Reviews

Praise for "The Dynamite Club""In "The Dynamite Club, " John Merriman brings together his astonishing knowledge of nineteenth-century France, his unmatched skills as an archival 'detective, ' his marvelously lucid writing style, and his uncanny talent for bringing historical figures to life. The result is a searing portrait of the tensions and violence that lurked behind the glittering facade of fin-de-siecle France and eerily foreshadowed the terrorist threat of the present day." -- David Bell, author of "The Cult of the Nation in France" and "The First Total War""Those who think of terrorism as an inexplicable evil produced by an alien culture will have their eyes opened by this fascinating study of nineteenth-century anarchist terrorists . . . [An] absorbing true crime story, with Dostoyevskian overtones, about high ideals that motivate desperate acts." --" Publishers Weekly, " starred review"John Merriman has told an absorbing story of the strange world of anarchism in late-nineteenth-century France. Replete with uncanny and uncomfortable similarities to the 'war on terrorism' today, "The Dynamite Club" portrays a society swept up in the fear of bombers who are certain that they are achieving immortality for a righteous cause. This saga of Emile Henry and his motley crew of fellow anarchists is hard to put down." -- David Kertzer, author of "The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara" and "Amalia's Tale"

Praise for"The Dynamite Club""In"The Dynamite Club, "John Merriman brings together his astonishing knowledge of nineteenth-century France, his unmatched skills as an archival 'detective, ' his marvelously lucid writing style, and his uncanny talent for bringing historical figures to life. The result is a searing portrait of the tensions and violence that lurked behind the glittering facade of fin-de-siecle France and eerily foreshadowed the terrorist threat of the present day." -- David Bell, author of"The Cult of the Nation in France"and"The First Total War""Those who think of terrorism as an inexplicable evil produced by an alien culture will have their eyes opened by this fascinating study of nineteenth-century anarchist terrorists . . . [An] absorbing true crime story, with Dostoyevskian overtones, about high ideals that motivate desperate acts." --"Publishers Weekly, "starred review"John Merriman has told an absorbing story of the strange world of anarchism in late-nin

Praise for "The Dynamite Club""In "The Dynamite Club," John Merriman brings together his astonishing knowledge of nineteenth-century France, his unmatched skills as an archival 'detective, ' his marvelously lucid writing style, and his uncanny talent for bringing historical figures to life. The result is a searing portrait of the tensions and violence that lurked behind the glittering facade of fin-de-siecle France and eerily foreshadowed the terrorist threat of the present day." -- David Bell, author of "The Cult of the Nation in France" and "The First Total War""Those who think of terrorism as an inexplicable evil produced by an alien culture will have their eyes opened by this fascinating study of nineteenth-century anarchist terrorists . . . [An] absorbing true crime story, with Dostoyevskian overtones, about high ideals that motivate desperate acts." --" Publishers Weekly," starred review"John Merriman has told an absorbing story of the strange world of anarchism in late-nineteenth-century France. Replete with uncanny and uncomfortable similarities to the 'war on terrorism' today, "The Dynamite Club" portrays a society swept up in the fear of bombers who are certain that they are achieving immortality for a righteous cause. This saga of Emile Henry and his motley crew of fellow anarchists is hard to put down." -- David Kertzer, author of "The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara" and "Amalia's Tale"