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Welcome to H-France

Statement of Purpose Editorial Policies Book Review Guidelines
Administration List Editors Book Review Editors Web Editors

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

H-France is affiliated with the Society for French Historical Studies. H-France's discussion list provides an electronic forum covering all aspects of the history and culture of the Francophone world. The H-France Website offers a repository of resources and links which historians and students of French history and culture may find useful. Anyone may subscribe but preference is given to teachers, professors, scholars, librarians, and graduate students. Undergraduate students may join the list but must be sponsored by their instructor.

THE PRIMARY GOAL OF H-FRANCE is to foster discussion on substantive methodological, historiographical, and pedagogical issues relating to all aspects of French history. H-France also disseminates information about manuscript and archival collections, on-line facilities and capabilities throughout the world, announcements and programs of conferences, calls for papers, fellowship competitions, employment opportunities, and, in general, any pertinent information of interest to the list of subscribers. H-France also posts original reviews of books.

EDITORIAL POLICIES

Many of the functions performed by the co-editors are similar to those of editors of journals or book publishing houses. The co-editors try to encourage scholarly discussion on the list and intercept inappropriate messages. These messages may belong somewhere else, or in the judgment of the co-editors they do not aid the scholarly debate. In either case, the co-editor will notify the contributor and explain any action taken. Co-editors will not alter the meaning of messages, but will, if necessary, add names and e-addresses and modify the subject line of a post.
  1. In the belief that the more participants, the richer the discussions on the list, the co-editors encourage all members to participate actively and contribute for the enrichment of all. If you have a reaction to a new book, a new thought relating to French history, or something related, share it with the other members of the list, and get some helpful feedback.
  2. Queries should be as informative as possible. Please provide background information so that list members who know little about the topic can still benefit from the discussion. If, for example, you simply need the address of an institution, try telling the membership exactly what service the institution performs. If you need bibliographic information and have exhausted the resources available to you locally, explain the context of the problem and the works already consulted. This will help list members know what you are looking for and prevent them from duplicating work you have already undertaken in searching for the information. If you need teaching materials, explain the problem that you are trying to deal with in the classroom and the methods which you have tried so far.
  3. Messages should be courteous or they will be returned to you for editing. If you are angered or upset by something on the list, do not respond immediately. Remember that once you send out your message, it cannot be retrieved.
  4. Make sure the information you are sending to the list is appropriate to the entire list, rather than for the information of one person, to whom it might rather be sent directly.
  5. The co-editors may cluster several messages that relate to one topic or discussion thread, resulting in a delay of a day or two before you see your message posted.
  6. When receiving several similar responses to a query, the co-editors may post the first response only, in order to avoid mailbox clutter. Authors of subsequently arriving messages that do not add further information are asked for their indulgence.
  7. As a service to its members, H-France publishes requests for and offers of housing of interest to its members. The publication of these notices does not constitute their endorsement by H-France, and H-France will reject housing notices that are discriminatory against any persons.

GENERAL NETIQUETTE POLICIES

To facilitate a smooth operation of H-France according to the principles stated above, the co-editors ask all that all who submit messages observe the following guidelines:
  1. Controversy is welcome on the list; personal vendetta is not. Please avoid sarcasm in your messages, as they will be returned to you for editing. Witticisms that may sound clever when said with a wink of the eye or a subtle tone of voice, often fall flat, or worse, in print.
  2. Please make sure that your name and email address are on your message.
  3. If replying to an H-France message, please use the "reply-to" rather than the "from" button. This will make it clear that your message is intended for distribution to the list rather than for the co-editor only.
  4. Please fill in the subject space in the header of your message. This will make it easier for other H-France readers to manage their own lists on incoming messages.
  5. Re-read your message before you send it to the list. Treat your message as you would an article you are sending to a journal. Your message will be read by more than a thousand people all over the world. Consider your reputation in the eyes of all these people when you send a message to the list.

BOOK REVIEW GUIDELINES

Reviewing books is one of the most important aspects of H-France. With no printing costs involved, reviewers are able to write more in-depth analyses than most print journals would allow. H-France reviews are preserved on the H-France web page, where they are easily retrievable and searchable, anytime worldwide. In addition, they may be freely redistributed and reprinted electronically for nonprofit educational purposes, provided that full and accurate credit is given to the author, the date of publication, and its location on the H-France website.

H-France is a service directed and operated by professional scholars of French history. It is because of the editors' willingness to volunteer their time and energy that the H-France review program is able to operate successfully. We would ask that you respect the editors' significant contributions by giving due diligence to the guidelines that follow. Preparing your review in accordance with them will be greatly appreciated by your colleagues who will edit your review.

  1. EDITORIAL GUIDELINES

    1. Effectiveness and Content:

      The most effective review will place the work within a broader context, explaining what important issues are worth the attention of scholars. Reviews should include a summary of the scope, purpose, and content of the work and its significance in the literature of the subject. Also, reviews should evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the work, paying attention to the use of sources, methodology, and argumentation in light of the work's stated purpose. For works designed for classroom use, the review should consider its success and/or limitations as a pedagogical tool and indicate the level of student for which the work was designed and is appropriate.

    2. Audience:

      Reviewers should assume a university-educated audience with particular knowledge and interest in French history and culture; however, H-France includes subscribers from many different disciplines and departments, so it is important for a reviewer to provide sufficient information, whether historical, historiographical, or theoretical, so that his or her critique is clear to individuals outside of a specific sub-field.

    3. Professionalism:

      Whether the evaluation of a work is favorable or unfavorable, reviewers should express criticism in courteous, temperate, and constructive terms. Reviewers are responsible for presenting a fair and balanced review and for treating authors with respect. H-France editors will be responsible for maintaining a constructive review process and may ask reviewers to reword or rewrite sections of their reviews. Reviewers will be given the opportunity to agree to all proposed substantive changes. H-France editors will have final determination on stylistic issues. H-France editors reserve the right not to post reviews and responses that violate H-France guidelines. At the discretion of the editors, the author of a work under review may be invited to prepare a response to the review, and the posting of a review may be delayed briefly to permit the author time to respond.

    4. Copyright information:

      H-France Book Reviews are copyrighted by the Society for French Historical Studies, and full copyright (full term, all media) belongs to SFHS in accordance with the "work for hire" provisions in American copyright law (e.g., to freely quote the work in future works the author creates or edits; and the right to distribute copies in a class taught by the author.).

    5. World Wide Web:

      All H-France solicited reviews will be published through the World Wide Web at: http://www/h-france.net

  2. STYLE GUIDELINES

    The editorial guidelines given below are designed for reviews written in English. Reviews written in French should apply these same principles to their reviews, making the necessary adjustments for French rules on grammar and punctuation.

    1. Header:

      All reviews must be headed with the full information concerning the book, using the following models:

      Peter McPhee, Revolution and Environment in Southern France: Peasants, Lords, and Murder in the Corbières 1780-1830. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. xi + 272 pp. Maps, tables, figures, notes, bibliography, and index. $75.00 U.S. (cl). ISBN 0-19-820717-4; $24.00 U.S. (pb). ISBN 0-19-820717-X

      Robert Aldrich and Martyn Lyons, eds., The Sphinx in the Tuileries and Other Essays in Modern French History: Papers Presented at the Eleventh George Rudé Seminar. Sydney: University of Sydney Press, 1999. vi + 399 pp. Notes. $54.00 U.S. (cl). ISBN 1-86487-026-5.

      In listing the publisher and place of publication in the header, there are three rules:

      1. If the state is named in the name of the publisher, then it is not included in the place. So Lexington: University Press of Kentucky and Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press.

      2. We use "literary" abbreviations for states, rather than postal codes; so Conn., not CT, Del., not DE.

      3. Generally, if a publisher has U.S. and non-U.S. offices, we try to list one of each, since folks all over the world access the web pages. So Cambridge University Press is Cambridge and New York. This is only true for the bibliography on the book under review (not in the notes)

      Please remember that books have "Forewords"--not Forwards.

      Abbreviations:

      • For cloth (cl)
      • For Hardback (hb)
      • For paperback (pb)

      The "N" in ISBN stands for Number, so don't say, "ISBN No." Following the bibliographic reference, all reviews should carry the following line, adapted as appropriate:

      Review by [reviewer's name, reviewer's institution]. The exact month and year of publication will be checked at the time the review is published to the list and web page.

    2. Text:

      1. Length:

        H-France is flexible concerning the length of reviews. In general, reviews should be between 1500 and 2500 words but certainly may be shorter. If a review will exceed 2500 words, please consult with the editor.

      2. Formatting:

        All reviews should be single spaced. Between paragraphs, a blank line should be inserted and new paragraphs should not be indented.

      3. Endnotes:

        Reviewers must use endnotes rather than footnotes. The note citation in the text should be placed in a bracket, following any punctuation:

        As Butel has argued, "The past never dies."[4] Jones further asserts......

        PLEASE NOTE: If you submit your review as a word processed file attached to an email message (as most reviewers do), please make sure that your endnotes are prepared as part of the text, NOT as superscripted numbers created by an automated endnote function in your word processing program. Also, please make sure that the notes themselves, appearing at the end of the text, are NOT prepared with an automated program. These automated programs create considerable extra work for the editors when they transform your word processed reviews into email messages in preparation for distribution to the list.

      4. Page Number References to Text Under Review:

        Page numbers should be supplied for all quoted passages or to reference particular points of interest or importance. The page number reference should be placed in parentheses and set inside of any punctuation marks (notice how this differs from the endnotes that are placed in brackets and set outside of any punctuation marks): "... does not really answer the question" (pp. 235-36).

      5. Varia: Dates, Numbers, Percentages, Ellipses, Dashes:

        Spell out names of centuries, and hyphenate when they are adjectives: "eighteenth-century literature."

        Spell out most numbers under 100; BUT use Arabic numerals in "10 percent."

        Use "..." for ellipses, and "...." if a sentence ends in the omitted part;

        For dashes, use -- with no space before or after the dashes: (word--word).

      6. Capitalizations:

        All of the following terms are NOT capitalized unless used as part of a proper name: church, mass, faith, popes, kings, the papacy, ancien regime.

        Proper names, including established denominational and religious appellations and national/ethnic designations ARE capitalized: Pope Leo X, King Louis XIV, Roman Catholic Church, Christian, Protestant, Jew, French Canadian, Basque, Alsatian, etc.

        Names of languages are capitalized: French, English, etc.

        When referring to chapter numbers, use the form "chapter one"--do not capitalize or use numerals.

        When referring to the division of a book into several parts, use the form "part one"--do not capitalize or use numerals.

      7. Use of Italics:

        1. Italicize ALL foreign words and short phrases. Try to avoid foreign words and phrases if an acceptable English alternative exists.

        Exceptions:

        1. Do NOT italicize long quotes in other languages contained by quotation marks. Accepted usage is that words in foreign quotes are ONLY italicized if that is how they appeared in the original. The reason for this is because the words are not "foreign" in the original.

        2. Do NOT italicize foreign terms commonly used in English (e.g., modus operandi, fait accompli, ancien regime). Consult the Oxford English Dictionary to determine whether or not a word is accepted in English.

        3. Do NOT italicize names of institutions, parties, and place names (e.g. Chambre de l'Édit, Parti Communist, and Palais Royal).

    3. Reviewers of Edited Collections:

      Please include a "LIST OF ESSAYS" (with the author's name and title of each article/chapter) immediately after the text.

    4. Notes:

      Endnotes are placed after the text (and List of Essays for edited collections) but before the attribution of authorship and copyright notices, following the word "NOTES".

      Any book, edited collection, essay in edited collection, article, dissertation/thesis, or web site referred to in the body of the review is to be fully referenced in an endnote, including full publication information and/or URL.

      Full publication information must conform to the following formats:

      Book: Charles Zika, Exorcising Our Demons: Magic, Witchcraft and Visual Culture in Early Modern Europe (Leiden: Brill, 2003).

      Edited collection: Robert Aldrich and Martyn Lyons, eds., The Sphinx in the Tuileries and Other Essays in Modern French History: Papers Presented at the Eleventh George Rudé Seminar (Sydney: University of Sydney Press, 1999).

      Essay in edited collection: Gary Kates, "Jews into Frenchmen: Nationality and Representation in Revolutionary France," in Ferenc Fehér ed., The French Revolution and the Birth of Modernity (Berkeley and Los Angeles: The University of California Press, 1990), pp. 105-107.

      Article: Gary Savage, "Favier's Heirs: The French Revolution and the Secret du Roi, Historical Journal 41(1998):225-258.

      Dissertation/Thesis: Marilyn Kay Chatham Goldman, "Jewish Fringes Texas Fabric: Nineteenth Century Jewish Merchants Living Texas Reality and Myth," (Ph.D. dissertation/M.A. Thesis, Texas A&M University, 2003).

      Web site: full URL along with date cited.

    5. Attribution of Authorship:

      Immediately preceding the copyright statement, the authorship line should be placed, appearing as follows:

      Jay M. Smith University of North Carolina At Chapel Hill jaysmith@email.unc.edu

      All reviews will carry the following H-France copyright statement at the bottom of the review:

      Copyright © 2005 by the Society for French Historical Studies, all rights reserved. SFHS permits the electronic distribution for nonprofit educational purposes, provided that full and accurate credit is given to the author, the date of publication, and its location on the H-France website. No republication or distribution by print media will be permitted without permission. For any other proposed uses, contact dksmith@eiu.edu.

    6. Submission of Review

      The review may be submitted as an email attachment or in the body of an email. Unless otherwise informed, please submit the review to Michael Wolfe at: mww4@psu.edu

      If you have further questions regarding the preparation of reviews, please contact Professor Wolfe at the email address above.

      Last updated: May 27, 2004



    H-France Administration

    Executive Committee

    • Editor-in-Chief: David Kammerling Smith, Eastern Illinois University
    • Chief Book Review Editor: Michael Wolfe, Pennsylvania State University at Altoona
    • Chief List Editor: David Andress, University of Portsmouth
    • Chief Web Editor: Christine Campbell
    • Financial Officer: Carolyn Lougee Chappell, Stanford University
    • At-Large Member: Pierre-Yves Beaurepaire, Université d'Orléans
    • At-Large Member: David Garrioch, Monash University (Australia)
    • At-Large Member: Sarah Fishman, University of Houston

    Editorial Board

    • Annie Crépin, Université d'Artois
    • Catherine Denys, Université de Lille III
    • Susan Foley (formerly Grogan), Victoria University (New Zealand)
    • Steven Harp, University of Akron (H-France Sponsor at University of Akron)
    • William Irvine, York University (Canada)
    • William Beik, Emory University
    • Rebecca Spang, University College London
    • Larissa Taylor, Colby College
    • Charles Sowerwine, University of Melbourne

    H-France List Editors

    H-France Book Review Editors


    H-France Web Editors

    H-France Housing Editor
    H-France Editors Emeriti

    Copyright © 2007 by the Society for French Historical Studies, all rights reserved. The Society for French Historical Studies permits the electronic distribution for nonprofit educational purposes, provided that full and accurate credit is given to the author, the date of publication, and its location on the H-France website. No republication or distribution by print media will be permitted without permission. For any other proposed uses, contact the Editor-in-Chief of H-France. The views posted on the H-France list, in H-France Review and H-France Forum, and on the H-France web site are not necessarily the views of the Society for French Historical Studies.

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