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Napoleon: The Path To Power
by
Philip Dwyer
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">At just thirty years of age, Napoleon Bonaparte ruled the most powerful country in Europe. But the journey that led him there was neither inevitable nor smooth. This authoritative biography focuses on the evolution of Napoleon as a leader and debunks many of the myths that are often repeated about him—sensational myths often ...more
Hardcover, 672 pages
Published
March 27th 2008
by Yale University Press
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Although a history major in college I have studied very little of Napoleon or the time and places of his greatest influence. Thus I come to Dwyer's book with a love for history but without a critical background of prior Napoleon research. Therefore I must asses this book by the tools of history and by my own opinions as a reader of history books, rather than by assessing Dwyer's overall worth for Napoleon studies.
What I look for in a history book are the kinds of sources, the use o...more
What I look for in a history book are the kinds of sources, the use o...more
This is probably the first biography I've read where the author was so brutally honest about the character that he seemed to actually dislike the man. But he was scrupulously fair about bringing out both sides of what was happening - reporting Napoleon's accounts and at the same time accounts by other people involved that gave the opposite side of the story. Napoleon really did have a "particularly modern approach to politics" in the best Rovebusian style, never shying away from comp...more
Before reading this book, I had no idea how little I knew about Napoleon Bonaparte. As such, I found Philip Dwyer's study of Napoleon's rise to power wholly fascinating. The man that emerges from these biographical pages is just that, a man. Dwyer does a wonderful job of separating the man from the myth, and I was surprised at just how human the Little General was in his youth and young adulthood. A competent military strategist, Napoleon's true genius is revealed by his unprecedented use of the...more
There is no such thing as the last book on a subject. If there was, we wouldn't have a million books on Abraham Lincoln. When you have a historical figure, such as Lincoln or Napoleon, it seems that every generation wants to take a crack at figuring out that man's essence. But there comes a point when you really can't say anything new. That's just reality, since man's life is finite. When that point is reached, the only thing an author can do, really, is take the collected wisdom of hundreds of ...more
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This dragged for me. It's hard to know if it was just the level of detail or if it didn't cohere as a narrative. It was certainly thorough.
This book took longer to read than expected. Filled with lots of details of Napoleon's early life and his rise to power. Found I needed to read about 10-15 pages and then but the book down. Needed a better backgroud of French history especially the pre revolution and revolutionary years.
A very good biography of that great man, Napoleon. Can't wait for Dwyer's second instalment in his biography of Napoleon
This has been a great introduction to napoleon. Its an entertaining well researched book which gives a really good sense of the how Napoleon rose to power.
A mostly well-written book about Napoleon's rise to power. It goes into a little too much detail, however; plodding through 500 pages covering the first 30 years of his life was a bit much.
An excellent read. It's a bit daunting, very well-researched and extremely detailed, and it's a large book - but if you would really like to understand both the rise of Napoleon (if you thought "spin" started with contemporary politics, you're very much mistaken) and the political intrigues of the French revolution, this is the book for you.
The first 30 years of an amazing life. this book filled in a vast gap in my understanding of the history of France, the revolution, and Europe in the years leading up to 1800. If you want to know how Sara Palin can take over, just read this.
Really good- fun to read. He was in charge of france at the age of 30, you know?
For Kindle. I am starting to warm to the thing.
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