1000 Years of Annoying the French

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Funny, but a strange concept and written in such a laid back way that I wasn't sure if I could trust the facts/history. And now it’s time to put our differences aside and start working together as one people, living together on the same planet and facing the same problems.

When I started reading it I was pleased to find so many historical details in each chapter, many of which I was unfamiliar with. The book covers the disputes and arguments between les Anglais and the French, from William the Conqueror to present day. This is a great introduction to anybody wanting to understand the peculiar relationship between two countries separated by a 30 mile stretch of water and 1000 years of colourful history.Beginning with William the Conqueror (not French) and ending with Nicolas Sarkozy (French), Clarke covers a fair bit of ground including food, battles, trade, battles, Canada, battles, wine, battles, Voltaire, battles, the French Revolution and battles.

O, delikatnie rzecz ujmując, skomplikowanych stosunkach pomiędzy dwoma wielkimi narodami, z humorem (często wyjątkowo czarnym! Taking a piss out of the French somehow gave such satisfaction, that at times I got uneasy with my own Francophobic feelings. He recounts trips to Crecy and Azincourt (not Agincourt which is hundreds of miles away from the true battle site - with the z) and paints a less than glowing picture of Joan of Arc, religious zealot and manipulative egomaniac. With A Year in the Merde, Clarke is arguably one of the earliest self-publishing success stories--it was discovered by French newspapers and garnered enough interest that he could sell the novel to international publishers.

Just as the battle between the sexes will never end (we hope), neither will the millennium-old rivalry between the French and anyone who happens to be born speaking English. Although, this is not a complete recount of the events and more so, a quick and light skim over the history.

Starting with William the Conqueror (who, contrary to what the French might claim, wasn't French at all, and died fighting the Paris-based King of the Franks) and going right up to the horrendous diplomatic gaffes inflicted on recent French presidents, I have sifted through our common history for tellable tales, and kept only the juiciest nuggets. But in fact, William the Conqueror was an avowed enemy of France and regularly attacked the French King. Not surprisingly, these aspects are key in establishing the book's unique charm - un très bon read, overall!While whenever the British won, the British author can’t help but gloat over the British superiority and kick down on the French. Not sure I'd ever have cause to re-read it, hence not 5 stars, but I'd definitely recommend it to friends, hence not 3 stars.

It’s a thousand years worth of conflicts between the British and the French, where the British author pokes fun at the French from start to finish. I found the bits about the channel tunnel and entering the EU particularly interesting, because those are bits that I really knew very little about and -- given Brexit -- are quite timely. The novel was an instant success and has led to numerous follow-ups, including Dial M for Merde (2008), 1,000 Years of Annoying the French (2010), and Paris Revealed (2011). You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice.Essentially, a two-century-old defeat is brandished in the face of every French visitor to Britain’s diplomatic headquarters … in France’s own capital city. The author also concludes this book by saying: “we can proudly affirm that, right down at DNA level, we’re not the same as the French. This book should be required reading for anyone who wants a better understanding of the history that exists between England and France - and essential for anyone who collects fascinating trivia. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. That may be so, but unless Guillotine used this Halifax for his own design, I don’t really see the point.