Title says it all, I've become interested due to the podcast revolutions, however the topic is super convoluted and my library only has books that confuse me even more. Is there anything out there that lays things out a bit beater and more understandable for the fall of the monarchy and the rise of napoleon?
Hi there -- as you await answers from our user base, you may also be interested in checking out this section of our Books and Resources list. The list is also available on Goodreads!
If you're looking for a good academic primer, William Doyle's The French Revolution: A Very Short Introduction is an excellent start. It goes through a whistle-stop chronology of the Revolution and quickly analyses some of the major themes in the historiography of the subject and its fallout and consequences.
After that, I'd recommend The Oxford History of the French Revolution, by the same author. It's a good deal longer and a lot more detailed, and is a detailed history of the Revolution from the buildup throughout the 1780s to Napoleon's coronation as Emperor in 1804. I used it as a textbook for an undergraduate course on the Revolution last year.
If you're interested in a particular aspect, I can recommend other books, too.
-Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution by Simon Schama -The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle -Interpreting the French Revolution: Francois Furet -The French Revolution: George Rude