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Like Saint-Simon at Versailles or Samuel Pepys in 17th century London, Lucie de la Tour du Pin was a deft chronicler of her times. Born into French and British nobility, Lucie spent most of her 80 years as a witness to, and often a participant in, the major events of her day. From the French Revolution to the American Revolution, and from Paris to the ducal courts of Italy (with a short stay in Albany, New York), Lucie watched, listened and wrote about the remarkable era in which she lived. In this compelling biography, Caroline Moorehead illuminates the extraordinary life and remarkable achievements of this witty, opinionated and dynamic woman who survived war, exile, poverty, and illness. Meticulously researched, brilliantly written, and vastly entertaining, Dancing to the Precipice is an incomparable social history. The acclaimed author of numerous biographies and works of history, Caroline Moorehead has also written for the Telegraph, the Times, and the Independent. She is the cofounder of a legal-advice center for asylum seekers from Africa, and her most recent book, Human Cargo: A Journey Among the Refugees was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. She lives in London. ''An astute, thoroughly engaging biography of a formidable woman.''-Anna Mundow, Boston Globe
Riassunto
“[A] remarkable biography….Moorehead deftly wields periods detail…to tell the story of a captivating woman who kept her sense of self amid the vicissitudes of politics.”
—Vogue
From acclaimed biographer Caroline Moorhead comes Dancing to the Precipice, a sweeping chronicle of the remarkable life of Lucie de la Tour du Pin—“an astute, thoroughly engaging biography of a formidable woman” (Boston Globe) who, over the span of some 80 years, was witness to, and often a participant in the major social upheavals of eighteenth-century French history.
This definitive French Revolution biography brings a turbulent era to life through the eyes of one of its most resilient observers, chronicling:
- Life at Versailles: An insider’s account of the glittering, decadent, and treacherous court of Louis XVI in the final years before the fall of the French monarchy.
- Surviving the Terror: A harrowing narrative of how Lucie navigated the most dangerous days of the French Revolution, witnessing friends and family arrested and sent to the guillotine.
- Escape to America: The remarkable story of an aristocratic family building a new life as farmers in upstate New York, grappling with a rugged landscape and new democratic ideals.
- The Bourbon Restoration: A firsthand perspective on the return of the French kings and the complex social landscape of post-Napoleonic Paris, including friendships with figures like Talleyrand and the Duke of Wellington.
