Paris on Fire

May 1968 and the Revolution That Shook the World

By: Julien Peltier

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Paris, May 1968: Students on the barricades. Ten million workers on strike. A president in hiding. For a moment, France was on the brink of revolution.

What began as a student protest exploded into the largest general strike in Western history. Universities were occupied, factories seized, and the government nearly toppled. For weeks, Paris became a battlefield of ideas and cobblestones, where youth demanded a new world — and the old order fought back.

Paris on Fire: May 1968 and the Revolution That Shook the World brings this explosive moment to life for American readers. With the storytelling drive of Erik Larson and the global sweep of Adam Hochschild, it captures not only the street battles and political drama but also the lasting legacy — from feminism to counterculture, from Occupy Wall Street to Black Lives Matter.

Was May ’68 a glorious failure? Or did it change the world in ways more profound than politics ever could? This book takes you into the heart of the uprising — its dreams, its betrayals, its echoes today.

If you loved The Guns of August, The Warmth of Other Suns, or The Proud Tower, this book belongs on your shelf.