The Story of French by Jean-Benoît Nadeau and Julie Barlow is a historical, sociological and linguistic overview of the French language from its beginning to today. The book is not intended to be a scientific reference for a course or for research, and thus is written in a very clear, pleasant, and often anecdotal style. Four major parts divide the text: Origins, Spread, Adaptation and Change. Appendices present a range of important figures regarding the place of French in the linguistic world.

The authors open the book by covering the origins of the French language. The first chapter, ‘The Romance of French’, focuses primarily on historical accounts that influenced the linguistic outline of what is known as France today. ‘In French and Not Otherwise’ presents the establishment of 16th-century French through such actions as the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts (1539), promulgated by François I to replace Latin with French as the administrative language. However, it took another century to regulate this decision. The production of written texts in French increased significantly, although Latin remained the language of scholarship. ‘The Dawn of Purism’ captures the foundation and development of the Académie française and its Dictionnaire.

The second part of this book concerns the spread of the French language. ‘Far from the Sun’, recounts the spread of French and the creation of creoles in the world as a result of colonialism. ‘The Language of Genius’ covers the 17th-century shift by which French became the language of intellectuals and the lingua franca of Europe. ‘Revolutionary French’ presents the status of French and the multitude of dialects existing in France, while ‘New Sanctuaries’ is about other French-speaking regions of the world. ‘French without Faute’ covers the changes undergone by the French education system during the 19th and 20th centuries, as education became universal and French became a truly national language. However, it is not until World War II that French was spoken by all. In ‘Tool for an Empire’, the authors explore the fate of the French language in the colonies and later in the post-colonial countries. It particularly focuses on Algeria and Senegal, and touches briefly on the rest of Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the Pacific islands. In ‘Lost Worlds’, the fate of French in Quebec, Acadia, and Louisiana is recounted, through language development, assimilation and resistance.

The third major section starts with ‘The Power of Attraction’. It concerns the prestige and development of France, focusing on 19th-century culinary, artistic, literary, scientific, technological, and linguistic influences. ‘The Invention of Cultural Diplomacy’ covers the strategies France used to maintain influence in the world, mostly through its numerous language schools. In ‘A New Playing Field’, the authors explain how the French language was and is still able to keep its international momentum despite the overwhelming growth of English at all international levels. In the next two chapters, ‘Choosing French’ and ‘Rocking the Boat’, the authors focus on Senegal, Ivory Coast, Algeria, Canada, Louisiana, and a few other countries where the place of French is still significant. In ‘La Francophonie’, the authors discuss the development of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF). Today, the OIF plays a crucial role in some worldwide decision-making and in many developing countries.

In the last part, entitled ‘Change’, the chapter, ‘The Struggle for Standards’, points out that French has been changing for centuries and that so-called pure French has never really existed among native speakers. ‘Protecting the Future’ examines how France and Quebec have individualised their laws for linguistic protection to promote their language through music, cinema and literature. ‘Global Hesitations’ discusses how the French themselves limit the growth of their language through pessimism, a lack of involvement in francophone exchanges, and by requiring English in some academic and scientific fields. The last chapter ‘The Unwritten Chapters’ provides a general overview of the book's discussions and raises a few additional questions, especially regarding the future of French. The authors conclude by stating that it is up to francophones to protect their language in order to preserve it and to develop its role in the world.

Overall, the book is a very interesting and easy read. For those looking for a teaching support, it is probably not ideal as its organisation is not suited for that purpose. However, it gives the reader a historical, sociological and linguistic overview of the French language in the world.