... brings a remarkable man to life. Duncan, as a storyteller, makes the Marquis’s story into something like a saga, wherein readers are propelled forward through the narrative at a nearly breathless pace. Dull history, this is not! Duncan has an approachable, but thorough style, much like that in his The History of Rome podcast. He takes the reader on a page-turning journey, every bit as compelling as summer blockbuster fiction. From orphaned beginnings to his world-weary ending, this volume is thick in both size and subject, a thorough and surprisingly readable rendition of the fascinating and revolutionary life of the Marquis de Lafayette.
In this engrossing biography, author and history podcaster Mike Duncan, who explored the Roman Republic in The Storm Before the Storm, illuminates the eventful life of the Marquis de Lafayette ... Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution broadens our understanding of his engagement in other major political movements, as well, chronicling his role in the French Revolution and the toppling of the Bourbon Dynasty in 1830 ... Duncan’s impressive biography provides an insightful look at the American Revolution that can be appreciated by history lovers and general readers alike.
[M]r. Duncan’s Hero of Two Worlds offers, in readable prose, much informative description alongside measured interpretation. The author’s sympathetic yet balanced and sensible rendering, some may think, mirrors Lafayette’s eventful life in a revolutionary age.
Duncan displays impressive skill in keeping his Lafayette an admirable figure despite painful limitations. More energetic than intelligent, he was not ahead of his time. Popular histories extol his abolitionism, but this developed later; he had no objection to slavery while serving under Washington. His lack of personal ambition was unaccompanied by proficiency in France’s cutthroat politics, so his influence never matched his popularity. An outstanding account of an almost impossibly eventful life.
Though short on analysis, Duncan marshals a wealth of information into a crisp and readable narrative. This sympathetic portrait illuminates the complexities of Lafayette and his revolutionary era.
