The French Century: An Illustrated History of Modern France

by Brian Moynahan

Sixteen chapters cover the history of France from the end of the 19th century to the present day, encapsulating everything from political events and scientific discoveries to cultural achievements and sporting triumphs. The five presidents of France’s fifth republic–Charles de Gaulle, Georges Pompidou, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, François Mitterand, and Jacques Chirac–have led the country through tremendous change in all sectors, and their respective reigns are covered in detail. The Dreyfus Affair, the May 1968 student protests, the onset of a socialist government in 1981, and two world wars are but a few French landmarks that have changed the face of Europe and the world. French culture flourished in the 20th century. Colette, Proust, Emile Zola, and Jules Verne wrote classics in literature while Picasso, Rodin, the Dadaists, and the Surrealists redefined art. Haussmann’s urban plan and I. M. Pei’s pyramid set new standards in architecture. Sarah Bernhard and Josephine Baker revolutionized the performing arts while Camille Saint-Saëns, Claude Debussy, Pablo Casals, and Maurice Ravel set the era to music. The Tour de France, Lacoste tennis, and World Cup soccer energized the sports scene. Innovations in science came from Louis Pasteur, Marie Curie, and Henry Bequerel. This book includes two hundred and photographs of the main events and key personalities of the century.

480 pages, Hardcover

First published October 16, 2007

About the author

Brian Moynahan was an English journalist, historian and biographer.

Reviews

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author doesn't explain why he thinks the 20th century is the "French century".
Even tho they won WW1, they lost, and WW2 was a humiliation in so many ways.
And by 1960 most of their empire was gone.

They must have felt bad about their behavior in WW2,
because after the war, they took out their frustations on more than 10,000 women who were horizontal collaborators.

Strip them naked, shave their heads, sometimes tar and feather them and sometimes their french/german kid as well.
Then run them thru the streets of the town.
Brave men these french.

Most of the text I'd already read elsewhere,
what was new was some gossip about the politians.
Mostly their corruption.
And the unkind things they said about others,
and what others said about them.

There are about 50 pages of photos, interesting and most I hadn't seen before. This is the best part of the book.

The author has an annoying trait of using more than 1000 french words or sayings, and I generally had no idea what they meant.

In one memorable sentence he has the following 2 phrases:
"Le folklore et le champagne, cest fini, and "il ne reste plus que la guerre"

And words like:
attentistes
collabo
epuration
gazogene
kepi
ligues
Le ralliement
milice
shanghaillage
affameurs des villes
pas dennemi a gauche
sans pour et sans reproch

PLEASE !!!
At least include a glossary.

For people who can read both english & french,
this is probably interesting.

After reading the book I wondered what the point was;
a country of vain, envious, angry people who are happiest when they can act scornful towards someone else.

[John Hardy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting history of France for the twentieth century. I didn't quite finish it, but still calling thi a completed book.
Although interesting, the presentation could have been improved. Firstly, the type was so densely packed, just running on and on in large paragraphs with little white space. Paragraph headings would have been a big improvement. The font was small, and I found it hard on my eyes. I suppose it is common to have pictures grouped together in bunches, but in this case I feel that it would have been an improvement if the pictures had gone onto the relevant text pages.
Although I did learn some facts, it is hard to remember much of what I read.
I'm giving this just an ordinary rating of 3.

[J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is an illustrated history of Modern France. Learning some new interesting "tidbits" that I hadn't known before.

[Jordan]

never finished

[Tobias]

...