Choice 评论

The crimes and compromises of the WW II French Vichy regime have been the subject of a complete revision during the last decade. So much has been written that historian Henry Rousso was correct in identifying, eight years ago, a "Vichy Syndrome," a phenomenon of obsessive self-examination that has characterized France in recent years. Yet despite this reexamination, one that has been public rather than merely academic, there persists the absurd notion that "France is still denying its past." That hardy perception has led Rousso to team up with Conan, a journalist, to write this excellent study of how France has continued, throughout the 1990s, to dwell on Vichy and of how the "idea" of this obsession has itself become a national pastime. With every new "revelation," the book argues, France seems to plunge itself back into the conviction that there is still a cover-up of the truth. The case of the late President Fran,cois Mitterrand, whose Vichy past, although well-known, nearly discredited him late in life, demonstrates the importance of getting it right. Given the furor that has gripped France over the recent conviction of Maurice Papon (an 87-year-old former Vichy official), it is especially timely that Conan and Rousso's new book should appear in translation. It serves not only as a guide to recent controversies, but also as an excellent meditation on the meaning of history in public life and the responsibilities of the historian. All levels. S. D. Armus; St. Joseph's College (NY)