Best Book of the Year – Kirkus Reviews A spirited biography of the prophetic and sympathetic philosopher who helped build the foundations of the modern world.

This anthology of 81 articles is the first attempt to translate and collect the most significant political writing from the Encyclopédie (1751-1765). It includ

Preliminary Discourse to the Encyclopedia of Diderot expresses the hopes, dogmas, assumptions, and prejudices that have come to characterize the French Enlighte

Organized thematically, this book tells the story of the European encyclopedia from 1650 to the present.

"During the sixteen years it took to write, compile, and produce all twenty-seven volumes, the writers had to defy authorities and face exile, jail, and censors