My France: Politics, Culture, Myth - Hardcover

Eugen Weber is Joan Palevsky Professor of Modern European History, Emeritus, at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Where other historians seek out patterns, categories, generalities and change, [Weber] champions accident, detail, continuity and the particular...Despite widely disparate subject matter [of these essays]--ranging from an investigation of the origins of the 'Marseillaise' to an essay on political taxonomy--they form a remarkably coherent whole, united by a consistent set of concerns and a distinctive, highly personal style...Offcuts from a lifetime of happy labor, these essays reveal an artisan at work, carefully crafting products in the quality tradition of articles de Paris. No wonder the French like him. (Tony Judt New York Times Book Review)

This book of essays is witness to the range of [Weber's] curiosity and his ability to turn France into a window on the European world and larger historical processes...The essays have an allusive, elusive, thought-provoking quality. The reader comes away thinking, if not agreeing. There are good phrases, keen, often mordant, observations...[An] imaginative, intellectually rewarding book. (David S. Landes Times Literary Supplement)

If you're interested in France but haven't read much serious analysis of the country's history and culture, My France should become your France. (David Shaw Los Angeles Times Book Review)

A passionate, scholarly collection of essays on French politics, culture, and myths from mid-19th to mid-20th century...My France is pervaded by Weber's enthusiasm: it's like a favorite-moments selection from a long and distinguished career. No doubt Weber is un fou de la France, but his love is deep, not blind. (Christine Schwartz Village Voice Literary Supplement)