Boston Book Festival

This session takes a fresh look at the French Revolution from the perspective of public opinion and fashion. Robert Darnton’s The Revolutionary Temper: Paris 1748 – 1749, considers the period prior to the Revolution, showing how public opinion among ordinary Parisians was fueled by real and fake news from diverse sources including pamphlets, engravings, and rhyming doggerel. Anne Higonnet’s Liberty, Equality, Fashion: The Women Who Styled the French Revolution, describes the sartorial revolt of fashion influencers Joséphine Bonaparte, Térézia Tallien, and Juliette Récamier. The story of these women’s styles and celebrity is a study in creativity, liberation, and female empowerment. Join us for a rip-roaring look at the French Revolution, led by Rachel Slade, author of Making It in America: The Almost Impossible Quest to Manufacture in the U.S.A. (And How It Got That Way.) Vive la révolution!