What do you think?
Rate this book
Discoveries: Napoleon: "My Ambition Was Great" (DISCOVERIES
Well-written, loaded with information, and with a rich assortment of illustrations, each Discoveries(r) volume is a look at one facet of art, archaeology, music, history, philosophy, popular culture, science, or nature. These innovatively designed, affordably priced, compact paperbacks bring ideas to life and amplify our understanding of civilization in a new way.
In the span of only 15 years, a young, melancholic Corsican evolves into an ambitious conqueror and statesman to turn the tide of the French Revolution, founding contemporary France in the process but ultimately destroying himself. Everyone knows the story, in rough outline, of Napoléon's rise and fall. This version of the saga is a useful, readable history, illustrated with more than 180 varied images, including paintings, prints, and maps. Revealing excerpts from Napoléon's letters and journals, statements by his contemporaries, and a selection of other documents shed further light on his enormous effect on the course of world history.
In the span of only 15 years, a young, melancholic Corsican evolves into an ambitious conqueror and statesman to turn the tide of the French Revolution, founding contemporary France in the process but ultimately destroying himself. Everyone knows the story, in rough outline, of Napoléon's rise and fall. This version of the saga is a useful, readable history, illustrated with more than 180 varied images, including paintings, prints, and maps. Revealing excerpts from Napoléon's letters and journals, statements by his contemporaries, and a selection of other documents shed further light on his enormous effect on the course of world history.
160 pages, Paperback
First published November 18, 1998
23 people want to read
About the author
Thierry Lentz
116 books10 followersThierry Lentz has been director of the Fondation Napoléon since 2000.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 1, 2020
Sebagai penggemar Napoleon, buku ini benar-benar bisa memuaskan Penulis melalui visual-visual yang ada di dalamnya. Apalagi, buku ini full color sehingga sangat memanjakan mata.
Meskipun tergolong buku sejarah-biografi, bahasanya tidak berat-berat amat. Mengetahui sedikit latar belakangnya mungkin membuat Penulis bisa memahami sebagian besar isi bukunya.
Kejadian tiap kejadiannya dituliskan sesuai dengan urutan kronologi yang rapi. Banyak kutipan-kutipan dari Napoleon (atau mungkin juga dari orang-orang yang ada di sekitarnya) yang akan Pembaca temukan.
Hanya saja, buku ini terlihat sedikit ringkih dan mudah tertekuk. Mungkin karena jenis kertas yang digunakan. Penulis harus ekstra hati-hati ketika menamatkannya.
Di bagian kover belakang, tertera harga aslinya adalah $12.95 atau setara dengan Rp190 ribuan jika menggunakan kurs sekarang. Penulis mendapatkannya seharga tujuh puluh ribu rupiah dan merasa sangat sangat worth it.
Kalau pembaca adalah seorang penggemar Napoleon atau setidaknya penggemar sejarah, buku ini sangat Penulis rekomendasikan untuk menemani waktu-waktu sengang.
Selengkapnya: https://whathefan.com/buku/setelah-me...
Meskipun tergolong buku sejarah-biografi, bahasanya tidak berat-berat amat. Mengetahui sedikit latar belakangnya mungkin membuat Penulis bisa memahami sebagian besar isi bukunya.
Kejadian tiap kejadiannya dituliskan sesuai dengan urutan kronologi yang rapi. Banyak kutipan-kutipan dari Napoleon (atau mungkin juga dari orang-orang yang ada di sekitarnya) yang akan Pembaca temukan.
Hanya saja, buku ini terlihat sedikit ringkih dan mudah tertekuk. Mungkin karena jenis kertas yang digunakan. Penulis harus ekstra hati-hati ketika menamatkannya.
Di bagian kover belakang, tertera harga aslinya adalah $12.95 atau setara dengan Rp190 ribuan jika menggunakan kurs sekarang. Penulis mendapatkannya seharga tujuh puluh ribu rupiah dan merasa sangat sangat worth it.
Kalau pembaca adalah seorang penggemar Napoleon atau setidaknya penggemar sejarah, buku ini sangat Penulis rekomendasikan untuk menemani waktu-waktu sengang.
Selengkapnya: https://whathefan.com/buku/setelah-me...
November 26, 2020
Nous achetons toujours un Découverte Gallimard en rapport avec les lieux/musées que nous visitons.
Nous avons acheté celui-ci à la sortie de la maison natale de Napoléon à Ajaccio. Nous l'avons ensuite perdu à Ajaccio et sommes retournés à la maison natale pour le racheter.
Comme les autres opus, c'est encore une fois à la fois pointu et attrayant, cela procure une bonne synthèse sans DU TOUT survoler les choses.
A mettre entre toutes les mains.
Nous avons acheté celui-ci à la sortie de la maison natale de Napoléon à Ajaccio. Nous l'avons ensuite perdu à Ajaccio et sommes retournés à la maison natale pour le racheter.
Comme les autres opus, c'est encore une fois à la fois pointu et attrayant, cela procure une bonne synthèse sans DU TOUT survoler les choses.
A mettre entre toutes les mains.
September 22, 2017
Intro reader about Napoleon. Got the right idea but doesn't make it gripping reading as such a booklet should
March 31, 2019
For definitive version on Napoleon’s history nothing can beat the excellent Andrew Robert’s Napoleon. This booklet is good enough in comparison, informative with lots of illustrations.
March 9, 2019
204 - 2019
May 16, 2020
VIVE L'EMPEREUR
March 15, 2012
Thierry Lentz, director of the Napoleon Foundation, provides an excellent reference volume or general historical overview of the emperor's career with Napoleon: "My Ambition Was Great". The pocket book sized volume presents an impressive collection of images and documents from all parts of Napoleon's career. My Ambition Was Great draws particular notice for including specific excerpts of the primary documents used by its author, an all too infrequent rarity in popular histories.
However, Lentz's work is degraded by its lacking execution and some publishing logistics. There are too many illustrations for a book of this size and the scale that many larger paintings and images are presented at ultimately detracts from their overall historical value. Lentz, or his editor, needed to prune this work or increase the size of the book (both in terms of pages and in terms of inches)to increase its overall presentation. This would also have made Lentz's superbly tight narrative style more accessible, rather than being interrupted by images and other errata at almost every turn.
However, Lentz's work is degraded by its lacking execution and some publishing logistics. There are too many illustrations for a book of this size and the scale that many larger paintings and images are presented at ultimately detracts from their overall historical value. Lentz, or his editor, needed to prune this work or increase the size of the book (both in terms of pages and in terms of inches)to increase its overall presentation. This would also have made Lentz's superbly tight narrative style more accessible, rather than being interrupted by images and other errata at almost every turn.
February 1, 2014
This is such a little book for such an important figure in history, and someone with a huge ego to match. Yet the author does capture the essence of Napoleon. Produced with wonderful illustrations, the book is a good introduction to historical figure of Napoleon.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews