France: The Final Days

We've known it for years, but every now and then the French remind us why we dislike them so much. Our Gallic chums are the butt of humor on both sides of the Atlantic and the phrase 'cheese-eating surrendering monkeys' has entered the national psyche. Despite stunning success at soccer (all of it paid for by foreign money) and the odd decent movie idea, the only good thing to come out of France in the last decade is a return flight. Even lowering prices and changing the name of Euro-Disney couldn't get more people to visit the world's garlic-chewing capital. France the Final Days offers an insightful and alternative look at our odorous cousins from mainland Europe and, quite simply, laughs at them. Napoleon's secret Cognac bar, the Navy's glorious history, French 'Aristocracy' and the bidet are the subjects of just a few of the cheap laughs that authors Denise Thatcher and Malcolm Scott elicit.