If you want to learn how Napoleon I conquered Europe, you should find another book. If you want to know how Napoleon III changed European balance of power, this book would not help you very much. But if you are curious about why French political history was so unstable in the 19th century, if you want to learn something about class struggle between the rich & the poor and struggle between clericalism & anti-clericalism, if you want to study the changes of electoral system and electoral management and if you want to know something about the struggle between church and state for control over education, this book will be your best choice.

A small problem in this book is that Alfred Cobban frequently used French words without English interpretation thereby making me buy an otherwise unnecessary French dictionary.

I'd like to recommend this book and A.J.P. Taylor's "Bismarck, the man and the statesman" at the same time. It would be wonderful to compare Alfred Cobban's orthodox view on Napoleon III's neutrality to Austro-Prussian War with A.J.P. Taylor's unorthodox view on it.

This is a well-written but easy to read book on the subject of the history of modern France. I think this would be a good supplimental work for an advanced 8th grade history course or a standand high school history course. It is, however, a little below standard fair for college students.