"A witty, engaging narrative style....[Robb's] approach is particularly engrossing."— New York Times Book Review , front-page review. A narrative of exploration—full of strange landscapes and even stranger inhabitants—that explains the enduring fascination of France. While Gustave Eiffel was changing the skyline of Paris, large parts of France were still terra incognita. Even in the age of railways and newspapers, France was a land of ancient tribal divisions, prehistoric communication networks, and pre-Christian beliefs. French itself was a minority language. Graham Robb describes that unknown world in arresting narrative detail. He recounts the epic journeys of mapmakers, scientists, soldiers, administrators, and intrepid tourists, of itinerant workers, pilgrims, and herdsmen with their millions of migratory domestic animals. We learn how France was explored, charted, and colonized, and how the imperial influence of Paris was gradually extended throughout a kingdom of isolated towns and villages. The Discovery of France explains how the modern nation came to be and how poorly understood that nation still is today. Above all, it shows how much of France—past and present—remains to be discovered. A New York Times Notable Book, Publishers Weekly Best Book, Slate Best Book, and Booklist Editor's Choice.

格雷厄姆•罗布（Graham Robb），英国作家、历史学家。一九五八年六月出生于英国曼彻斯特。一九八七年至一九九〇年间担任牛津大学埃克塞特学院研究员一职，自一九九八年起成为英国皇家文学学会会员。二〇〇九年被授予法兰西艺术与文学勋章骑士勋位，二〇一二年被授予巴黎市金质奖章。

罗布出版有多部法国文学与历史方面的著作。他于一九九七年出版的传记体文学作品《维克多•雨果》（Victor Hugo）获得英国皇家文学学会颁发的海涅曼图书奖（Heinemann Award）和惠特布雷德传记奖（Whitbread Biography Award），二〇〇〇年出版的《兰波》（Rimbaud）一书入围塞缪尔•约翰逊奖（Samuel Johnson Prize）最终候选名单。本书（《探索法国》）继二〇〇七年获得达夫•库珀奖（Duff Cooper Prize）后，于二〇〇八年荣膺英国皇家文学学会颁发的翁达杰奖（Ondaatje Prize）。新作《巴黎人：探寻巴黎历史的神奇之旅》（Parisians: An Adventure History of Paris）荣登《星期日泰晤士报》（Sunday Times）十大畅销书榜单。