Skip to content
Notre-Dame: The Soul of France (Paperback)
  • Notre-Dame: The Soul of France (Paperback)
zoom

Notre-Dame: The Soul of France (Paperback)

(author)
1 Review Sign in to write a review
£9.99
Paperback 240 Pages
Published: 01/04/2021
Free UK delivery on orders over £25, otherwise £2.99
  • 10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Free UK delivery on orders over £25, otherwise £2.99
  • This item has been added to your basket

WINNER OF THE 2022 FRENCH HERITAGE SOCIETY BOOK AWARD

The profound emotion felt around the world upon seeing images of Notre-Dame in flames opens up a series of questions: Why was everyone so deeply moved? Why does Notre-Dame so clearly crystallise what our civilisation is about? What makes ‘Our Lady of Paris’ the soul of a nation and a symbol of human achievement? What is it that speaks so directly to us today?

In answer, Agnès Poirier turns to the defining moments in Notre-Dame’s history. Beginning with the laying of the corner stone in 1163, she recounts the conversion of Henri IV to Catholicism, the coronation of Napoleon, Victor Hugo’s nineteenth-century campaign to preserve the cathedral, Baron Haussmann’s clearing of the streets in front of it, the Liberation in 1944, the 1950s film of The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, starring Gina Lollobrigida and Anthony Quinn, and the state funeral of Charles de Gaulle, before returning to the present.

The conflict over Notre-Dame’s reconstruction promises to be fierce. Nothing short of a cultural war is already brewing between the wise and the daring, the sincere and the opportunist, historians and militants, the devout and secularists. It is here that Poirier reveals the deep malaise – gilet jaunes and all – at the heart of the France.

Publisher: Oneworld Publications
ISBN: 9781786079916
Number of pages: 240
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 18 mm


MEDIA REVIEWS

‘Vivid and engrossing… the opening chapter repays the cover price: a breathless, exhaustively researched and utterly unputdownable account of the drama… elegant, witty and constantly informative.’ - Observer

‘Brisk and entertaining... there is much to be learned here.’  - Literary Review

‘I doubt that any book published this year will start with a more gripping opening chapter than hers…Poirier recounts these and many other stories with terrific élan and a wry eye for eccentric details.’ - The Times

'This is not so much a history of the 850-year-old cathedral as an act of thanksgiving for its unknown medieval builders and its modern restorers. Poirier has interviewed several of those involved in the salvage operations. Their emotional involvement with the cathedral and its relics is at the heart of this engaging book.’ - Spectator

'Notre-Dame is both the soul of France, and the beating heart of Paris. I haven’t been there in a long time. This book left me aching to return.' - Catholic Herald

'A passionately recounted history, a compelling story of destruction, restoration and the rebirth of hope.'  - Michèle Roberts

'Concise and erudite.' - New European

‘An elegant and razor-sharp chronicle of Our Lady of Paris.’ - France

‘Unlocks the door to the past and illuminates Notre-Dame’s role in French culture.’ - Herald

You may also be interested in...

How England Made the English
Added to basket
The Tipping Point
Added to basket
Lords of the Horizons
Added to basket
The Swerve
Added to basket
The Songlines
Added to basket
Paperback
£10.99
The Basque History Of The World
Added to basket
Feminism
Added to basket
Paperback
£9.99
A Russian Journal
Added to basket
Orientalism
Added to basket
Paperback
£10.99
Ghosts of My Life
Added to basket
Henri Cartier-Bresson: Europeans
Added to basket
Ways of Curating
Added to basket
America
Added to basket
Paperback
£13.99
The Sublime Object of Ideology
Added to basket
Seven Days In The Art World
Added to basket
Watching the English
Added to basket
TheBookTrail

“The true story and history of the iconic Paris Cathedral”

The symbol of Notre Dame is known the world over. It’s well-known and respected in France and around the world and is, a stunning building inside and out. I’ve been there many times and had the privilege of attending... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 41

Please sign in to write a review

Your review has been submitted successfully.