Title: The Splendid Century: Life in the France of Louis XIV
Author: W. H. Lewis
First Published: 1953
No. of Pages: 336
Synopsis (from Amazon): "Pleasures and palaces are, of course, an enormously entertaining part of this vivid account of France under Louis XIV. More important is the author's exploration of the political, economic, social and artistic forces that developed during the long reign of the Sun-King. It was an age of contradictions and compromises and high taxes and formal manners. And to the day he died Louis XIV ate with his fingers and acted like God. The opening account of Louis XIV's private life and loves sets the pace for this witty, provocative account of a century that, like our own, was a time of transition, dissatisfaction and progress. This was the age of Moliere, Racine, Corneille...the age of the salons and the graceful correspondents. And also an age that sent thousands of Huguenots to the galleys, the notorious death ships that served as seventeenth-century concentration camps."
Fiction or Nonfiction: Nonfiction
Comments and Critique: This book presents an interesting overview of France during the reign of Louis XIV, covering the period of 1638-1715. It gives a brief bio of Louis but is not solely concerned with him or the aristocracy. Instead, the book contains chapters on such things as medicine of the time, life in a typical French town, being a country gentleman, and female education. It's all very interesting and the book is easy to read and understand. I did find the chapter on the Church a little confusing and I wish the author had provided more background information. The way that chapter is presented seems to assume that the reader has a basic understanding of the history of the Catholic Church. My only other complaint is that the author included a number of phrases or sentences in French without translation, which is obviously only meaningful for someone who reads French (not me). Considering the author was British (and, incidentally, the brother of C.S. Lewis) and not American, I don't know if assuming that your readers are bilingual is a valid assumption or not, but it frustrating to keep coming across things and not know what the author meant.
I should also point out that, while this book appears to be well researched, it is not a scholarly book. It does not directly reference other scholarly books, it does not contain footnotes, and it does not provide an in-depth analysis of the topics presented. That said, this book does provide a very good general overview of the time period and would be an excellent introductory book for that period of French history.
Would You Recommend This Book to Others: Yes, especially anyone who reads classic literature set in Europe (I'm assuming that conditions were approximately the same in most European nations at the time), or is interested in European history in general.
Challenges: 2008 TBR Challenge
Author: W. H. Lewis
First Published: 1953
No. of Pages: 336
Synopsis (from Amazon): "Pleasures and palaces are, of course, an enormously entertaining part of this vivid account of France under Louis XIV. More important is the author's exploration of the political, economic, social and artistic forces that developed during the long reign of the Sun-King. It was an age of contradictions and compromises and high taxes and formal manners. And to the day he died Louis XIV ate with his fingers and acted like God. The opening account of Louis XIV's private life and loves sets the pace for this witty, provocative account of a century that, like our own, was a time of transition, dissatisfaction and progress. This was the age of Moliere, Racine, Corneille...the age of the salons and the graceful correspondents. And also an age that sent thousands of Huguenots to the galleys, the notorious death ships that served as seventeenth-century concentration camps."
Fiction or Nonfiction: Nonfiction
Comments and Critique: This book presents an interesting overview of France during the reign of Louis XIV, covering the period of 1638-1715. It gives a brief bio of Louis but is not solely concerned with him or the aristocracy. Instead, the book contains chapters on such things as medicine of the time, life in a typical French town, being a country gentleman, and female education. It's all very interesting and the book is easy to read and understand. I did find the chapter on the Church a little confusing and I wish the author had provided more background information. The way that chapter is presented seems to assume that the reader has a basic understanding of the history of the Catholic Church. My only other complaint is that the author included a number of phrases or sentences in French without translation, which is obviously only meaningful for someone who reads French (not me). Considering the author was British (and, incidentally, the brother of C.S. Lewis) and not American, I don't know if assuming that your readers are bilingual is a valid assumption or not, but it frustrating to keep coming across things and not know what the author meant.
I should also point out that, while this book appears to be well researched, it is not a scholarly book. It does not directly reference other scholarly books, it does not contain footnotes, and it does not provide an in-depth analysis of the topics presented. That said, this book does provide a very good general overview of the time period and would be an excellent introductory book for that period of French history.
Would You Recommend This Book to Others: Yes, especially anyone who reads classic literature set in Europe (I'm assuming that conditions were approximately the same in most European nations at the time), or is interested in European history in general.
Challenges: 2008 TBR Challenge
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