The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo (Pulitzer Prize for Biography)

Tom Reiss

Sep 2012 · Sold by Crown

About this ebook

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHY • ONE OF ESQUIRE’S BEST BIOGRAPHIES OF ALL TIME

General Alex Dumas is a man almost unknown today, yet his story is strikingly familiar—because his son, the novelist Alexandre Dumas, used his larger-than-life feats as inspiration for such classics as The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers.

But, hidden behind General Dumas's swashbuckling adventures was an even more incredible secret: he was the son of a black slave—who rose higher in the white world than any man of his race would before our own time. Born in Saint-Domingue (now Haiti), Alex Dumas made his way to Paris, where he rose to command armies at the height of the Revolution—until he met an implacable enemy he could not defeat.

The Black Count is simultaneously a riveting adventure story, a lushly textured evocation of 18th-century France, and a window into the modern world’s first multi-racial society. TIME magazine called The Black Count "one of those quintessentially human stories of strength and courage that sheds light on the historical moment that made it possible." But it is also a heartbreaking story of the enduring bonds of love between a father and son.

Ratings and reviews

History always seems to find these types people thrust into extraordinary events where extraordinary actions to be the better man, in most cases to show that in the mist of all the chaos their is always some who will maintain their civility. I do agree with other comments as the history was to help people better understand what the country of France was going through and what General Dumas had to deal with from the inside of the country as well as fighting the numerous enemies he was fighting on the outside. I would be thrilled to see a good movie made from this, however if they do that they need to do it right by reading the book.

I read this one in print, and it's a really great bio of someone I had not even known existed. Beyond the aspects of French history today I didn't know of, including their abuse of the people of Saint-Domingue, it was also interesting to learn how many aspects of Dumas' famous characters Athos, Aramis and Porthos are inspired by the adventures of his own father.

Being a lover of history and the fun facts u find while studying history I was amazed I didn't know about General Dumas. Excellent story, fascinating to read.

About the author

TOM REISS is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Black Count and the author of the celebrated international bestseller The Orientalist. His biographical pieces have appeared The New Yorker, The New York Times and other publications. He makes his home in New York City.