The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography

Graham Robb

Oct 2008 · W. W. Norton & Company

About this ebook

"A witty, engaging narrative style…[Robb's] approach is particularly engrossing." —New York Times Book Review

A narrative of exploration—full of strange landscapes and even stranger inhabitants—that explains the enduring fascination of France. While Gustave Eiffel was changing the skyline of Paris, large parts of France were still terra incognita. Even in the age of railways and newspapers, France was a land of ancient tribal divisions, prehistoric communication networks, and pre-Christian beliefs. French itself was a minority language.

Graham Robb describes that unknown world in arresting narrative detail. He recounts the epic journeys of mapmakers, scientists, soldiers, administrators, and intrepid tourists, of itinerant workers, pilgrims, and herdsmen with their millions of migratory domestic animals. We learn how France was explored, charted, and colonized, and how the imperial influence of Paris was gradually extended throughout a kingdom of isolated towns and villages.

The Discovery of France explains how the modern nation came to be and how poorly understood that nation still is today. Above all, it shows how much of France—past and present—remains to be discovered.

A New York Times Notable Book, Publishers Weekly Best Book, Slate Best Book, and Booklist Editor's Choice.

Ratings and reviews

I though that I would enjoy this book but I had no idea that I would pore through it in a single sitting and come away from it with a changed sense of "France" (if you can even call it that) and myself. It turns out that most of France wasn't French at all until only a hundred years ago. In less than five generations Paris has thoroughly erased the majority of its rich cultures and languages and replaced them with a fantasy. And no one seems to remember.

Very insightful

About the author

Graham Robb is the author of three prize-winning biographies, each selected as New York Times Best Books. His books, including The Discovery of Middle Earth, Parisians, and The Discovery of France, have earned several awards. He lives on the Anglo-Scottish border.