Tag Astolphe de Custine

On vertigraphy

Having read this dressing-down of Bernard-Henri Lévy’s new book on America, American Vertigo, I am tempted to compare Lévy’s writings on America to Custine’s writings on Russia but respect for the Marquis tells me to resist the temptation. A nobleman…

Two months in the wrong country

Back in 1831, a young French gentleman took a boat to New York, planning to study American penal institutions. He spent nine months in the States of North America, met people from various walks of life and in due course…