'Susan Foley’s Republican Passions is a beautifully written reconstruction of the life of Léon Laurent-Pichat, a man at the heart of republican politics in second half of the nineteenth century. Based on a rich trove of archival materials, it demonstrates how the new political formations of the era were supported by personal ties, emotional dispositions and cultural practices and sheds new light on the origins of the Third Republic.' Sarah Horowitz, Professor of History, Washington and Lee University
