Dancing to the Precipice - by Caroline Moorehead (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

"[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."

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.

From the Back Cover

Her canvases were the court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette; the Great Terror; America at the time of Washington and Jefferson; Paris under the Directoire and then under Napoleon; Regency London; the battle of Waterloo; and, for the last years of her life, the Italian ducal courts. She witnessed firsthand the demise of the French monarchy, the wave of the Revolution and the Reign of Terror, and the precipitous rise and fall of Napoleon. Lucie Dillon--a daughter of French and British nobility known in France by her married name, Lucie de la Tour du Pin--was the chronicler of her age.

In this compelling biography, Caroline Moorehead illuminates the extraordinary life and remarkable achievements of this strong, witty, elegant, opinionated, and dynamic woman who survived personal tragedy and the devastation wrought by momentous historic events.

Review Quotes

"Excellent. The greater joy of this book is Ms. Moorehead's skill in building on Lucie's observations. " - The Economist

"Moorehead's biography, drawing on a trove of previously unpublished correspondence, captures the rhythm of the radical contrasts in her subject's life." - The New Yorker

"An astute, thoroughly engaging biography of a formidable woman." - Anna Mundow, Boston Globe

"[A] remarkable biography. . . . Moorehead deftly wields periods detail--the Paris salon, for instance, in which 'prowled eighteen angora cats dressed in satin'--to tell the story of a captivating woman who kept her sense of self amid the vicissitudes of politics." - Megan O'Grady, Vogue

"Absorbing . . . documents with stylistic élan and meticulous detail a reeling period of French history. . . . With a strong narrative voice that neither vamps nor moralizes, she also describes the profligacy of the royal court with deadpan precision. . . . Moorehead, to her credit, is no biographical busybody. Quite the opposite. Her restraint is not unlike her subject's, and for the most part she lets la Tour du Pin speak for herself." - Brenda Wineapple, The New York Times Book Review

"Brilliantly re-creates not only Lucie's life but also the culture that formed it." - Andrew Roberts, Wall Street Journal

"Outstanding. . . . The exceptional Henriette Lucie Dillon, Marquise de la Tour du Pin Gouvernet (1770-1853) has long deserved a competent biographer, and Moorehead (Gellhorn: A Twentieth-Century Life) does her justice." - Jim Doyle, Library Journal

"Sensational. . . . Moorehead deftly navigates a dizzying cast of characters, location and events, allowing Lucie's 'precise, cool eye' and discerning wit to shine through. Sumptuous account of Revolutionary Europe." - Kirkus Reviews