New Books Network

New Books in French Studies
Harold J. Cook, “The Young Descartes: Nobility, Rumor, and War” (U Chicago Press, 2018)
Harold J. Cook
The Young Descartes
Nobility, Rumor, and War
University of Chicago Press, 2018

New Books in BiographyNew Books in European StudiesNew Books in French StudiesNew Books in HistoryNew Books in Intellectual HistoryNew Books in Peoples & PlacesNew Books in Politics & SocietyNew Books Network May 15, 2019 Michael F. Robinson

Harold J. Cook talks about the travels and trials of the young Descartes, a man who spent as much time traveling and fighting as he did studying philosophy. Cook is John F. Nickoll Professor of History at Brown University. He is the author of The Young Descartes: Nobility, Rumor, and... Read More
René Weis, “The Real Traviata: The Song of Marie Duplessis” (Oxford UP, 2015)
René Weis
The Real Traviata
The Song of Marie Duplessis
Oxford University Press, 2015

New Books in Arts & LettersNew Books in BiographyNew Books in French StudiesNew Books in Gender StudiesNew Books in HistoryNew Books in MusicNew Books in Peoples & PlacesNew Books in Politics & SocietyNew Books Network April 22, 2019 Mark Klobas

Though she died in 1847 at a young age, Marie Duplessis inspired one of the greatest operas ever composed. In The Real Traviata: The Song of Marie Duplessis (Oxford University Press, 2015), René Weis recounts the life of the remarkable woman who overcame poverty and abuse to become the toast... Read More
Kathleen Keller, “Colonial Suspects: Suspicion, Imperial Rule, and Colonial Society in Interwar French West Africa” (U Nebraska Press, 2018)
Kathleen Keller
Colonial Suspects
Suspicion, Imperial Rule, and Colonial Society in Interwar French West Africa
University of Nebraska Press, 2018

New Books in African StudiesNew Books in French StudiesNew Books in HistoryNew Books in Peoples & PlacesNew Books in Politics & SocietyNew Books Network April 1, 2019 Roxanne Panchasi

Kathleen Keller’s new book, Colonial Suspects: Suspicion, Imperial Rule, and Colonial Society in Interwar French West Africa (University of Nebraska Press, 2018) is teeming with mysterious persons, foreigners, misfits, and the surveillance of numerous figures who appeared to threaten the stability of empire. In this detailed and compelling study of... Read More
Stéphane Henaut and Jeni Mitchell, “A Bite-Sized History of France: Gastronomic Tales of Revolution, War, and Enlightenment” (The New Press, 2018)
Stéphane Henaut and Jeni Mitchell
A Bite-Sized History of France
Gastronomic Tales of Revolution, War, and Enlightenment
The New Press, 2018

New Books in Arts & LettersNew Books in European StudiesNew Books in FoodNew Books in French StudiesNew Books in HistoryNew Books in Peoples & PlacesNew Books in Politics & Society March 25, 2019 Beth Mauldin

From the cassoulet that won a war to the crêpe that doomed Napoleon, from the rebellions sparked by bread and salt to the new cuisines forged by empire, the history of France is intimately entwined with its gastronomic pursuits. A witty exploration of the facts and legends surrounding some of... Read More
Andrew Sobanet, “Generation Stalin:  French Writers, the Fatherland, and the Cult of Personality” (Indiana UP, 2018)
Andrew Sobanet
Generation Stalin
French Writers, the Fatherland, and the Cult of Personality
Indiana University Press, 2018

New Books in Arts & LettersNew Books in French StudiesNew Books in HistoryNew Books in Intellectual HistoryNew Books in Literary StudiesNew Books in Peoples & PlacesNew Books in Politics & SocietyNew Books in Russian and Eurasian StudiesNew Books Network March 14, 2019 Beth Mauldin

In his 1924 biography of Mahatma Gandhi, writer Romain Rolland embraced the Gandhian philosophy of non-violence and decried the “dictators of Moscow” and the “idolatrous ideology of the Revolution.”  Seven years later, in a startling reversal, Rolland expressed his support for the USSR and confidence in Soviet leaders:  “The builders... Read More
Alexandre Kojève, “Atheism” (Columbia UP, 2018)
Alexandre Kojève
Atheism

Columbia University Press, 2018

New Books in French StudiesNew Books in Intellectual HistoryNew Books in Peoples & PlacesNew Books in Politics & SocietyNew Books in ReligionNew Books in Religion & FaithNew Books in Russian and Eurasian StudiesNew Books in Secularism February 25, 2019 Carrie Lynn Evans

Columbia University press has just released a new translation of a work by philosopher Alexandre Kojève, simply titled Atheism, translated by Professor Jeff Love. Considered to be one of the twentieth century’s most brilliant and unconventional thinkers, Kojève was a Russian émigré to France whose lectures on Hegel in the... Read More