France

February 1, 2022

In Race and Reckoning, Cose (The Rage of a Privileged Class) argues that throughout U.S. history racial bias has always shaped key decisions and events (25,000-copy first printing). Ten years in the making, journalist Fairbanks's The Inheritors follows three everyday South Africans over five decades to reveal how the end of apartheid unfolded. From Hager, historian-in-residence at the Presidential Pet Museum, All-American Dogs is organized by historical era to chronicle the 31 U.S. presidents who have kept canines within petting distance at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (100,000-copy first printing; four-color illustrations). Ranging from the early 1800s to the early 2000s, Livingstone reveals the manifold accomplishments of The Women of Rothschild (40,000-copy first printing). In Code Gray, ER physician Nahvi highlights the daily ethical questions faced by doctors in his position (50,000-copy first printing). In Nerd, New York Times critic at large Phillips, who writes about theater and poetry as well as film, shows how pop-culture fan favorites from Star Wars to Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Doctor Who have shaped her--and have much to tell us about society at large (50,000-copy first printing). A multi-award-winning British author who specializes in French history and culture--his biographies of Hugo, Rimbaud, and Balzac were all New York Times Best Books--Robb now gives us France from Gaulish times 'til COVID-19. Journalist-turned-money manager Steinmetz (The Richest Man Who Ever Lived) introduces us to an American Rascal--Jay Gould, richer than Rockefeller or even Croesus and the reason Wall Street's first financial reforms were instituted (50,000-copy first printing). Pulitzer Prize-winning, New York Times best-selling science writer Yong reveals how animals other than humans perceive their surroundings in An Immense World.

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Starred review from June 15, 2022
Discovering France with a shrewd, deeply knowledgeable guide. Melding memoir, travelogue, and history, British biographer and cultural historian Robb offers a sweeping, spirited, and refreshingly unsentimental portrait of France, from the Bronze Age to the present. Traveling by bicycle, train, and on foot, the author and his wife ventured all over the country, searching for the nation's social, political, and geographical past and alert to intimations of its future. Robb brings to his travels a "taste for apparently futile journeys of discovery," an impressive command of history, and lively curiosity. Promising a book different from the "express train" narratives that rush through centuries focused on major figures and events, the author takes a slow route. His well-populated narrative includes Julius Caesar, Napoleon, and de Gaulle but also Ermoldus Nigellus, a poet with a "cheeky sense of humour" whose chronicles bore witness to ninth-century Brittany; early medieval polymath Gerbert d'Aurillac, who became Archbishop of Reims and, as Sylvester II, the first French pope; Jacques-Louis M�n�tra, a free-spirited glazier from Paris whose autobiography painted a ribald picture of 18th-century France; and Louis-Napoleon's ambitious mistress Harriet Howard. In present-day France, Robb discovered 159 towns with the status of "Plus Beaux Village," looking like "habitats created by committees." A topography dominated by roadways features some 50,000 roundabouts. The author examines changes in France's social and political life as represented by the 2015 attack on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, burkini bans at the beach, and the 2018 protests of the Gilets Jaunes. Unlike Francophiles who insist that the essence of France will endure forever, Robb sees a future of vast changes--in land, people, language, and spirit. He appends the volume with a detailed chronology as well as acerbic notes for travelers who may want to emulate his explorations without being killed on their bicycles. Delightful, discerning, and charmingly irreverent.

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Starred review from June 1, 2022
Historian and literary biographer Robb (The Discovery of France, 2007; The Debatable Land, 2018) here challenges the idea of a lone scholar holed up in a vast library by approaching his subject from the seat of a bicycle. This unique view, and Robb's penetrating eye, offer close-up looks at settings most of us know only from photographs or maps. Robb commences his history with Caesar in Gaul, covering in detail domestic scenes in the Auvergne and filling in the gaps leading up to Charlemagne. He parses theological controversies in the Christianization of the Franks and moves on to rivalries between Franks and Celts. The transformation of ancient forests to arable land seems much more ominous in the present era of climate change. The Bourbons' rise and fall are stripped of the clich�s fostered in over-imaginative novels. On the other hand, Robb finds much history reflected in Flaubert's Madame Bovary. Robb's descriptive powers come to the fore in his vivid accounts of the military battles of the two world wars. As a cyclist, Robb cannot resist ruminating on the renowned Tour de France. French history students will find Robb's perspectives refreshing as well as deeply researched.

COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

May 6, 2022

In his latest work of pop history, New York Times--Best Booked Robb (The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography from the Revolution to the First World War) approaches the history of France as a tourist would: there are destinations in mind, a general outline, and an appreciative sense of discovery. The journey begins with the Roman Empire, continues through Versailles, includes Napoleon and his mistress Harriet Howard (whose romance includes all the best elements of a soap opera), then meanders to the Atlantic-coast province of Saintonge. The adventure continues through World War II--which Robb deftly covers, given the wealth of material that exists on the topic--and finally ends with the Tour de France. Through Robb's eyes, readers experience the well-known cycling race as a kind of pilgrimage, where the intersection of historical injury narratives and modern experiences will generate goosebumps. Robb's writing in a chapter titled "The Tree at the Centre of France" captures the book's alchemy best, motivating readers to explore the modern world with clues from the past. The book includes notes for travelers and a historical timeline. VERDICT In this refreshing history, Robb will challenge U.S. readers' assumptions about France by interjecting new discoveries, more diversity, and an aptitude for strong storytelling.--Tina Panik

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.