It's easy to reduce France to the sum of its parts: weekend breaks amid the culture of Paris or summer holidays basking in the sunshine of the south; accounts of the Revolution -- Madame Defarge knitting beside the guillotine -- and Napoleon's battle at Waterloo (mis)remembered from school history lessons; a country famous for its intellectuals, its philosophers and writers, its fashion, food and wine.
Despite this, however, the notion of 'the French' as one nation is relatively recent and -- historically speaking -- quite misleading; in order to discover the 'real' past of France, it's not only necessary to go back in time, but also to go at a slower pace than modern life generally allows: this book is the result of 14,000 miles covered by bicycle (and four years spent in the library). It is -- at last -- a book which tells the whole story.
Praise for Robb's last novel, Strangers: Homosexual Love in the Nineteenth Century:
‘Funny, enterprisingly researched, and undertaken with few apparent preconceptions . . This is an excellent, amusing, decent book, which covers an enormous amount of ground in a little space’ Philp Hensher, Spectator
‘A fascinating study of a complex subject, written with humanity, sceptical intelligence and an impressive command of the sources’ Daily Telegraph
‘A fascinating mix of personal testimony and judiciously filleted history’ The Times
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Robbs concise and fast-paced writing pedals along with never a dull paragraph, as facts, events, characters and quotations flash by... This book is an elegy to what has disappeared, a retrospective exploration of that lost world...Dazzling and moving. --Sunday Times
Winner of the 2008 Duff Cooper Prize
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
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Condition: Very Good. This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. . Seller Inventory # 7719-9780330427609
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Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
Paperback. Condition: Very Good. It's easy to reduce France to the sum of its parts: weekend breaks amid the culture of Paris or summer holidays basking in the sunshine of the south; accounts of the Revolution - Madame Defarge knitting beside the guillotine - and Napoleon's battle at Waterloo (mis)remembered from school history lessons; a country famous for its intellectuals, its philosophers and writers, its fashion, food and wine. Despite this, however, the notion of 'the French' as one nation is relatively recent and - historically speaking - quite misleading; in order to discover the 'real' past of France, it's not only necessary to go back in time, but also to go at a slower pace than modern life generally allows: this book is the result of 14,000 miles covered by bicycle (and four years spent in the library). It is at last a book which tells the whole story. 'Funny, enterprisingly researched, and undertaken with few apparent preconceptions .This is an excellent, amusing, decent book, which covers an enormous amount of ground in a little space' - Philp Hensher, "Spectator". 'A fascinating study of a complex subject, written with humanity, sceptical intelligence and an impressive command of the sources' - "Daily Telegraph". 'A fascinating mix of personal testimony and judiciously filleted history' - "The Times". The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR001254204
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Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
Paperback. Condition: Good. It's easy to reduce France to the sum of its parts: weekend breaks amid the culture of Paris or summer holidays basking in the sunshine of the south; accounts of the Revolution - Madame Defarge knitting beside the guillotine - and Napoleon's battle at Waterloo (mis)remembered from school history lessons; a country famous for its intellectuals, its philosophers and writers, its fashion, food and wine. Despite this, however, the notion of 'the French' as one nation is relatively recent and - historically speaking - quite misleading; in order to discover the 'real' past of France, it's not only necessary to go back in time, but also to go at a slower pace than modern life generally allows: this book is the result of 14,000 miles covered by bicycle (and four years spent in the library). It is at last a book which tells the whole story. 'Funny, enterprisingly researched, and undertaken with few apparent preconceptions .This is an excellent, amusing, decent book, which covers an enormous amount of ground in a little space' - Philp Hensher, "Spectator". 'A fascinating study of a complex subject, written with humanity, sceptical intelligence and an impressive command of the sources' - "Daily Telegraph". 'A fascinating mix of personal testimony and judiciously filleted history' - "The Times". The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine. Seller Inventory # GOR002200739
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Hardcover. Condition: Used; Very Good. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. Though second-hand, the book is still in very good shape. Minimal signs of usage may include very minor creasing on the cover or on the spine. Seller Inventory # CHL1761983
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Hardcover. Condition: Bon. Ancien livre de bibliothèque. Légères traces d'usure sur la couverture. Jaquette abîmée. Edition 2007. Ammareal reverse jusqu'à 15% du prix net de cet article à des organisations caritatives. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION Book Condition: Used, Good. Former library book. Slight signs of wear on the cover. Damaged dust jacket. Edition 2007. Ammareal gives back up to 15% of this item's net price to charity organizations. Seller Inventory # D-677-711
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