France in the World: A New Global History

I think I'm realizing that I don't have time to conquer French history.  It would take years of study to fully grasp it.

So I had hoped that this book, a collection of some 130 short essays about France and its role in the world would feature more cultural diversions.  And it did, at least when compared to a standard history.

But still the bulk of the essays focused on political leaders, groups and policies, things that I consider necessary evils when trying to understand a culture.

Anyhow, I solved the problem by doing something I rarely do: skipping ahead.  Somewhere after the halfway point I gave myself permission to jump past any essays that didn't focus on interesting cultural aspects of France.

And I'm glad I did!