Book Review: A People's History of the French Revolution

Title: A People's History of the French Revolution

Author: Eric Hazan; Translation: David Fernbach

Rating: ☕ ☕ ☕ 

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I’m a history major and I love reading books about life in times long gone. I’m not an expert on the French Revolution, but I do have a bit more knowledge about the subject than the average (American) person. But this book gave me some trouble. Don’t get me wrong, Eric Hazan’s A People’s History of the French Revolution is full of interesting information and facts, but it is not written for people who have an interest in history but rather people who study history. 

At times it felt like I was reading a textbook and I almost reverted to my student habit of taking notes and making flow charts just so I could have a clearer picture of what I had just read. This is not something I want from a book I picked up because of a casual interest in the subject. At times the writing was engaging and held my interest, but other times it was dry and it was difficult for me to not skim over the chapter. I really wanted to enjoy this book, and I tried so hard to get into it, but more often than not I would put the book down every 10-15 pages because I would find myself seeing the words but not reading and absorbing what was written. 

The reason I rated it at 3 is because it does have loads of great information and it is well organized. This book would be a great resource for a student working on a research paper, as a recommended text on a class syllabus, or for someone who has more than a casual interest in French history.  

**NetGalley provided me with an advanced reader copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.**