It shows the failure of our public school system,
You bought one printed in French, didn't you? (only kidding).
What did your daughter think of Democracy in America? (I assume that is the book you refer to). And you really should pick it back up and give it another try. More than likely it isn't the subject or content but rather how he wrote that bored you. Try rereading it a small part at a time.
Years ago, I was in an antique shop/bookstore and found a very old copy, it's in English though so I never thought it would be worth anything.
For those interested:
Tocquevilles Democracy in America is available on-line for free at:
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/DETOC/home.html
and also at—check this out: The Western World’s Greatest Books - More than 500 Classics (all Free)
http://gutenberg.net.au/greatest-books-a.html