One of the most interesting people in the history of the world. Spent his entire life popping up historic moments and times. This book by Mike Duncan makes that history approachable and entertaining. A triumph.

My second biography on Lafayette, and definitely my favorite of the two I've read.

Structure/Formatting 4.5/5
I love a chronological history book, and the structure and flow of this worked very well for me. One thing I was sad about was the lack of photos! I love seeing what photos are chosen to be included in books (and which artist's depictions), but this gave me none of that.

Thoroughness of Research 4.5/5
I would have loved a new record set or new deep-dive into an old record set, but otherwise this was very well researched and used a lot of primary sources. I also have some new history books to check out to learn more about the period.

Storytelling 5/5
This was such a great, easy read. Even for the parts where I knew what was going to happen next, I needed to keep reading to find out.

Enjoyment 5/5
This was such a fun one. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to learn more about "America's favorite fighting Frenchman."

Prior Knowledge Needed 4/5
I am fairly well read on the American Revolution at this point, but my knowledge on the French Revolution is fairly minimal. This book did a fantastic job of breaking down the pieces of the war relevant to Lafayette in a way that, while I may still not understand the whole war, I understood his role in it. If you've seen Hamilton, you probably know enough of the American Revolution to understand the pieces mentioned in that section of the book. :-)

One thing I noticed with the Netgalley audiobook for this book was the end of the last two chapters was cut off. Luckily I had the e-book to reference to read the missing paragraphs.

Hero of Two Worlds
The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution
by Mike Duncan
Narrated by Mike Duncan

I listened to an audiobook arc from NetGalley and Hachette Audio in exchange for an honest review.

I was not familiar with the author prior to listening to this book and while I knew the generalities of the Marquis de Lafayette in the America Revolution there were so many new things that I learned from this book.

His path through history and the references to how we know things and how events progressed and transpired were genuinely fascinating.

The narration was excellent on par with a PBS Ken Burns documentary. It was rather longer than my usual audiobooks but there was a lot of information to cover and none of it felt superfluous.

5/5 I will definitely be checking out Mike Duncan’s other works.

I’m a big fan of Mike Duncan’s podcasts (as, I imagine, are many of the people who will pick up this book), and it didn’t disappoint. Part of that is the subject matter - it’s hard to think of anyone who had more of a front row seat to witness this era of history than Lafayette. But Duncan has really found his groove as a historian here, in terms of being able to tell a story about someone who he clearly finds personally interesting and inspiring, while also knowing when to take a longer view of history and acknowledge Lafayette’s flaws. There are obviously many, but: dude, you really should have spent more time with your wife (though I’m very glad you came round on slavery relatively quickly).

I knew a reasonable amount about the American and French revolutions heading into this book, but Duncan includes a lot of details about Lafayette’s specific role that I wasn’t aware of, and knows when to ruminate in detail and when to skip over large swathes of someone’s life. I knew less about France in the 1820s-1830s, so there was plenty to learn there. The primary sources are well blended, rather than clunkily referenced, which always helps.

There were a few issues with audio quality that I expect may have been down to this being an ARC (including some excessively long silences between chapters that made me think my wireless earphones had suddenly died), but anyone who has listened to Duncan’s work will also know him as an excellent narrator - energetic and lively.

I’m not sure what Duncan has planned next, but I’ll be keeping an eye out.

Mike Duncan's a great disseminator of the most interesting parts of a historical story and how to put those parts together in a compelling way. His voice is also great for listening to, so after listening to his Rome stuff and the Revolutions podcast, listening to the audiobook for everyone's favorite fighting Frenchman (LAFAYETTE!) was a no-brainer.

I didn't know much about Lafayette before this book, despite taking an entire course on the French Revolution and getting a B in it. Why, you ask? Because my professor and the textbooks I read were BORING, and so I've spent YEARS thinking the French revolution was a complete snoozefest. Duncan proves me wrong here, making every element of Lafayette's life very compelling. He was a complex man, involved in many important events on two continents, and Duncan paints a vivid picture of the man himself and the situations he found himself continously involved in.

Small note, the Netgalley copy of the audiobook I received (thanks, Netgalley + publisher!) cut off in the middle of the final chapter, which was very frustrating. So I have no idea how this book ends. But, that's not the fault of the book obviously, so it doesn't affect my rating or review.

I have listened to both of Mike Duncan's podcasts, but you don't need to know him to find this book as fascinating as it is. I enjoy history, but somehow my knowledge of American Revolutionary history is lacking. However, even with that I know that Lafayette is a hero of the Revolution who did not have to risk his life for our cause.

This book's first third follows Lafayette's youth in France and how he finds himself fighting on the side of the revolutionaries in America, and while I did know he did I had more of a mental idea of him like Washington, not a teenager. It then follows him back to France and how he gets involved in the French Revolution. This area I had more of a base knowledge from Duncan's Revolution's podcast, but even here we see how Lafayette's connection with America came through for him when he could do nothing. Through it all we see Lafayette as a full person with mistakes and ideals and with Mike Duncan's signature talent of weaving a wonderful story. If you happen to listen to his podcast there will be gems for you, if you don't I highly recommend them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for this Advance Reading Copy.

<i>Hero of Two Worlds</i> is a biography of Gilbert du Motier, better known as the Marquis de Lafayette, hero of the American Revolution who went on to try to bring similar ideals to France. As the title might suggest, the biography focuses more on Lafayette's influences on the American and French Revolutions and how the public of both countries viewed the man, less on his personal life. Mike Duncan, the author did a phenomenal job of researching this book, providing an objective look at Lafayette's life, and narrating the audiobook. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about Lafayette.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book.

Lafayette had one of the more impactful and interesting lives of any person. As a teenager, he fought in the American Revolution. When he returned to France he was instrumental in the French Revolution. His life was full of contradictions. He was an abolitionist, but also a close friend of the slave owners George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. He fought for liberty and equality, while remaining loyal to French nobility. He was devoted to his wife and children, while having successive mistresses.

This book is excellent and does his life justice. I knew more about his life in America from reading about the American Revolution, but I haven’t read much French history. Fortunately, this book goes into that in detail. Lafayette remained true to his principles, but didn’t break with the kings and wound up being mistrusted by both sides of the French Revolution. The story of the time he spent in prison (where he was voluntarily joined by his wife and daughters) was compelling. He bounced back and forth from opposing the French government, to being a part of it, to being excluded from it. On the other hand, in America he was, and is, revered and made a triumphal tour of all 24 states in 1825.

The audiobook is read by the author. He does a better job of narrating than most author’s do. I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher.

I was really quite thrilled to receive the Hero of Two Worlds early. I am a longtime listener of both of Mike Duncan's stellar podcasts. I didn't read his first book because I wasn't super interested in the period that it covered. However, when I heard that he was writing about about Lafayette, I was immediately intrigued. Even before Hamilton made his name synonymous with charm, I was fascinated by this young French man who decided to take up the cause of liberty. I knew that I would enjoy listening to this book because it brings a narrator I love to a topic that fascinates me. But, it was not a guarantee that I would actually like the book itself. Writing a 30 minute podcast episode is not exactly the same as writing a book. I was not sure if Duncan's style would work well. I was pleasantly surprised that everything in the book really exceeded my expectation.

Duncan provides a well-researched, popular history book that will be accessible to non-historians. To those who may have listened to Duncan's Revolutions podcast the book may feel somewhat repetitive. Duncan takes you through the American and French revolutions, makes some small stops in the Haitian revolution, then brings you back to the removal of the Bourbons for good. All things he's covered on the podcast, but there is no doubt that Lafayette is a really amazing lens to view each of these events. It just feels like sometimes Lafayette can be a bit more of a background player in his own book. Duncan typically course corrects quickly to re-center the narrative but it is noticeable.

The other thing that I noticed is that the book sometimes lacks depth in providing a nuanced portrait of Lafayette. I think considering that this is aimed at the general public that it's completely fine that this is the case, but I doubt that the book sheds any new light on Lafayette, the person. Whereas, it does give a good idea of his role within large historical events. I think that this book will intrigue many amateur historians or those looking to learn more about Lafayette after seeing Hamilton. Academic history it is not, but it's a perfectly delectable popular history book. I would not hesitate to recommend this hoping to learn more!

As a huge fan of Mike Duncan's podcasts (if you haven't checked out The History of Rome or Revolutions then where have you been) I immediately requested access to this audiobook when I saw it available and narrated by Mike Duncan himself. And boy did it not disappoint. It kind of felt like getting a surprise drop of new podcast episodes.

Throughout this biography, Duncan shows Lafayette grow from an idealistic provincial teenager into an icon of liberty and the man now known in popular culture as "America's favorite fighting Frenchman," thanks to the success of Lin Manuel-Miranda's Hamilton.

I appreciated that Duncan did not shy away from calling out the flaws and shortcomings of the Marquis. He commented on, among other things, Lafayette's naïveté, the contradictory nature of his personal opinions towards abolition compared to his actions in that regard, and his complete lack of understanding about personal finance multiple times. Despite these shortcomings, it is also clear that the Marquis was a man of strong convictions who throughout his life did not waver from the principles he fought for on both sides of the Atlantic. Though the people of France called him both a radical liberal and part of the old guard/a reactionary counter-revolutionary depending on the year, it was the political climate that changed and never his beliefs.

For anyone with a passing historical knowledge, I think this book is an excellent deep dive into one of the most influential figures of his era. Even without much previous knowledge, Duncan does a good job of touching on major moments in history as they relate to Lafayette. And Revolutions seasons 2, 3, and 6 cover the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the July Revolution, respectively, if you find you need more information.

As usual Duncan presents a huge amount of research in a fun, conversational manner, and I found listening to this book to be a truly enjoyable experience. I would highly recommend!