Historian and professor McPhee (Living the French Revolution, 1789-1799) adds to his volumes on French history with a comprehensive biography of the controversial, diminutive, outspoken, and ambitious man who overcame adversity to become a lawyer, who argued for the rights of children born out of wedlock and freedom of the press in 18th-century France, and whose name is inextricably linked with the French Revolution-for better or worse. McPhee maintains that Maximilien Robespierre "was seeking to make sense of the chaos of a world in revolutionary upheaval and to use his talents to create stability and certainty for a new order"-but at the end of his short life, he was "reviled as thoroughly as he had once been idolized." McPhee succeeds in his goal of illuminating Robespierre's early life and career (as well as his ideological and political development), and continues with thorough detail to his execution in 1794; his view is sympathetic to Robespierre, downplaying his fanaticism and dictatorial tendencies that other biographers describe. McPhee includes a detailed chronology of Robespierre's life, as well as extensive endnotes and a bibliography, which documentation will allow readers to determine whether they agree with McPhee's assertion that, "Far from the emotionally stunted, rigidly puritanical and icily cruel monster of history and literature, this was a passionate man." This fast-moving and thorough exploration of Robespierre's life and death will interest devotees of French history, particularly those looking for a fresh take on the Revolution. Illus. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

As head of the French Revolution's Committee of Public Safety, did Maximilien Robespierre (1758-94) save the republic with draconian measures or was he merely the first in a long line of modern dictators to justify rule by reference to a public will that only the leader could interpret? In this admirable biography, McPhee (professorial fellow, Univ. of Melbourne; Living the French Revolution, 1789-1799) dispassionately describes the steps by which Robespierre came to accept violence as a response to increasingly dire events. Robespierre's model for governing was always Rousseau's: government should promote virtue. His identification with the people sometimes seemed excessive-"I am the people myself"-but he tempered revolutionary ardor with pragmatism. Near the end, these instincts failed him. When he did not specify who might yet come to trial before revolutionary tribunals, he threatened too many people. The next day, he was arrested. The virtues of this biography are many: McPhee knows his sources, writes clearly, and, recognizing that his subject died in his 30s and left scant personal records, never attempts answers based on insufficient evidence. VERDICT Readers interested in the French Revolution will love this wise book about an important and enigmatic figure. Highly recommended.-David Keymer, Modesto, CA (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.