SOCIAL SCIENCES

City of Light: The Making of Modern Paris

by Rupert Christiansen
Basic. Oct. 2018. 224p. notes. bibliog. ISBN 9781541673397. $25; ebk. ISBN 9781541673434. HIST
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Wide boulevards, leafy parks, charming squares, pleasing fountains, and fin de siècle architecture characterized by Charles Garnier's l'Opéra define for many the very essence of Parisian life. The urban renewal project that created the city as we now know it was conceived, designed, and implemented primarily by two ambitious and controversial figures: Napoléon III, the president of France from 1848 to 1852, and his public works mastermind, Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann. British author Christiansen (Paris Babylon; Romantic Affinities) does an excellent job of placing the transformation of Paris within the context of political, social, and economic influences of the time. Against the backdrop of a Europe in transition, the time period covered is from Louis Napoléon's ascent to power to the collapse of the Paris Commune in 1871.
VERDICT This popular history is a quick and enjoyable read for anyone interested in how City of Light came to be.
Reviewed by Linda Frederiksen, Washington State Univ. Lib., Vancouver , Oct 15, 2018
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