""Napoleon Bonaparte was a man on borrowed time. Every task and duty was expedited with military precision - and timing. He famously gobbled up his de jeuner in a cramp-inducing 10 minutes, dispatched a Spartan supper in 20 or less, and only indulged in four hours of nightly shut-eye. So it's only fitting for a history book to boil down the colossus's tumultuous rise and fall from grace to quick-fire in 30-second chapters (and counting)." - France Today

Almost two centuries since his death, Napoleon Bonaparte remains the subject of vigorous debate. On one side are those with a romantic attachment to ideals of liberty and democracy, on the other are those who would rather see him as an ambitious warlord, bent on establishing a colonial empire in the heart of Europe.

30-Second Napoleon takes in both viewpoints, presenting an engrossing introduction to one of the most recognizable figures in history and one of extraordinary interest whichever point of view you take, romantic or pragmatic: one who did much to modernize Europe, and who stood for both a powerful state and for rational and efficient government, plus such principles as equality before the law and the career open to talent--achievements that explain his continued fascination for so many people.