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THE LOCUST YEARS

Name: THE LOCUST YEARS
Author: Frank Giles
ISBN: 0-7867-0056-4

THE STORY OF THE FOURTH FRENCH REPUBLIC 1946-1958

by Frank Giles ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 1994

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An authoritative and weighty history of France's Fourth Republic (1946-58) by the former Paris correspondent for the Times of London. By the end of WW II, many French politicians despaired of their country's chronic instability. Since 1814, regimes and governments had come and gone in an endless series of coups and scandals. Although the Third Republic lasted from 1871 to 1940, the only real constant in French government was fractious discord. The Fourth Republic epitomized all this. Its numerous personalities formed and re-formed governments, few of which lasted more than a few months. In 1946, the Communist Party commanded between a quarter and a third of the electorate and virtually took over large sections of recently nationalized industries and the trade union congress. Twelve years later, however, the Communists' power had been broken forever, the violent and intransigent antagonisms of the old order had crumbled, and the Fourth Republic had presided over the greatest single economic leap in French history. Two giant personalities dominate the '50s: de Gaulle, sulking in internal political exile and plotting his glorious return, and Pierre Mendäs-France, briefly prime minister, who saw that the colonial age was over and urged withdrawal from Algeria, only to be ignored. Giles skillfully details this intricate era in which an old European power finally crossed over into the realities of the postwar world of cheap cars, American supremacy, and affordable televisions—a world in which traditional French gloire was a scarce commodity. The Fourth Republic was the true bridge between the old France and the country we see today. A country of perfumers, vintners, and rebellious militants (at least, by reputation) had turned into a nation of technocrats, car makers, and efficient industrialists. It was a true revolution, even if none of the squabbling politicians who presided over it could claim the glory. Giles's book, at least, shows us how the turmoil related to the true achievement.

Pub Date: June 15, 1994

ISBN: 0-7867-0056-4

Page Count: 448

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1994

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.