'This highly readable collection of essays written by cutting-edge historians expertly guides students and advanced scholars through the controversies over the origins of the French Revolution.' - Thomas E. Kaiser, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, USA 'This is a book that deserves serious scholarly attention as well as evaluation as a student reader...I find much to recommend ... Read morethe approach of this book. The attention to detail and the quality of research are both impressive. More important, the theme of these articles highlights an emphasis on politics and contingency too often ignored in other histories...It forces those who would emphasize discourses, ideology, gender, and global perspectives to come to grips with the inexorability of politics that characterized daily life in that period.' - Jack R. Censer, George Mason University, H-France Review 'This collection is a welcomed addition as both students and scholars will benefit from its multi-faceted approach in explaining the causes of this great cataclysm. Above all it demonstrates that the best interpretive framework for understanding the French Revolution is one which incorporates socio-economic, political and cultural methods of explanation.' - Early Modern European History Show Less