©2002, Preston Speed Publications, 297 pp. in hardback

Jean Louis, a French ship owner, was between the proverbial rock and hard place. During the French Revolution, the wealthy were targeted by new rulers who did not mind overthrowing the monarchy and committing mayhem and murder to obtain the wealth which the victims left behind. Jean, the son of a successful trader, decided to flee Nantes with his English wife to his more peaceful Vendee possessions. However it was not long before this rural peace was shattered by the Parisian powers demanding peasants to fight in their army. These peasants valiantly refused and thus faced the fire and force of the French soldiers.

Jean and his brother-in-law, Leigh, entered the conflict as leaders of the peasants. For the next eighteen months they were caught up in battle after battle and danger upon danger.

This volume provides a fast-paced, well-written account of the persistent stand these forgotten heroes made to protect their homes from subjection to tyranny. These peasants had no interest in military training or in marching to Paris and attacking the originators of these commands, instead they only desired to stay in the Vendee area and fight when they were invaded.

Local leaders, like Jean and Leigh, had to use their keen wisdom and ingenuity in thinking “outside the box” to defeat superior forces with untrained warriors who often turned their farm tools into weapons. Leigh’s military prowess quickly surfaced as he organized a group of scouts to learn and supply critical information to local leaders. When Louis’s wife and father were imprisoned, Louis used quick-thinking and successful timing to free them and many others who were wrongly imprisoned.

Ultimately a lack of training, the trauma of persistent attacks, and the superior numbers and supplies of the enemy resulted in the death of tens of thousands of the citizen soldiers and their families. Yet they never surrendered.

Seeing their cause was hopeless, Louis and his family had to decide how to survive as they sought to escape the country. Such a dream was nearly impossible. Port cities were heavily watched. Spies were everywhere. Travel permits were needed to travel within France. To make matters worse, Leigh and his sister, Patsy, were separated from Louis, her husband. The remainder of the book provides page-turning action. The reader follows the travels and travails of these characters as they sought to stay one step ahead of the enemy and yet calmly think of a safe route to England.

I will let the reader find out if the family is reunited on the safety of England’s shores.

This book is full of action, heroes, and reminders of the stand a united minority can make. Here we see an aspect of the French Revolution which is often overlooked. Adults and youth will find enjoyment and historical information in this well-written account.

Review ©2009 Byron Snapp, Hampton, Virginia