Lafayette: A biography

by Peter Buckman

Genres: France

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Lux · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read Peter Buckman's biography and Laura Auricchio's The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered.
Overall I prefer this biography to the very recent book of Laura Auricchio. It is more detailed, gave me a better understanding of the person and his surroundings. The language of the book is more antiquated though. Both books lay the focus on the French Revolution - the American Revolution got addressed fairly briefly - and have a similar structure.
I can recommend both biographies to everyone interested in Lafayette and which to pick is an individual choice; both are a good read. Laura Auricchio's biography is a more enjoyable one but comes with a little bit fewer details and a more distant narrative on his life.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The beginning was ok, but the second half was a chore to get through. I found the French Revolution parts lacking context and difficult to get through. Found myself zoning out while reading this. I got this book for free and it is hard to turn down a free book, otherwise I would not recommend it.

[Susanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A detailed, gentle, often humorous account of the life of America's favourite fighting Frenchman. I learned a lot about the Marquis' personality, where and and how he lived, and what his contemporaries thought of him, as well as the American and French revolutions. This is the book that set me off on a trip to Paris to walk a ways in the footsteps of the Hero of Two Worlds, and I didn't regret that decision even a little bit.