This is a 20-hour, 24-class video recording of John M. Merriman teaching a class at Yale University in the Fall of 2007. Merriman is a dynamic and interesting speaker and uses visual slides to augment his lectures. 20 hours is a long time to listen to any speaker but I never tired of Merriman, the subject or his passion. He has lived half his life in France, but was born and raised in Oregon, so he is an effective cultural bridge. As part of the course I also read a number of books (see my library) and watched a number of films including: Paths of Glory, The Sorrow and the Pity, Au Revoir Les Enfants, Army of Shadows, Into Great Silence, The Life of Emile Zola

HIST 276: France Since 1871 (Fall 2007), by John M. Merriman, Open Yale Courses.

--Review by Stephen Balbach, via CoolReading (c) 2008 cc-by-nd ( )