Cycling 14,000 miles and researching for four years in the library, the author, tells the history of France from the Revolution to the outbreak of WWI through the eyes of ordinary people, most of whom until a century ago thought French a foreign language. Told with humour and understanding and never patronising, it's full of interesting facts, anecdotes and characters. Whether you know France well or only a little, you will find much to astonish you.
Winner of the 2008 Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize
(Jenny Baker - bwl 51 May 2009 ) |
