Reading To The Hermitage was like listening to an extremely erudite raconteur who happens to have an obsession with Diderot. I learnt an awful lot about Diderot and the other Enlightenment figures, all imparted in a gossipy, conversational style. My ignorance of Diderot means I've probably missed some of the clever references in the book, but I've been inspired to read Rameau's Nephew, where the Moi and Lui come from.