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THE FALL OF PARIS

Name: THE FALL OF PARIS
Author: Herbert R. Lottman
ISBN: 0-06-016520-0

6/1/1940

by Herbert R. Lottman ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 7, 1992

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Compendious but not compelling story of the weeks between the Nazis' invasion of France and their entry into Paris, by Lottman (Colette, 1990, etc.). Lottman's knowledge of French affairs is impressive, as is his cast of characters, which includes Churchill, PÇtain, Sartre, Beauvoir, Clare Boothe Luce, de Gaulle, A.J. Liebling, Iliya Ehrenburg, and Ambassador William Bullit, FDR's man on the ground. The problem is that these celebrated figures appear in what seems an endless series of cameos embedded in an impressionistic array of short (often very short) unconnected segments. Luminaries appear and reappear, but their initial appearances do not establish them firmly, and the text is not easy to follow. French politicos and generals squabble, position themselves, insult each other, and reveal themselves as the Panzers move closer, but Lottman relates their maneuverings with a detachment that doesn't convey fully the flavor of, say, the traitor PÇtain or the agile and observant Mrs. Luce. There are some great adventures here, though: How physicist FrÇdÇric Joliot-Curie and his associates ran off with the world's supply of heavy water (for use in nuclear research) is one tale that's not lost in the shuffle. The great cliffhanger is whether and when the French government will flee, a question complicated by the lies being told about that flight. But the sheer mass of names and details combines with flat writing to smother the national disaster created by monumental French stupidity (the Maginot line) and corruption (in military spending). Personality-oriented popular history that's well researched but lacking bite. (Sixteen pages of b&w photographs—not seen.)

Pub Date: Oct. 7, 1992

ISBN: 0-06-016520-0

Page Count: 368

Publisher: HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1992

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
JULES VERNE
by Herbert R. Lottman

- BOOK REVIEW
THE FRENCH ROTHSCHILDS
by Herbert R. Lottman

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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.