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Graham Robb

The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography Paperback – Illustrated, October 17, 2008

by Graham Robb (Author)

4.2 498 ratings

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"A witty, engaging narrative style…[Robb's] approach is particularly engrossing." ―New York Times Book Review

A narrative of exploration―full of strange landscapes and even stranger inhabitants―that explains the enduring fascination of France. While Gustave Eiffel was changing the skyline of Paris, large parts of France were still terra incognita. Even in the age of railways and newspapers, France was a land of ancient tribal divisions, prehistoric communication networks, and pre-Christian beliefs. French itself was a minority language.

Graham Robb describes that unknown world in arresting narrative detail. He recounts the epic journeys of mapmakers, scientists, soldiers, administrators, and intrepid tourists, of itinerant workers, pilgrims, and herdsmen with their millions of migratory domestic animals. We learn how France was explored, charted, and colonized, and how the imperial influence of Paris was gradually extended throughout a kingdom of isolated towns and villages.

The Discovery of France explains how the modern nation came to be and how poorly understood that nation still is today. Above all, it shows how much of France―past and present―remains to be discovered.

A New York Times Notable Book, Publishers Weekly Best Book, Slate Best Book, and Booklist Editor's Choice.

16 pages of illustrations

Print length

496 pages
Language

English
Publisher

W. W. Norton & Company
Publication date

October 17, 2008
Dimensions

5.5 x 1.2 x 8.3 inches
ISBN-10

0393333647
ISBN-13

978-0393333640
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Brilliant. Robb, who writes beautifully…has accomplished quite a feat. He has reintroduced France to itself."
― William Grimes, New York Times

"Scintillating and resourceful."
― Harper's

About the Author

Graham Robb is the author of three prize-winning biographies, each selected as New York Times Best Books. His books, including The Discovery of Middle Earth, Parisians, and The Discovery of France, have earned several awards. He lives on the Anglo-Scottish border.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ W. W. Norton & Company; Illustrated edition (October 17, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 496 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0393333647
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0393333640
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.1 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1.2 x 8.3 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #429,911 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #170 in Historical Geography
- #601 in French History (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.2 498 ratings

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Graham Robb

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Graham Robb, whose recent books include "The Discovery of France" and "Parisians," has published widely in French literature and history. His biographies of Balzac, Victor Hugo, and Rimbaud have won critical acclaim and were selected as New York Times Editor’s Choices for best books of the year. Robb lives in Oxford, England.

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William L. Scurrah

History of the Real France

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 6, 2022

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This truly fascinating book explores the history of the common folk of France, those far from the metropolitan centers of Paris and other major cities. What emerges is a detailed story of peasants, herders, small craftsmen, and parish priests who knew more folklore than theology, and networks of communication and trade that were surprisingly effective and efficient. As is true of most large countries, the cultural and political elites of the metropolitan centers represent only a small percentage of the total population, and these elites can be surprised when the folk rebel against their "civilizing" projects. Likewise, foreign tourists can be misled by the high culture of Paris into thinking that that represents the true France. Au contraire!

I gave this wonderful book only four stars because my copy of the Kindle edition omitted the illustrations.

One person found this helpful

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Ray

If you thought you knew everything about France, think again.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 16, 2008

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For those who have visited, studied, and reflected on that immensely fascinating country called France, Robb's book provides a truly unique and informative view of the country's recent history that stands alone when compared to other recent histories of France. The book categorizes its own genre as "historical geography," but even if you've never read one of those, just dive in and watch the story unfold.

Much of France's mystique is based on the rich and iconographic legends surrounding the country's rise and development. It's perhaps easy to think that, once we have learned the main themes, we have "learned" the country. These main themes are indeed incredibly interesting in their own right: the rise of Charlemagne and the establishment of the Carolingian Empire, the development of educational institutions such as the cathedral schools and the university, the creation of premier architectural forms such as Early, High, Rayonnant, and Flamboyant Gothic styles, the rise of the Napoleonic Empire, the many artistic contributions of persons from all parts of the country, and the undeniable scientific advances made by the French in last three centuries. And yet, we find upon reading Robb's book that it is possible to know a little about all these things and perhaps not still have an understanding of how the France that we know today really came to be. It's a story interesting, surprising, and unusual, but it's a story worth telling, and it helps make all the rest of the story make even more sense.

Robb's text deals with the period between the French Revolution and the emergence of the 20th century. As such, the author particularly focuses on how the governmental programs initiated immediately after the Revolution impacted the lives of virtually every person in the country. Indeed, much of Robb's book argues that, prior to these events, France existed in a set of disparate and non-standardized "pays," with even such basics as language and weights and measures existing in unique forms in virtually every region. The text helps us hypothesize why the French people feel the way they do about their language, their way of life, and even their political and educational institutions.

The entire book is consistently fascinating, but those who have travelled to France over the years should find the later part of the book of special and curious interest, for it is here that Robb describes the rise of tourism in France, and the effect that these new creatures called "tourists" had on the country. It's a cart-before-the-horse story, where we see the country adapting to tourism, rather than tourists adapting to the county. In a way, we can see that the tourist played his own special role in the preservation of France's historical and cultural sites, and it is simply engrossing to read the symbiotic relationship France and its tourists had, and still have today.

If you speak French, or if you're just an armchair admirer of the French language, reading Robb's description of how the French language came to be the established standard tongue all over the country is surely one of the greatest highlights of this book. For the historian, this story is one that is rarely told, and holds a set of people, places, and governmental programs not normally considered in more traditional French history books. For the educator, the ability to follow the story of how the government worked in concert with local educational centers to advance and stabilize all regions in France into French speaking domains must surely rank as one of the premier examples of the power of educational programs. Don't miss it.

Every Francophile will wish to consider this new entry into the historical collection of French history books. Don't be surprised if you end up with a renewed interest in what is already a fascinating history. Highly recommended.

29 people found this helpful

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madlyn fafard

The Discovery of France

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 17, 2014

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I loved The Discovery of Middle Earth: Mapping the Lost World of the Celts by Graham Robb, so it was natural for me to flow into this book.

A wonderful adventurous book, ride, walk, and just encounter the hinterlands of France and the adventure of becoming a country, united by a language. It was not easy, nor was the unification of a country and it's language. All roads led to Paris, and thus the unification began. A story of the turmoil of becoming, well fed with fodder, tidbits, and appetizers to keep you interested as you journey through a huge country separated by peaks and valleys that were dividing the locals as well as the country.

I could not help but think of the parallels of the United States becoming a country of many States during the same period of time, as also the unification of Italy. It was a time when unification made sense, so people could be accounted for and the State could grow and be responsible .

Crossing the Alps was an adventure and although the Grand Tour may or may not have been mentioned it was easily alluded to in the crossing of the Alps. The horses could not make some of the steep inclines, so a donkey was brought along. The coach would be taken apart, and the donkey would haul it on a travois over the top of the incline, where it would be reassembled for the harrowing ride down the mountain. Robert Louis Stevenson and others took the Grand Tour in this manner, across the Alps to Italy, and back.

Tid bits....
Superstition and lack of communication led to the death of one of Cassini's map makers. Spas grew up where people came to take the waters and fed by towns anxious for income more business grew up around the spas. Gossip could travel faster than man, one wondered how that could happen?

Today we think that everyone needs what civilization has to offer, but one is startled back to a one room cottage, with firepit, outside accommodations and uncleanliness. This was life for many of us before the advent of industrialization

Finally, I learned about the start of the Tour de France and I learned why, when I was in Paris in the 1950's the French would seem rude when they barked at me, "Speak French!" I did struggle to speak French, and wondered why they were so rude, after all I was only a "kid", struggling to make myself understood,( as though I could just spout out French)

The railroads, the coach roads, the many people that walked from the outlying areas, all came together in the glittering city of Paris, uniting the languages, the cultures and the ideals, until, we had ...Vive La France!

An interesting journey, worth the time for armchair travelers, that like to accumulate knowledge about the world and its people. Graham Robb is one to follow.

7 people found this helpful

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Wight Mann

NOT a conventional book on French history!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 8, 2022

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If you are looking for a book about the usual French history stuff, this isn't the one for you. I finished it and was interested, though it dragged a little in the middle.

Interesting book on French culture between the Revolution and WW1. Hard to explain.

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Weaver

Warning: Kimdle version has no photos

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 7, 2023

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Wonderful, wonderful survey of the France most of us never see, but the Kindle version has no photos and the maps of such low resolution as to be largely useless. Very, very disappointing.

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Christopher

Totally novel take

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on May 16, 2021

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4.5 stars. First the bad: as other reviewers have pointed out, at times the author has a way of slightly overstating his case. Moreover, unless you are REALLY interested in some of these anecdotes, the book drags a little bit near the end - I would say with more aggressive editing it could have been 10 or 15% shorter and remained just as good.

But overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The author succeeds in what he sets out to do: to dislocate "French" history and culture from Paris and to examine the periphery. A subtitle for this book could have been: How Paris colonized France. If you have even a passing interest in France, I would say this book is essential reading, it's really changed the way I think about both France in particular and nationalism in general. Highly recommended.

Sandra Lewis

An adventure I will always return to

Reviewed in Mexico 🇲🇽 on November 19, 2020

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I truly recommend this book. It is beautifully written.

Alex

French HISTORY book

Reviewed in Spain 🇪🇸 on August 31, 2017

Verified Purchase

I was originally looking for a book on modern day France and I thought this book would be more about the author's journey around the country but it is just about the history of France. It seems very well researched and detailed but wasn't really my thing so I gave it to my father who enjoys reading about history.

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Rob J

A great read

Reviewed in Australia 🇦🇺 on January 2, 2015

Verified Purchase

If you are interested in France, you should read this book which gives a fresh historical perspective of this fascinating country & its people.

Pat Brennan

Details!

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on February 24, 2018

Verified Purchase

I just love the detail he gives, the taste of France in the distant past. The images persist in my mind.

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