving, the Moores present the relevant passage from Jefferson's letters or notes. Lucia C. Stanton, the Shannon Senior Research Historian at Monticello's International Center, has contributed an authoritative and interesting introduction. Highly recommended for university and public libraries.AThomas J. Schaeper, St. Bonaventure Univ., NY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

In the spring of 1787, Thomas Jefferson, the U.S. minister to the court of Louis XVI and an inveterate Francophile, took a memorable three-month tour through the South of France. This journey made an indelible impression on the ever-inquisitive Jefferson and provided him with enough agricultural, economic, architectural, and cultural data to subsequently incorporate into a 44-page encyclopedia of information pertaining to his experiences and observations during this trip. Utilizing excerpts from Jefferson's copious notes and correspondence, the Moores have retraced and recreated this fabled excursion. Gorgeously illustrated with more than 100 full-color photographs and a host of period maps, engravings, paintings, and portraits, this feast for the eyes also includes a penetrating introduction by Jeffersonian scholar Lucia C. Stanton. A sumptuous historical travelogue. Margaret Flanagan

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 159 pages
• Publisher: Stewart Tabori & Chang (May 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556708920
• ISBN-13: 978-1556708923
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #211,213 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #52 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( J ) > Jefferson, Thomas

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jefferson in France, September 3, 2011

By 

Anne L. Prescott (New York City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Thomas Jefferson's Journey to the South of France (Hardcover)

A beautiful book, although I had been hoping for even more quotations from Jefferson. Buy it for someone who loves that area of France--the photographs are just lovely.

4.0 out of 5 stars JOURNEYS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON, December 1, 2011

By 

Kay's Husband (Virginia, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Thomas Jefferson's Journey to the South of France (Hardcover)

In the year 1784 Mr. Jefferson moved to Paris, France, where he spent the following 5 years as our minister in residence for the new United States of America. These years allowed for Jefferson to increase his personal cultural development. See 'The Paris Years of Thomas Jefferson' by William Howard Adams for an in depth treatment of these interesting years.

This book 'Thomas Jefferson's Journey to the South of France' by Roy and Alma Moore through words and excellent color photographs help to recapture and illuminate a trip Jefferson took to the south of France in the spring of the year 1787. The book is organized around his itinerary of the trip, a trip which ultimately turned into a 3 month journey. He kept notes and later published a book based upon those notes.

This 1999 book is well conceived and helps illustrate what Jefferson saw and some of the places he visited. Back in 1999 this book cost me a great deal more money than what the reader will today spend to obtain it from sellers on Amazon, however, either way the book is not only worth any money expended but is an enjoyable book as well. When coupled with the a fore mentioned book by William Howard Adams, Jefferson's entire years can be seen in their fullest, including this trip took in 1787. Well done project.

Jefferson fell under the spell of France, maintaining that for all his life, and both or either of these books can help to gain some understanding of his feelings for this adopted country of his.