French Legends

In an age where it was difficult to steer clear of a king's wrath and keep one's head for their entire life, Armand Jean du Plessis managed to become the power behind a king. The royal courts of 17th and 18th century France were famed for powerful and versatile Ministers like Talleyrand and the Comte de Vergennes, yet none have held as much sway like the man best known to the world today as Cardinal Richelieu.

In many ways it is fitting that Maximilien Robespierre (1758-1794) is one of the best known figures of the French Revolution. The early years of the Revolution were fueled by Enlightenment ideals, seeking the social overthrow of the caste system that gave the royalty and aristocracy decisive advantages over the lower classes. Few were as vocal in their support of Enlightenment ideals as Robespierre. But the Reign of Terror became the most memorable aspect of the Revolution, and Robespierre's position made him the Reign of Terror's instrumental figure.

Louis XVI is one of the most famous kings of France, but for reasons he would have much rather avoided. Coming of age in the wake of the reign of the Sun King, Louis XIV, and his father, Louis XV, Louis XVI initially intended to be one of France's most enlightened kings. Instead, he was destined to be the only French king ever executed. Indeed, it is his death and his role in fomenting the French Revolution (along with his infamous queen, Marie Antoinette) that continue to play the central role in Louis XVI's legacy.

Jean-Paul Marat (1743-1793) gave the French Revolution a voice. One of the most memorable and notorious revolutionaries, Marat became one of the Revolution's best-known figures through his speeches, writings, and scathing attacks on everyone he perceived as, "[E]nemies of the revolution". No revolutionary was more passionate, determined, and willing to die for the cause.

And you think you have problems resisting those Christmas cookies! It is Christmas Eve in Provence. The date is seventeen hundred and something and Father Balagère is getting ready to say Midnight Mass at Trinquelage castle. The tradition calls for the service to be three Low Masses, that is, Masses where the responses are spoken by the acolyte, not sung by the choir.The celebrants and the congregation are required to be fasting, and everyone is hungry. Meanwhile, in the kitchens the feast is being prepared for after the service, and all the delicious smells are wafting throughout the ...

In The Last of the Doughboys, Richard Rubin introduced readers to a forgotten generation of Americans: the men and women who fought and won the First World War. Interviewing the war’s last survivors face-to-face, he knew well the importance of being present if you want to get the real story. But he soon came to realize that to get the whole story, he had to go Over There, too. So he did, and discovered that while most Americans regard that war as dead and gone, to the French, who still live among its ruins and memories, it remains very much alive.

France's most famous king, and Europe's longest serving, Louis XIV (1638-1715) is often viewed today as a symbol of royal extravagance and splendor. Reigning for over 72 years, the legacy of the "Sun King" is remembered for the magnificent Palace of Versailles, the patronizing of arts and theater, and the apocryphal quote "l'Etat c'est moi" (I am the State).

Joan of Arc is one of the most famous women in history: a French folk legend, a Catholic saint, and a military heroine. Yet almost nothing is truly known about the Maid of Orleans besides her ultimate fate - being burned at the stake when she was still a teenager. Claiming God instructed her to save France from England, she convinced the uncrowned Charles to send her to the siege of Orleans, and she subsequently led the French army to a string of important victories that made it possible for Charles VII to be coronated as the king of France.

Throughout history, a countless number of historical figures have had their lives overshadowed by the myths and legends that surround them to the extent that their legacy comes to define them. In French history, this is truer of Marie Antoinette than just about everyone else. Nearly 220 years after she was put to the guillotine, Marie Antoinette is more famous than ever, fairly or unfairly coming to epitomize royalty and everything that was wrong with it.

Blaise Pascal: The Life and Legacy of the Legendary French Mathematician and Theologian examines the life and work that made this unconventionally educated yet brilliant scientist, mathematician, and man of letters one of modern history’s most important figures. You will learn about Pascal like never before.

The whimsical tale of a witch and an enchanted scarecrow come to life from the otherwise serious author Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804-May 19, 1864), whose themes often center on the inherent evil and sin of humanity. He is best known for The House of the seven Gables and The Scarlet Letter, a story of a proud adulteress sentenced by her stern Puritan judges to wear a scarlet A on her breast, published in 1850.

"The Legend of Saint Julian the Hospitalier" is a short story by French writer Gustave Flaubert, one of the great masters of literary style and aesthetics. Saint Julian is predicted at birth to do great things, but a growing hatred takes root in him, leading him to seek a way to escape a destiny which seems more and more likely to be terrible. "The Legend of Saint Julian the Hospitalier" is an inspiring tale of perseverance and humility, one of Flaubert's most touching short stories with a religious theme.

While it would be impossible to name every individual who has contributed to the ever-advancing field of science, it almost goes without saying that one of the most important was Louis Pasteur, father of microbiology and modern immunology. Apart from propelling the field of vaccination to new heights, this visionary scientist would also revolutionize a significant part of the beverage industry, and highlight the importance of sterilization. These are only some of the extraordinary achievements on Louis' glaring résumé, one so well-rounded and extensive that it beggars belief.

After getting made redundant, watching his pension fund implode, and finding his wife has left him all in 24 hours, 48-year-old accountant Peter Stevens is broke, and depressed.

Fils du hockeyeur Henri Richard, Denis Richard, avec la collaboration de Léandre Normand, nous rappelle les exploits mais aussi les revers et les sautes d’humeur de son illustre père, le joueur le plus sous-estimé de l’histoire des Canadiens. Fougueux et déterminé, Henri a toujours mené son équipe par l’exemple plus que par la parole. Timide et renfermé, le « Pocket Rocket » a connu son lot d’heures glorieuses et d’autres plus difficiles aussi.

Dans ce livre révolutionnaire et inédit, Aliko Dangote le « noble fils de Kano », nous dévoile la réponse à toutes les questions sur l’argent, la richesse, et la réussite au travers de son parcours légendaire. Vous découvrirez les principes, les méthodes et les stratégies fondamentales qu’il a utilisées afin de parvenir à la prospérité et à la réalisation de son incroyable rêve d’homme d’Affaires noir le plus riche du Monde.

La grande aventure de Marvin le Calcinateur, propulsé du XXIe siècle directement au Moyen-Âge, se poursuit alors qu’il est contraint d’accepter une mission périlleuse de son ennemi Merlin. À contrecoeur, il doit se rendre avec ses amis Perceval, Dandrane et Herms, jusqu’au mur d’Hadrien pour y rencontrer un guerrier légendaire, Lancelot du Lac, afin de le convaincre de joindre les armées d’Arthur.

Marvin est un garçon de quatorze ans qui se retrouve un jour, après une joute de donjon et dragon avec des amis, projeté dans le moyen-âge. Avec son BMX, ses livres scolaires et ses affaires de scoutisme, le jeune Marvin tombe du ciel et arrive dans un monde qu’il devra tenter de comprendre. Par ses connaissances modernes sur le passé et le futur, ses livres scolaires, sa capacité à lire, ses notions simples de physique et de chimie et son savoir acquis des films qu’il a intégré, Marvin devient rapidement le Mage Marvin.

Après la tentative de meurtre de Perceval sur le roi Arthur, Marvin et ses compagnons doivent fuir et se cacher. Poursuivis par les chevaliers qui cherchent à venger leur souverain, soumis aux épanchements de Perceval qui se désespère de Guenière et contraints de disparaître afin de sauver leur vie, les aventuriers trouveront refuge dans le monastère du Prieur Lothaire du Trou d’aile de l’Ordre de l’Asne, un fieffé harpagon.

…Un homme au bord du gouffre à la recherche d’un vieil ami disparu. La dangereuse manie d’un maître chanteur à se faire trop d’ennemis pour son propre bien. L’obsession d’un peintre misanthrope reproduisant la même toile, encore et encore. Un neurochirurgien retraité fasciné par la cryptozoologie et qui préfère vivre en marge de la société. La légende d’un cavalier fantôme hantant depuis des siècles le pittoresque village de Val-Dormant…