Frederick the Great; - Hardcover

Mitford, Nancy

3.81

475 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0241019222 ISBN 13: 9780241019221

Publisher: Hamilton, 1970

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This title is presented with an Introduction by Kate Williams. Frederick II of Prussia attempted to escape his authoritarian father as a boy, but went on to become one of history's greatest rulers. He loved the flute, and devoted hours of study to the arts and French literature, forming a long-lasting but turbulent friendship with Voltaire. He was a military genius and enlarged the borders of his empire, but he also promoted religious tolerance, economic reform and laid the foundation for a united Germany. Nancy Mitford brings all these contradictions and achievements to sparkling life in an fascinating, intimate biography.

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About the Author:

Nancy Mitford (1904-1973) was born into the British aristocracy and, by her own account, brought up without an education, except in riding and French. She managed a London bookshop during the Second World War, then moved to Paris, where she began to write her celebrated and successful novels, among them "The Pursuit of Love" and "Love in a Cold Climate," about the foibles of the English upper class. Mitford was also the author of four biographies: "Madame de Pompadour" (1954), "Voltaire in Love" (1957), "The Sun King" (1966), and" Frederick the Great "(1970)--all available as NYRB classics. In 1967 Mitford moved from Paris to Versailles, where she lived until her death from Hodgkin's disease. Liesl Schillinger is a journalist, critic, and translator. She is a regular contributor to "The New York Times Book Review" and has written on literature, culture, theater, politics, and travel for many publications, including "The New York Times," "The New Yorker," "The Daily Beast," and "The Independent on Sunday." Among her translations are "The Lady of the Camellias" by Alexandre Dumas ("fils") and "Every Day, Every Hour" by Natas� a Dragnic� . Her illustrated book of neologisms, " Wordbirds," will be published in October 2013.

Review:

"It is written with all the author's skill, is really hard to put down once its rhythm and energy take hold, and yet imparts an astounding quantity of information." "--Guardian"" " "Mitford's felicity lies in capturing the spirit of a society and an age." --"The Times Literary Supplement ""Nancy Mitford seems to have brought a new talent to the study of history: that of the sophisticated, worldly wise observer, who is able to penetrate old archives with a fresh eye for qualities in the dead." --Louis Auchincloss, "The New York Times Book Review" "Her style is skillfully succinct . . . and her wit proceeds from uncommon shrewdness." --"Sunday Times"" " "Apart from Miss Mitford's special interests in the fun and fashion department, one may admire her most for her power to condense and explain the most complicated events." --"The New Statesman"

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