A very well researched and written book that really gives a view into Napoleon and his life.
This book focuses on social and political history instead of the battles and campaigns which i enjoyed.
I liked following the rise from Napoleon's beginnings, his education and up to his death.

It was a book that really showed the person behind the still talked about personality, the person behind the myth and legend that Napoleon as a character became. This book doesn't shy away from showing the human flaws and faults.

I really enjoyed this and liked getting a different view and understanding of Napoleon!

"What a novel my life has been!"

Napoleon, A life, is an interesting take on Napoleon and his life. Mr. Zamoyski has crafted an intriguing account of Napoleon's life, relying mainly upon the accounts and impressions that he left upon his contemporaries. The focus of this work is more upon social and political history of the Emperor and is less on battles and campaigns.

The book traces Napoleon’s rise from his not so humble beginnings in Corsica & his education at the military academy of Brienne to his rise as a military star, his military campaigns of Italy, Syria and Egypt, his coronation as Emperor and his many campaigns incl the disastrous one against Russia. We finally conclude with his banishment to Elba, his final defeat at Waterloo and death in 1821.

The story of Napoleon has been written many times before. So, What makes this biography different? I would say two major things in particular;

Firstly, Adam Zamoyski works to discover the man behind the legend. He discards the mythology and hero worship and aims to get as close as possible, to Napoleon the man. Napoleon is instead presented as a flawed human with both genius and faults, both an extra-ordinary general and at times a coward, at times a calculated genius and a whimsical dictator at others. There are many shades to the enigma, which is perhaps why he is still so fascinating even today. Throughout the book, Zamoyski tells the personal side of Napoleon’s life—his complicated relationship with his family, his relationship, his friendships his political rivalries, his hopes, his triumphs and his failures. This book does not hesitate to be critical if needed. So, if you are looking for a glowing tribute to Napoleon, this book may not be the answer.

Secondly, Instead of focusing on his military campaigns, the author chooses to focus on the prevailing situations which influenced his decisions. Zamoskyi warns readers in his introduction that he examines the military aspects of Napoleon's life only as he feels they effected his political and personal situation. This leads to an uneven study of the military aspect of Napoleon, heavily emphasized in the beginning and much less so by the 1812 campaigns in Russia. Waterloo receives barely a page and a half. Personally, I thought this aspect was disappointing. Napoleon’s battles and his military achievements formed a much important part of his life than any other modern ruler. It’s much like reading a biography of Alexander the great, without focusing of his military campaigns.

Overall, at 500 pages, it’s a detailed and well researched book. The author was able to deconstruct Napoleon’s life piece by piece, separating myth from reality. A good read for those interested in learning more about French history and those who want to learn more about Napoleon.

Many thanks to the publishers Perseus Books & Basic Books, the author Adam Zamoyski and NetGalley for the ARC.

As a historian I was delighted by this book, at over 500 pages long it is a ‘proper’ book on Napoleon, packed full of information and detailed research. Instead of focusing on his military campaigns the author here chose (wisely I my opinion) to look behind this larger than life image and research/uncover more information about the man himself and the factors that influenced his decisions.
I thoroughly enjoyed this and it lead me down several ‘rabbit holes’ of further research it grabbed my interest so much. The bibliography/index is also comprehensive and excellent.
I highly recommend this book.
I was given a ARC but NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

An interesting and effective take on Napoleon. Fascinating work on Napoleon's family history and ties to Corsica, and on his political positioning and other often overlooked areas of Napoleonic history; I found the material on Lucien's work in the Assembley particularly interesting. Has made judicious choices not to focus on the minutiae of battles or the often repeated mythic stories in favour of archival evidence and research.

Napoleon Bonaparte is one of those larger than life figures who becomes a myth, a hero, and a villain, and in the process the true human being often disappears. In Napoleon: A Life Adam Zamoyski works to discover the man behind the legend. Zamoyski works to place Napoleon in the context of his time period, both politically and philosophically. He works to explain the occasionally unexplainable mindset of the French Revolution and French Republic so that readers can understand how ready France was to accept someone like Napoleon as their leader.

Zamoskyi warns readers in his introduction that he examines the military aspects of Napoleon's life only as he feels they effected his political and personal situation. This leads to an uneven study of the military aspect of Napoleon, heavily emphasized in the beginning and much less so by the 1812 campaigns in Russia. Waterloo receives barely a page and a half. But since these are well researched and frequently written about in other books, I think the unevenness worked in the book's favor. More is certainly known about those times than about Napoleon's family, his work on restoring France, or his behavior to enemies and colleagues.

Here we discover Napoleon's formative years on Corsica and his work to define his life on his own terms. Corsican traditions emphasized family above all and Napoleon followed this throughout his life- while his brothers and sisters only considered family when it benefitted them directly. Napoleon was a man who grew up despising the idea of love, only to fall head over heels in love with Josephine- who I also learned far more about in this book than I had ever known before! He was not a man who was comfortable delegating authority, which became a serious problem when he was on campaign and trying to run an empire. Even when he wanted peace, he felt his only true claim to the throne of France was as a general.

A well-written and well researched book, Zampyshki's Napoleon delves behind the myths to get as close to the man as possible. Neither a saint nor a demon, Napoleon is instead presented as a man with both genius and faults, who retained until the end of his life an incredible charisma that caused men to devote their lives to his star, even when it seemed hopeless. Which is perhaps a large part of why he is still so fascinating today.

An excellent biography for those interested in learning more about French history and the Napoleonic Wars, as well as the self-made man behind the legend.

I've always been intrigued by Napoleon, although it can at times be difficult to dig through the mythos that surrounds him. As this book reveals, quite a bit of that mythos was built up by the man himself, a shameless self promotor. Mr. Zamoyski digs deeply into this man who proved so influential and reveals a complicated man. Throughout his career Napoleon inspired both love and hatred, and, in spite of his often poor manners and childish behavior, he possessed a charisma that even his opponents had to acknowledge was spell binding.

Mr. Zamoyski has crafted an intriguing account of Napoleon's life, drawing a great deal on the accounts and impressions that he left upon his contemporaries. The focus of this work is less on battles and campaigns and more upon social and political history of the Emperor. His courtly life and the odd attempts he made to recast himself as a dynast, particularly his strange emulation of the Bourbons, are delved into in great detail.

In spite of the already long length of this work, I found myself wanting more details of particular events that are just glossed over. There are quite a few events that were briefly touched upon that I wish Mr. Zamoyski would have delved deeper into. I also felt that the ending left a bit to be desired, like the fates of Napoleon's family, step-children, Marshals, opponents, and others who played significant roles in the Emperor's life.

All in all, I enjoyed this extensive outline of Napoleon's life very much, with my biggest complaint being that I want more.

It is a thick book about his life and his career. It is a great start to have a good chunk of information - even though it is over five hundred pages. You can explore more in other books, but is a fountain of information. Yet if you are a person who is not huge on thick books, this may not be for you.

NAPOLEON: A LIFE goes deep into the psyche of the Emperor of the French in this myth-shattering, beautifully written biography. “What a novel my life has been!" Napoleon once said of himself, as the author spins a compelling narrative of the boy born into a poor family, by twenty-six an army general, transformed into a brilliant military commander through marriage with an older woman who seduced him. Within a few years he helmed Europe with power unseen in modern history, his downfall equally stunning. Historian Adam Zamoyski cuts through shopworn mythology to deliver a true portrait of a true legend, set against the scrim of European Enlightenment. Zamoyski wrote the acclaimed 1812: Napoleon’s Fatal March on Moscow and its sequel Rites of Peace, among others. 5/5

Pub Date 09 Oct 2018   

Thanks to Perseus Books, Basic Books and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are fully mine.

#Napoleon #NetGalley

A well written and thoroughly researched look at an important historical figure. This book makes history come alive.