This is one of the best book reviews I have ever read. Thank you for sharing it.
*edit: I should say, that the review alone succeeds in casting Burke in an entirely new light for me. Traditionally he speaks as the voice of the conservative, but here the author reveals that he is in fact speaking not to keep the old ways, but to preserve the new against the chaos of the Wars of Religion, his fear is that the French Revolution (and company) would plunge Europe back into the intolerance and hatred of the previous century (which is still by many counts the bloodiest in all of western history). It would be easy to read his works as anti-progress, if it weren't for the fact that (by this author's interpretation) Burke had to respond to those who saw 'progress' as a reversion to the death and destruction of the 30 years war.
~aside: A bit unfair to put a Revolutionary Tyranny caption under the pic of Lafayette. In fact, in that day at Champ de Mars, General Lafayette swore a loyalty oat that included the King. Wouldn't a pic of (imo rabid) Marat [1] be more appropriate? Or possibly David's Tennis Court or just the handsome mug of Maximilian or Danton?
*edit: I should say, that the review alone succeeds in casting Burke in an entirely new light for me. Traditionally he speaks as the voice of the conservative, but here the author reveals that he is in fact speaking not to keep the old ways, but to preserve the new against the chaos of the Wars of Religion, his fear is that the French Revolution (and company) would plunge Europe back into the intolerance and hatred of the previous century (which is still by many counts the bloodiest in all of western history). It would be easy to read his works as anti-progress, if it weren't for the fact that (by this author's interpretation) Burke had to respond to those who saw 'progress' as a reversion to the death and destruction of the 30 years war.