Three for the Month (February 2021)

Steph P. Bianchini February 14, 2021 5 Comments

This month I am late for my usual book presentation, and the reason is, as you might imagine, what’s happening on Mars, which is taking up a big part of my work schedule and virtually all my free time. So, even find the mental space to think about anything else has become a bit complicated. Anyway, here’s my offering for the month.

• A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel. Yes, I am an unapologetic Mantel’s fan. I really love the way she writes historical fiction, and she’s one of the best in this field. This novel takes us to a different setting from Tudor’s England though, and this one of the reasons I picked it up. I wanted to see how well she handles a notoriously difficult period to write about: the French Revolution. She does it brilliantly. Highly recommended.

• With Napoleon in Russia by Armand A.L. de Caulaincourt. Just to remain in France with the most famous of the French Revolution’s men –Napoleon. This is not fiction, but history, written by a soldier and diplomat who accompanied Napoleon in the ill-fated expedition to Moscow, who cost him his army and his empire. “Recognized as the most important Napoleonic source discovered in the last hundred years, the three-volume memoirs of Napoleon’s Master of Horse are also exceptionally well written, and vividly portray Napoleon during his disastrous last years of power. The memoirs of one Napoleon’s most senior ministers and closest advisors, with whom he was often very candid, remained unpublished for over a century since they were left by Armand de Caulaincourt, unearthed with by Jean Hanoteau who was eminently familiar with the period, and on part of the French Ministry of War’s historical section” (read more here).

• White Gold by Giles Milton. Again this is not fiction, but it does read as one-a horror book. It’s the history of white slaves in North Africa in the 18 century. “Drawing on letters, journals and manuscripts written by the slaves . . . Milton has produced a disturbing account of the barbaric splendour of the imperial Moroccan court, which he brings to life with considerable panache…White Gold is an engrossing story, expertly told.”

What are you reading right now? Let me know in the comments or by social media.