Tuesday, June 7, 2011

The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough

I enjoyed this book which is written in smooth and lucid prose. It tells the stories of nineteenth century American expatriates in Paris. The book focuses on Americans who traveled abroad to study and practice art, literature, and medicine. There's a fair amount of French (and Parisian) history and of the biography of these men (including Samuel Morse, James Fenimore Cooper, Elihu Washburne, Mary Cassatt, Charles Sumner, Harriet Beecher Stowe, John Singer Sargeant, Margaret Fuller, and Ralph Waldo Emerson). I particularly enjoyed reading of Washburne (the American ambassador) and his heroics during the siege of Paris. I couldn't quite decide if I liked the logic that ties everything together: American expatriates in Paris; I'm not sure if I quite think it holds everything together. Still, there's a lot of good history in this book.

No comments: