France Books

The moon is tempted to earth to see what the bogels are up to. She gets captured trying to save a boy from their clutches, and the moon disappears. The boy must figure out how to save her. The artwork is wonderfully creepy, and the clutching, grasping, creaking, slurping descriptions bring to life the will o' the wisps and the bog-filled countryside. Not overly firghtening but thrilling enough (especially the bogels) to introduce an old, spooky, English folktale to youngsters.

The book was so well illustrated and colorful. Story was real scary. What a unique book.
Sally Molock

My husband, daughters (4 & 5) and I all loved the book. Beautiful art work. A little more sophisticated story line.

LeMoines' imagery is a subtle music and a bitter tea. Simply haunting, and I loved the cover art.

I had read a few of Ms. LeMoine's poems in various journals and was impressed. Having read her latest collection, I am awestruck by the power of this writer to evoke rivers of emotion with dry ink on the page. I highly recommend this collection and am trying to find out more about her and her work.

thumbs uppppppppppppppppppppppp
i love the reality, the metaphor. frances is a brilliant writer.

My sister and I recently toured Burgundy and even though we were born and bred in France, we saw the region anew. The photos in this book are lovely and for once, do a place justice. If you plan to travel to Burgundy, and may I suggest that you do, you certainly can't go wrong with this book as a traveling companion and tour guide.

I have to agree with the two previous reviewers, Burgundy is a very special part of France, and a very special part of the world. It is worth seeing just for the vineyards alone, but there is so much more to Burgundy than just wine. If you're lucky enough to go there, take this book along. It will be an invaluable guide to the restaurants and hotels in the area as well as to the festivals, concerts, etc. And if you must stay at home, then this book is the next best thing to actually being there. The photos are gorgeous and the text informative. Five stars is not enough!

France is a magical place and Burgundy is one of its most magical regions. The premier wine-growing region of France, Burgundy is also the center of fine cuisine, Romanesque architecture and lazy canals bordered by meadows of wildflowers. This book, with its more than 260 color illustrations, shows Burgundy at its finest. A region dominated by water, the book begins in the north and travels through all of Burgundy's four departments. From the Yonne, a land of peaceful river valleys and almost 1000 canals, we travel southward with the author to visit little Romanesque churches and learn how the Benedictine and Cistercian monks spread the Romanesque style. We finally arrive in the southernmost department of Soane-et-Loire and the city of Macon, the border to the Midi and the South, where we sample some of the finest wines in the world, such as Montrachet and Pommard. Burgundy is one of the most beautiful places on earth--unspoiled, unhurried and faithful to its past. Whether you plan to actually visit the area or are just dreaming of a visit, this is the perfect book to accompny you and your dreams and perhaps even make make them come true.

This book is one of the best I've ever read about Napoleon's death. I came by this book during my recent visit of the United States. I was discussing history and unsolved mysteries with a relative of mine when he introduced me to the book. He told me that for the first time a researcher had decided to challenge all the known theories about Napoleon's death. And what a challenge!! According to the author the great Emperor had been poisoned by arsenic during his exile in Saint Hélène. At first I was quite sceptical. Could that be the solution of this mystery? However, the more I read the more I was convinced by the author's argument and by the researcher thourough 'enquête'. Although we might not agree with the identity of the murderer we can't not sweep aside such scientific facts. The book is a real page-turner and I rest assure that all the fans of the subject (and even those merely interested by the scientific aspect of the theory) will find this book extremely interesting and disturbing (in a positive way, of course).

The infamous Napoleon Bonaparte died while imprisoned on the island of St. Helena. Until very recently, it was widely believed that he died of stomach cancer, which was prevalent in his family.

This book investigates the case made by Swedish dentist Dr. Sten Forshufvud. After learning the details of Napoleon's final days, Dr. Forshufvud began to suspect arsenic poisoning. Along with Ben Weider, the two delved into sources of available information regarding Napoleon, his imprisonment and those close to him. The authors present a very likely scenario of what really happened based on results of this investigation, along with an analysis of Napoleon's hair confirming arsenic poisoning.

Despite the hair analysis, the case is not completely solved, as Napoleon's final moments on his death bed did not indicate arsenic poisoning. Instead, the authors argue that arsenic was used to make Napoleon ill and then another method was used to finish him off. A likely suspect to the murder as well as a motive are also named.

This is a fascinating book for anyone interested in European history during a turbulent time.

Napoleon felt entitled to rule Europe and cheated to secure the necessary esteem by threats or show of power; but most Europeans did not acknowledge his title; `the Emperor'.
To protect its interests Britain planned, manoeuvred and worked in the dark to achieve one main goal: " preserve the British Empire". Britain's lust for power has placed, as the first priority on its policy, the `extermination' of Napoleon.
The distaste was reciprocated. Napoleon detested England's alliance with Russia and Austria.
In the end Napoleon was beaten at Waterloo.
Napoleon's captivity in Saint Helena, the island of volcanic origin in the South Atlantic Ocean, squeezed his health like a dry lemon. The island was infested and muggy; knout climate was already like a pogrom to massacre the ex-Emperor.

The fifty-two years old Emperor of the French knew he would die there. He had already encountered tuberculosis - facing the harsh winter weather conditions - during his campaign on Russia and the ruinous retreat in 1812.

He never recovered and remained frail for the next nine years. What started in the lungs, at the final stages affected the bones and joints accentuated by damp weather and feelings of despair.

This book was given to my husband and I, along with many other books, when we announced our pregnancy. The practical suggestions and real-world advice that this book provides far outshines many of the highly publicized books that are currently so popular. When preparing to stock our nursery with the essentials needed upon arrival of our baby I literally took the book into the store and purchased my much needed items off the list entitled "Predelivery Essentials." It was helpful beyond words and I highly recommend new parents to obtain and actually use this book. It has made preparing for our new bundle of joy a much more focused and empowering experience than had we gone it alone. I look forward to using it as my baby grows and for having it as a keepsake for this precious time in our lives.

My husband and I were thrilled when we received this baby book as a gift. Not only is it a great place to record your baby's milestones, but a invaluable resource as well. It will help you get organized, and provides you with essential checklists that no parent should be without. For example, there's a Feeding Record, Medical Record, Child Care Record and many other helpful tools. It is also beautifully designed!

This book is just phenomenal! When you are close to becoming a parent, everybody makes you believe that it's so complicated, that you have to read everything or you won't be ready, and there is so much information out there, plus you get bombarded by magazines and subscriptions that you never signed up for ... anyway, it's easy to get scared, you can't find the right answer, you feel you are not going to be prepared. Well, the only book which we felt really helped us with practical tools and checklists was France Posener's. All you need is in there, she streamlines to the essentials, she even includes reassuring little anecdotes that will make you feel better. Thanks a lot France!

At last count I have 350+ chess books, and probably 35 of them are games collections by GMs. My favorites are, in no order, "Secrets of Grandmaster Chess" by Nunn, Korchnoi's recent two-volume work, Kasparov's "The Test of Time," Tarrasch's "Three Hundred Chess Games", Timman's Best Games, Alekhine's Best Games, and Taimanov's Best Games. But over time, one book has emerged for me as head and shoulders above all of them, and this is Tartakower's "My Best Games of Chess, 1905-1954." It is a shockingly brilliant work, on every level that matters to me. It contains 210 games, annotated with brilliant wit, humor, and chess insight. Tartakower was so placed historically to have crossed swords with the old masters, the hypermoderns, and some of the modern Soviet era post-war players. He saw it all, and created some of it. His opening repertoire was varied and interesting. There are Catalans, Frenches, of course his namesake variation in the Queen's Gambit, Retis, Blumendfeld Counter-Gambits, Nimzo-Indians, orangutangs! (which he invented after 'consulting' with an orangutang during a pre-tournament visit to a zoo with other players), and many more. He talks often about static versus dynamic action, of critical moments, coordination of forces, outposts, etc., in a wonderfully instructive and enlightening manner. But it is his writing style that really stands out. One reads Alekhine's annotations and pictures this severe man, chain-smoking cigarettes, pounding the table to make his point. One sees Nimzowitsch as the slightly deranged mad scientist, fascinating but obscure. Tartakower comes across as the brilliant and kind professor, who holds you spellbound as you soak up everything he says. Many games collections ebb and flow. Sometimes I get bored with them or decide to only play through certain openings. This massive book (450 pages) has me glued to every game, not wanting to miss a thing. The games are introduced by little stories of the setting that shed humorous light on many figures in chess history. He gives personalities to many of the secondary lights, whose names we have only seen in books. For instance, check out his introduction to game 57 against Mieses (I have babbled enough and it is better to give you a sample of his writing): "As was said by the French master, Alphonse Goetz (who had come as a journalist representing several French newspapers) in a fine speech during the opening ceremony, one could not find a place more idyllically suited for a tournament than Baden-Baden. In the first week of this tournament, although I ran all sorts of risks, I only succeeded in drawing my first five games. Relying then, on this 'law of series,' Master Mieses facetiously apostrophised me on the eve of our encounter with these bantering words: 'Have you had sufficient preparation for obtaining your 6th draw?' These thoughtless words must have evidently provoked Destiny, who sleeps (according to a Homeric phrase) 'on the knees of the gods,' and here is how this anticipated 'draw' turned out." Here are a couple of remarks from that game: "7. QxP P-K3 Giving himself up to passive defence, Black shelters behind bastions that still seem intact."; "13. 0-0 B-Q2 Asthma-breathlessness-suffocation: as usually occurs, the germ of an incurable sickness does not stop spreading, and so gradually leads to catastrophe." The book also explores critical variations at length where appropriate. This book may be hard to find these days, but I cannot recommend it enough. It is may favorite chess book.

Dr Tartakower, poet, chess master, romantiicist, gambler(!) patriot, was born in Russia, migrated to Poland and then to France. This book brings his almost 50 years of top class chess together in one volume. Great Chess and a bargain price! You can build an opening repertoire here; get the sense of proper endgame play; and see how a Master plans to beat other Masters. Descriptive notation; plenty of good diagrams.

Tartakower had tremendous flair, as a player and as a writer. He played the hypermodern openings, but he was around before and after their heyday too. He saw it all and played it all. This book is better, in my opinion, than Alekhine's collection of games, but it is not as famous since Alekhine was a world champ. Tartakower was a tremendous writer who poured himself completely into his work. I consider this book to be an essential part of my collection, and I will never part with it. I am pulling it off the shelf constantly. Get it.

If you are a women seeking forgiveness from the Lord and from yourself because of an abortion, you have to read this book!! It really makes you understand what Jesus did on the cross for us!! It shows you that the Lord has a perfect plan for all of us; we just need to follow His narrow path and live our lives for Him! Thank you so much Noreen, for sharing your story; it really opened my eyes and helped me sort out some of the feelings I was experiencing!! God Bless!

This story opened my eyes to the devistating effects on the emotional turmoil a woman goes through after having an abortion. I always wondered if a women has any remorse and or feeling of a child they aborted. This answered some of my questions. I highly recommend this book.

This is the autobiographical account of a woman's painful journey through the darkness of depression and the grief of rejecting her unborn child. It is only when she 'throws away her crutches' that she allows herself to find a deeper relationship with God. It is a tender and moving story told with a lightness of voice and a lack of self-pity that makes it a surprisingly easy book to read. It is a book that will appeal to so many people who are searching for meaning in their lives. It has particular resonance for anyone who has suffered an abortion, and for anyone who has suffered from depression. Finally, it is a tale of hope, reconciliation, forgiveness and peace. I recommend this book unreservedly.

The third in the author's trilogy on the 1813 campaign. He covers the entire period from September to December 1813, and in addition to Leipzig itself, he covers the battles leading up to it in Sept. and early Oct, the French retreat after the battle, the sieges of the fortresses incl Danzig, Glogau, Dresden, Magdeburg and numerous others, plus coverage of the Danes in December. Leipzig dashed the dreams of a French Empire when the armies of Prussia, Russia, Austria, and Sweden converged on Napoleon and his Grande Armee. It was the greatest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, so decisive it would be called "the Battle of Nations." Smaller countries like Poland and Saxony seemed to be submerged in the titanic struggle, and the battle shaped Europe for more than a century. Napoleon at Leipzig not only covers this pivotal battle, but also the maneuvers that led up to it and the retreat that followed. At Hanau, the Bavarians learned to their dismay that Napoleon was still the master of the battlefield. The book includes the campaigns of Marshal Davout in the north, and the fate of the besieged French fortresses. From glittering field marshals to ragged Cossacks, in massive battles or small skirmishes, we see the dramatic campaign unfold. George Nafziger s intensive research into the 1813 campaign shows how the finest general of all time was bought to bay. The greatest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, and the campaign that led up to it, is thoroughly studied for the first time in English in Napoleon at Leipzig
1996, hard bound in dust jacket, 7 1/2, x 10 1/2, 384 pages, numerous illus, maps, orders of battle, notes, index.

Leipzig is the greatest and biggest battle of all Napoelonic battles ever fought. This is a shame that only G. Nafziger wrote book about this epic battle. I like this book. The maps are fine, and the descriptions of the battles, including the Battle of Leipzig, are interesting. But this book is rather for Americans and Europeans, not for the British. They are interested only in Waterloo, and Peter Hofschroer. This book is also a big stuff for all wargamers.

This is part of a 3 part series on the 1813 Campaign...Mr. Nafziger has given us a detailed and well researched account of the campaign. This thoughtful book gives the best recent account of Leipzig available in English. It is unfortunate that this decisive campaign is not the subject of more books.

For those of you unfamiliar with George Nafziger's work he is meticulous in his research and detail...if he tells you a regiment is located in a certain place at a particular time you can pretty much take it to the bank. Unlike a lot of authors, Mr. Nafziger does the research and allows the facts to dictate the direction of the book...Having no axes to grind means that the information being presented will also be more balanced than you find in a lot of books as well.

Generally when I see a book by George Nafziger in the time period that I don't own; I get it...

Michael La Vean
Fellow, International Napoleonic Society

Napoleon for Dummies a real winner!

J. David Markham's latest book, Napoleon for Dummies, is the perfect book for someone who wants to get the lowdown on Napoleon. It combines outstanding scholarship (Markham is a top international Napoleonic scholar and award-winning author) with the easy reading style associated with the Dummies series, and takes the reader beyond the stereotypes and to the real Napoleon. If the rest of the biographies in this new series are anywhere as good as Markham's biography of Napoleon, then Wiley Publishers will have created a real winner.

The first thing you discover when you read Napoleon for Dummies is that it really isn't for dummies at all. It is for people who enjoy a good read and would like to find out more about Napoleon. As one would expect, Markham writes in an easy, accessible style that should appeal to all readers. The book is well-organized and easy to follow. In his introduction, Markham explains why we should even care about Napoleon, giving examples of why that great man was important both to people of his time and to those of us living in the 21st century.

In successive chapters, Markham traces Napoleon's life from his early days on Corsica to his career-ending defeats and exile. Throughout this discussion, Markham points out both good and bad decisions, and does not hesitate to call some of Napoleon's actions into questions. It is also clear, however, that Markham sees Napoleon as a positive force in history. But this feeling is based on careful analysis of Napoleon and his legacy, an analysis which is easy to read and important to understand.

Markham next turns to a discussion of some of the innovations associated with Napoleon. Now the book becomes a bit more like a traditional Dummies book, providing the reader with a ready reference to various aspects of Napoleon's contributions. Markham discusses such issues as Napoleon's military innovations, his approach to politics and governing, his economic and legal contributions, his promotion of religious freedom, his diplomacy and his contributions - intended and unintended - towards a united Europe.

For many people, the story of Napoleon is one of romance, and Markham does a wonderful job telling the story of Napoleon's loves. We learn of his two wives, Josephine and Marie Louise, and we also learn of Napoleon's earliest loves, his mistress in Egypt and, perhaps most romantic of all, of his Polish mistress.

In the tradition of Dummies books, Markham closes his discussion with several chapters in a "Part of Tens" section. These include interesting discussions of Napoleonic battlefields, additional references, a time line and maps. The chapter in this section that I found most interesting was the one where Markham discusses a number of pieces of advice that he would have given to Napoleon (with, of course, the great advantage of hindsight).

In short, if you want to read a really good book on Napoleon, or if you just want to read a really good book, I highly recommend that you try Napoleon for Dummies.

The For Dummies series made a brilliant choice in choosing J. David Markham to write this Napoleon for Dummies. Although this book is by its nature a popular history, its author is nonetheless one of the world's most internationally recognized Napoleonic scholars. Markham's writing style is easy to read and he covers his subject in a way that is both informative and fascinating. He gives excellent coverage to the normal topics covered in a biography of Napoleon, and adds significant "in depth" discussion of other topics as well. Throughout it all, Markham gives the reader the best over-all portrait of Napoleon that I have seen in any biography of one of history's most interesting and complex leaders. Markham includes some 70 Napoleonic images from his personal collection of historical artifacts, which makes the book all the more interesting and useful.
In his book, Markham provides a concise overview of Napoleonic religious freedoms and liberties that focuses on the Concordat with the papacy and the promotion of Jewish freedom. He also discusses how Napoleon "tried to negotiate a peace with Great Britain [in 1811], anticipating that her difficulties with the United States might make her, finally, willing to come to terms with France," but again these negotiations also failed. Had Britain and France made peace, war with Russia might not have been necessary, as Russia would no longer find itself raising concerns over the Continental System. And so, Napoleon found himself in the unfortunate position of having to militarily enforce the 1807 peace agreement. We can see from the above series of events and diplomacy that while Napoleon long regarded Europe as a singular entity, his plan to unify Europe had an amorphous and constantly developing nature that could not have achieved a more definitive or concrete direction until after all of Europe, including England, would have been pacified in the years following the crucial year of 1812.
In that year, the notion of Napoleon as a sort of reincarnation of a certain Macedonian conqueror reemerged. David Markham explains that in 1812, "some thought Napoleon would not stop with Russia. These people believed that after Napoleon defeated Russia and once again secured Alexander's friendship, he would follow in the footsteps of Alexander the Great and march all the way to India." But as we know, in spite of Napoleon's battle victories and occupation of Moscow, peace overtures to Tsar Alexander and Field Marshal Mikhail Kutusov were met with silence, and 1812 proved to be a disastrous year for Napoleon.
Considering the title of my master's thesis (Napoleon's European Union: The Grand Empire of the United States of Europe), I especially appreciated Markham's succinct overview of Napoleon's vision of a United States of Europe in his chapter titled "Creating a New United Europe." The visual evidence includes a medallion showing "Napoleon (wearing the laurel wreath crown of the Caesars) and Charlemagne together" that is particularly revealing of Napoleon's effort to identify with past emperors in European history and synthesize elements of their imperial iconography.
I am especially pleased to see that Markham included sections on Napoleon's religious policies and vision of European unity (Napoleon for Dummies), as well as comparisons of Napoleon to earlier leaders like Alexander the Great (Road to Glory). I do hope that Markham gets to do a Julius Caesar for Dummies book as well, and it would be great if eventually they come out with for Dummies books on Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, and even Napoleon III! I think that when I am a professor I will indeed use this as a reference book for my students. It's easy and enjoyable to read and I think that it would work quite well, particularly for undergraduates. It must have been fun to write! I hope that it sells well!

I'm not a historian, I'm a musician who studied French in high school and college. I bought this book because I was curious about the relationship between France and Denmark during the Napoleonic years. I honestly could not put the book down and couldn't talk about anything other than Napoleon for several weeks after I read this book. Markham's conversational and humorous approach is very engaging and I found it so refreshing to hear something other than the British or American point of view.

This large and attractive book was created by the Discovery Channel, to tell the story of the Battle of the Nile. Brimming with details, the book tells the story of the French Revolution and the life of Napoleon Bonaparte, followed by the life of Horatio Nelson, and the exciting finale: a minute-by-minute retelling of the Battle of the Nile in 1798. Along the way, the reader is treated to many excellent pictures, charts and graphs, not to mention a plethora of highly informative sidebars.

This is a wonderful book, one that will please readers that know nothing about the subject, and those that know a lot. I am very glad that I was able to get ahold of it, and highly recommend it to you!

Accompanying a Discovery episode, the book tells the story of Napoleon's conquest of Egypt, and his Battle of the Nile with Lord Nelson. Beautifully illustrated, the authors dramatically relate the surrounding events in a detailed and clear style. A final chapter about excavations by Frank Goddio and his underwater team has provided marvelous photographs and much information about recent discoveries. Definitely a must-read for all interested in historical events, Napoleon, marine archaeology and Egypt.

As a history buff and Discovery Channel fan, I really loved this book