Bonaparte, a militarist whose desire to conquer the Continent foreshadowed the total warfare of the 20th century, is a prime example of unbridled ambition to absolute power. The Corsican was a master of cartography and logistics, and typically sought to attack in order to isolate and conquer. But in sweeping away Europe’s old order, he substituted nepotism not enlightened government or culture; his favorable reputation largely rests on a propaganda apparatus (including mastery of the contemporary news cycle via semaphore). Though he anticipated Stalin and Hitler, the French have proclaimed him a hero. Thematic and synthetic rather than chronological, the book is a typically strong effort from Johnson.