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Max Gallo
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Napoleon: The Song Of Departure Paperback – January 1, 2004

by Max Gallo (Author), William Hobson (Translator)
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 22 ratings
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On 15 May 1779 the pale and aloof son of a prominent but poor Corsican family arrives at the gates of a military school in eastern France. Barely able to speak French, and fiercely proud of his Genoese heritage, it will nevertheless take Napoleon Bonaparte just twenty years to become absolute ruler of the country he once saw as his oppressor, and the dominant military force in Europe.

In this masterful blend of history and imagination, the author brilliantly describes Napoleon's early life, his struggles and his glorious victories. Starting with Napoleon's five years in military school, its cold and alien atmosphere exacerbated by his school-mates' constant bullying and his total isolation from his family, this book shows the first faltering steps of the man who would become the Little Emperor. A major bestseller in Europe, this book is the first step in the author's spellbinding and passionate quartet of novels.

Napoleon's desire, his courage and his determination are all brought exhilaratingly to life, together with his overwhelming passion for Josephine. Set against the backdrop of the murderous unpredictability of revolutionary politics, and the battlefields of Italy, Egypt and France, this book is a compelling, convincing and exciting journey into the heart of one of the most intriguing men in history.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    410 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Macmillan Pub Ltd
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2004
  5. Dimensions
    4.25 x 1 x 6.75 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0330436066
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0330436069
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Macmillan Pub Ltd (January 1, 2004)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 410 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0330436066
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0330436069
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.25 x 1 x 6.75 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 22 ratings

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Max Gallo

Max Gallo

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Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
22 global ratings
Front cover ripped off of "practically perfect" book
1 Star
Front cover ripped off of "practically perfect" book
The book was advertised as, "practically perfect." The front cover is completely ripped off from the rest of the book.
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Top reviews from the United States

M. Berrios
5.0 out of 5 stars Good book
Reviewed in the United States on August 26, 2021
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Very easy to read while being informative at the same time.
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Steve
5.0 out of 5 stars Great stuff
Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2018
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Can't believe I hadn't read this earlier. Interesting view of Napoleon from a non-Anglo angle.
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francophile
5.0 out of 5 stars great book
Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2015
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great book , can't wait to read the second one in the series. I do enjoy reading about European history
One person found this helpful
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Christel
1.0 out of 5 stars Front cover ripped off of "practically perfect" book
Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2018
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The book was advertised as, "practically perfect." The front cover is completely ripped off from the rest of the book.
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Christel
1.0 out of 5 stars Front cover ripped off of "practically perfect" book
Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2018
The book was advertised as, "practically perfect." The front cover is completely ripped off from the rest of the book.
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One person found this helpful
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Tracy
5.0 out of 5 stars The right price for a classic
Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2016
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Classic novel. Good read. Great price.
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Kenneth D. Gartrell
5.0 out of 5 stars First of the Napoleonic series
Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2006
The news stands and bookstores of France have featured a display of one or more of Max Gallo's psychological fictions from the internal perspective of Napoleon for most of the last ten years. There is no question this extensive psychological narrative takes a high rank in the genre of Napoleonic fiction. The work is a must for any Francophile or Napoleonic history enthusist.

I rate this work as four stars and that means I have a strong positive opinion that the work is a significant original contribution to our knowledge and enjoyment of the Napoleonic Age. I reserve my five star ratings for only the greatest novels such as "War and Peace" and the "Charterhouse of Parma" which not only advance our appreciation of the Napoleonic Age, but also rank among the greatest works of all time regardless of genre or topic.

"The Song of Departure" begins with the birth and childhood of Napoleon and concludes after his return from Egypt and on the eve of the coupe d'tat of 18-19 Brumaire (November 11, 1799) at St. Cloud. Over half of the book is consumed by events leading up to, and including, the siege of Toulon. Since each of the four books consists of approximately 400 pages, the coverage allotted to the formative years of Napoleon takes up as much as 12% of the entire work. This is important because it reveals how much emphasis Gallo places on showing the reader the inner life of Napoleon the individual.

Most other authors would gloss over the early life of Napoleon and develop more details of Rivoli, Marengo, Austerlitz, Jena, Eylau or Friedland. But, in fact, Gallo gives no more detail of these momentous battles in total than it takes to fill one chapter of his accounts of Napoleon's stay at the Briene Military Academy.

Nevertheless, I think this is purposeful and extremely useful. The telling and retelling of the great events of the Napoleonic Age has been done in many places. What we need, and perhaps the only thing truly additive, from the works of fiction in this genre is a personal perspective on events that allows us to comprehend events as if we ourselves were present to partake of that small fragment of great events each person holds title to.

Another reason to read Gallo with enthusiasm is to bring the man Napoleon out of the shadows of history and into perspective among the people and events of his age. In almost all historical and fictional accounts, Napoleon is a stage prop. He is bigger than, or at least as big as, the events himself and he is only a shadow in or over the story.

Obviously, this was never really the case in real times. What Gallo does for us and for Napoleon is to show a plausible portrayal of how it may have truly been, just as Napoleon claimed himself, that he was made by "the course of things" rather than the other way around.

There is no doubt Napoleon was a talented and intelligent human being, but Gallo shows us how Napoleon's choices and preparations became aligned with the course of events in such a way that he was uniquely swept along by them. Then, as is now, there is no doubt than many thousands of young men were similarly inspired in their schooling and exposed to opportunity in the events of the day; but, only he was chosen. Only he stood in the one available spot to be swept by random forces into the updraft of history. He was wise enough to know this and careful enough to repeat it often.

It would be one thing if Gallo was merely making up the story from his imagination, but he is not. Gallo's perspective is only imaginary in the way he weaves his interior perspective of Napoleon into the fabric of the external events. Otherwise, however, he is repeating back to us the fragments of the many thousands of pieces of personal correspondence and public statements that Napoleon authored.

A comprehensive understanding of the Napoleonic Age can be developed from four interacting levels of study: First, through the study of systematic historical analysis; second, though the first hand observation of the places that provided the stage for the historical events; third by examining the first hand accounts of the events handed down by those who were present; and finally, by considering the imaginative portrayal of the times by the writers of fiction.

Gallo has contributed greatly to advancement of our knowledge and appreciation of the Age of Napoleon by contributing directly to the last category of study. The fact remains, however, that he has added greatly to the totality of our knowledge because he has woven all of the levels of study into a form that is exciting to read for the experience -- as much as for any other reason.

My advice is to read the Gallo books in order and to read them syntopically with other related works. If you are already steeped in the factual record of the Napoleonic Age you do not need this approach and you can breeze though the books recognizing all the familiar people and sign posts of the epoch. But, if you are new to the subject, I recommend you acquire David Chandler's "Campaigns of Napoleon" and Tolstoy's "War and Peace" and read them all serially and in parallel. First, stake out the Napolenic timeline from 1769 to 1840 and read Chandler up to a critical breakpoint, then read Gallo to the same point, then work in Tolstoy as you go before repeating successive cycles to the next milestone.

While this will be an ambitious undertaking, it will also be a rewarding one. I would say this will take about six months of very active reading. If you make it, you will be as conversant and insightful about the Napoleonic Age as all but a few of the most devoted students and readers of the genre.

For futher orientation and direction please enjoy browsing my reading lists and complementary reviews.
11 people found this helpful
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Avery Moran
5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling and Indulging
Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2011
One of my college history professors told me about Max Gallo's work when I mentioned my passion for Napoleon Bonaparte. Max Gallo combines details with carefully researched facts to create a compelling and rich story of the Corsican who rose in politics to be one of the greatest military masterminds. Gallo covers nearly every aspect of Napoleon's life, from his siblings and relatives to his childhood in France, when he knew hardly any French.
Not a light read, however, but if you're looking for a great book on the life of Napoleon, pick this one up. You won't regret it.
One person found this helpful
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Pat W Jusuf
5.0 out of 5 stars Gallo + Napoleon = Dynamite!!
Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2006
Well, this is another rare 5-star novel which I HIGHLY recommend for everybody who enjoys reading history or historical fiction books. Actually, it is a MUST-READ book.

In this novel, Napoleon is alive and well. He became of what he became because of partly circumstances and his own nature. It started with Napoleon at 9, and already France's army general at his early 20s. His fondness (or craziness) of Josephine is also blossoming.

His early campaigns on France's neighbors are excellent. If Gallo had detailed those campaigns, I would think the book's pages will certainly double. Gallo is a story teller like Bernard Cornwell and Simon Scarrow. He did a bit of strategic warfare telling in this novel, but not close to Steven Pressfield's detailed war strategies. However, Max Gallo's style is actually preferrable, rather than going into too much detail on an issue.

A highly recommended novel for everyone. I will get the remaining 3 novels on this Napoleon quartet by Gallo at all costs!
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Javier Quintana Navío
4.0 out of 5 stars Muy bien escrito
Reviewed in Spain on November 8, 2019
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El libro es muy bueno, el momento y el personaje merecen homenajes de este tipo. La espera (normal cuando se pretende comprar en España un libro traducido al inglés pero escrito en francés) mereció la pena
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eva kall
5.0 out of 5 stars Read this book !
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 14, 2014
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Because it is a very interesting history . I could not stop reading and had a very good and nice time .
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WardUp
1.0 out of 5 stars Boring and wooden.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 1, 2014
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Terrible writing. Really awful. Surely such an interesting historical character deserve better than this. Maybe it's the translation but there's no sense of drama, no character development, no narrative. It's just a historian writing down everything he knows about Napoleon, with some wooden invented dialogue thrown in.
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Janet
2.0 out of 5 stars Biography of napoleon
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 28, 2013
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A book that is only going to be enjoyed if you have an interest in the subject matter. It did not make me want to read the other three books in the series.
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