Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong

Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong
by Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow

Related Website:
Better Understand France and the French

My total time spent in France is less than two months, spread over four visits. Each time I have visited, I have loved it. I have found the people to be friendly, even though I do not speak any French. But most of all, I have loved the beauty of France. It seems incredible to me that an entire nation of people could care so much for beauty that they have made an entire nation beautiful -- and they keep it that way. Beauty is important to French people. Beauty is also important to me, and I have wondered all my life why Americans seem to strive for ugliness in their surroundings rather than beauty.

With that attitude in mind, I was attracted to this book when I saw a friend reading it, and I was happy when it was then presented to me as a gift. The book was written by a husband and wife team of Canadian journalists who lived in Paris for two years on a fellowship whose purpose was to study French culture. This book describes the history of French culture and the French system of government. The book was written not by academic historians, but by journalists; it is not an academic book, but is written in a popular style. The book is enjoyable to read.

When reading a "nonfiction" book, one can never tell how accurate the book is; an accurate description differs with each writer, whether journalist or historian. However, I am comfortable that the book is accurate in an overall way, despite possible errors in details, and all I am interested in is an overall description of the history of French culture and government. Reading this book is like taking a bus tour of a city before delving into its neighborhoods on foot. It is an overview, a broad-brush painting.

As the authors discuss, "France is not what it used to be" and it will not be the same in the future. Like all cultures and societies, France is constantly changing. And yet, this book helps to understand the basic culture of France as it is today. I enjoyed this book very much, and I will enjoy reading it again before my next trip to France.