This wonderful collection is sorely needed in the English-speaking world. It is partly a corrective to an imbalanced narrative of over-attention to English awakenings and global connections. This welcome new work focuses upon the neglected, the overlooked, and bypassed Genevan Réveil, a nineteenth-century evangelical awakening which spread from Geneva to French-speaking areas of Switzerland and France and then into the Rhine lands of Germany and to the then-combined lands of today’s Belgium and the Netherlands and also into the Piedmont of Italy. True, some names are known and spoken of, such as Merle d’Aubigné and Louis Gaussen. But very little attention has been given to the real framework of understanding the Réveil, socially, spiritually, politically, theologically, philosophically, ecclesiologically, and missionally, at least in the English-speaking world.

The book has twenty contributors, and the promotional material tells us it was ten years in the making. The editors have crafted five useful divisions to the work: first, the excellent introductory chapter by Jean Decorvet; second, “The Réveil Spreads from Geneva,” containing eight chapters which clearly help readers to understand the international nature of the awakening; third, “Leading Figures in the Réveil,” with nine biographical chapters; fourth, engagement with “How the Réveil Affected France and Switzerland” in three focused chapters; and fifth, the work ends with Henri Blocher’s “Afterword: Of Revival and Revivalism.”

Readers will benefit greatly from the introductory chapter, which briefly looks at historical research in this field of study, and deals with definitions, periodization, events, and Geneva “as cradle.” Further, the main body of the book will not only show readers that the magisterial reformation is ever in the background, as well as the tensions that emerged, but also that these tensions are not that unique and have much in common with relations between national/state Churches and free/voluntarist Churches elsewhere.

The scholarship in this work supports the general thesis that the theme of international influence is, as with tracing most influences, both direct and indirect. Readers will undoubtedly be drawn to certain regions depending on their regional identities or interests. I was drawn to the Réveil as it spread in France, the Low Countries, French-Speaking Canada, and the Missionary Societies of Francophone Europe that emerged.

The biographical chapters are rich with surveys, details, and bibliographical information. Mark Noll commented in his foreword that he was surprised by the connections between Charles Hodge and Robert Baird (p. xiv). For myself, I found it most interesting to learn about John Mason and his connections with the Réveil. There is certainly a wonderful range of connections that one encounters while reading through this book.

I might also add, rarely does one find a book having two forewords. However, it is appropriate and very wise on the part of the editors for such a book as this to have a foreword by an American church historian (Mark Noll), as well as a foreword by a French academic professor of Christianity (André Encrevé).

A curious detail that I have been pondering over was the pejorative term of abuse that some hurled against the proponents of the Réveil, namely, calling them “Methodists” (p. 77). This was not new as I have encountered this before with other revivals in chiefly Reformed contexts of revival, so I found it most interesting, especially given the Reformed roots and theological formulations of many within this Réveil. Populist imagery is a fascinating sub-study alone.

As expected, Rationalism and Romanticism are trajectories often explored in many of the chapters in an effort to establish influence and context for the Réveil. It is not an easy trajectory, as several writers show the complexities of this.

There was one chapter I was hoping to see: a full survey-type chapter relating the Réveil to Africa and mission societies and their work in Lesotho, Madagascar, Senegal, Mauritius, South Africa, and Zambia as pertains to the nineteenth century. There are select references to such in Jean-François Zorn’s chapter, “The Missionary Societies of Francophone Europe,” but it is not a full chapter in which a deeper survey focusing upon Africa is presented. It would have helped the thesis of the book greatly on the international side. Also, on this African theme and the international theme, I was surprised not to see at least some passing reference to the Réveil and its impact upon the brothers Andrew Jr. and John Murray. The Murray brothers were clearly impacted by the Réveil as mediated through student associations in Utrecht. This does present a whole other trajectory of exploration.

Nevertheless, the limitations of any such collection are completely understandable. Any gaps will serve as a call for more work to be done. This book has a maturity of research and writing style that make it a very worthy contribution which will lead to the advancement of further studies on the Réveil. Hopefully, future editions might also include a map or two that would strengthen engagement with the various chapters and topics.

I was intrigued by the references to hymn singing and the Réveil, and I could list several other such examples of particulars that aroused my interest. I certainly came away with a thirst for more, and my own prior, limited acquaintance with this movement was greatly improved through this valuable work—The Genevan Réveil in International Perspective. Full thanks to the editors and writers for a book which will be of use for many years.