- Hardcover: 756 pages
- Publisher: Little, Brown and Company (30 May 1983)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0316545031
- ISBN-13: 978-0316545037
- Product Dimensions: 16.5 x 5.1 x 24.1 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
483,236 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #76 in Books > Biography > Political > Britain > Churchill, Winston
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More About the Author
Product Description
It is hard to imagine anything new about Churchill. But in this life of the young lion, William Manchester brings us fresh encounters and anecdotes. Alive with examples of Churchill's early powers, THE LAST LION entertains and instructs.
"Manchester is not only master of detail, but also of `the big picture.'...I daresay most Americans reading THE LAST LION will relish it immensely." (National Review)
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THE French had collapsed. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
THE French had collapsed. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Manchester is one of those writers who appears unable to disappoint. This is a book to be read and savored. For years, it sat on my shelf - I saw as a large undertaking that I wanted to do right.
The book has a very interesting structure. First, it begins with a kind of interpretive introduction to the man, vividly characterizing him while also evaluating his strengths as a man of history and his glaring weaknesses. You see him, worts and all, and it is both funny and enlightening. The psychological depth is virtually unprecedented in any other bio I have read. Second, you get a view both into his milieu - as an aristocrat of talent and privilege in Victorian Britain - and a biography of both of his parents. This is crucially important, as we come to see Churchill as an anachronism, but also as a boy neglected by narcissistic parents. (Interestingly, the absence of one or both parents is a common trait in extraordinary achievers.) Third, you get his life story, more from the events he was involved in than as an intimate portrait, though much of his personal life is covered. Indeed, he used action as the most effective tonic against depression.
The man that emerges is flawed and complex, but evidently a political genius. In my view, the key to his character is that he remained a Victorian gentleman, who viewed martial valor as the greatest source of meaning and glory in life. This suited him to titanic struggles, such as the one he faced with Hitler that places him in the ranks of the greatest historical figures. As an egotist, he always wanted to place himself at the center of events and yet did so with courage and tenacity in spite of his physical weaknesses. When out of power, he exercised other gifts, such as writing, with equal talent and energy.
Nonetheless, Manchester proves that Churchill was not a politician deeply in touch with his constituency: he never developed a typical base of power and often his views did not synch with the mainstream. Without Hitler, his hour might never have arrived: this duality is a theme that runs through the entire book.
If there is any flaw here, it is that Manchester includes a plethora of detail, not only about world events but in Churchill's political maneuverings. Normally, I delight in these details, if I know there is a purpose to all of it, which I did not always sense in this book. (Here a comparison with Robert Caro is instructive: you always know where he is going and why.) Others may see it differently, of course. Also, many of the historical details I already knew, so did not need Manchester's wordy introductions, but they were useful in the many cases of which I was ignorant.
All in all, this is one of the most engrossing and fascinating bios I have ever read. Warmly recommended.
The book has a very interesting structure. First, it begins with a kind of interpretive introduction to the man, vividly characterizing him while also evaluating his strengths as a man of history and his glaring weaknesses. You see him, worts and all, and it is both funny and enlightening. The psychological depth is virtually unprecedented in any other bio I have read. Second, you get a view both into his milieu - as an aristocrat of talent and privilege in Victorian Britain - and a biography of both of his parents. This is crucially important, as we come to see Churchill as an anachronism, but also as a boy neglected by narcissistic parents. (Interestingly, the absence of one or both parents is a common trait in extraordinary achievers.) Third, you get his life story, more from the events he was involved in than as an intimate portrait, though much of his personal life is covered. Indeed, he used action as the most effective tonic against depression.
The man that emerges is flawed and complex, but evidently a political genius. In my view, the key to his character is that he remained a Victorian gentleman, who viewed martial valor as the greatest source of meaning and glory in life. This suited him to titanic struggles, such as the one he faced with Hitler that places him in the ranks of the greatest historical figures. As an egotist, he always wanted to place himself at the center of events and yet did so with courage and tenacity in spite of his physical weaknesses. When out of power, he exercised other gifts, such as writing, with equal talent and energy.
Nonetheless, Manchester proves that Churchill was not a politician deeply in touch with his constituency: he never developed a typical base of power and often his views did not synch with the mainstream. Without Hitler, his hour might never have arrived: this duality is a theme that runs through the entire book.
If there is any flaw here, it is that Manchester includes a plethora of detail, not only about world events but in Churchill's political maneuverings. Normally, I delight in these details, if I know there is a purpose to all of it, which I did not always sense in this book. (Here a comparison with Robert Caro is instructive: you always know where he is going and why.) Others may see it differently, of course. Also, many of the historical details I already knew, so did not need Manchester's wordy introductions, but they were useful in the many cases of which I was ignorant.
All in all, this is one of the most engrossing and fascinating bios I have ever read. Warmly recommended.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The introduction alone is some of the best prose ever written. I cannot recommend this book too highly. Hope there's a third in the series.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The enthusiasm Manchester shows for his subject is refreshing after a spate of anti-heroic books knocking Churchill a lot more than he deserved. However, when Manchester moves outside Churchill's life to general British history and politics of the age, there are many mistakes. He even called King Alfred the Great "legendary" in the index! Unforgivable! Top hats in Victorian England were originally worn by the working-class and by policemen, not the aristocracy. His treatment of the Chamberlian front bench - Halifax, etc. and the Baldwin-Chamberlian governments' rearmament policy - is simplistic, as is his knowledge of imperial politics in general. He has been too influenced by the "Guilty Men" mythology (Read "British Re-armament and the Treasury" to see what Chamberlian etc. were up against). However, Manchester knows his Churchill, and it is pleasant that he repeats some good things about him, such as (to take one small example among many larger ones)his concern to exculpate the driver when he was run over and badly injured by a car in America, and his general zest for life. Shows the legends about his drinking capacity were much exaggerated. Churchill, though he made mistakes, had a true greatness which the American Manchester is much more ready to acknowledge than are many of the sour and nihilistic intelligensia in Blair's Britain.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
All Manchester needs is a subject- and here is a Great one
A truly great subject- Churchill- and one of the best non-fiction writers of the century combine here. It is a long book, but you'll go cover to cover. Read more
Published on 20 April 1999
An immense experience in reading
William Manchester has done a remarkable job of weaving together an incredibly fascinating story. Churchill's experiences, friends and family, habits, strong points (which are... Read more
Published on 17 Aug 1998
Fascinating biography about a fascinating man.
The biography in interesting and reads like current events. He captures the essence of the great man. It is hard to put the book down. Read more
Published on 28 Nov 1997
Fabulous
Certainly not for the faint of heart. The book is long, and at times arduous, but if you're a fan of Churchill's, or appreciate a well-written book on a fascinating man, I highly... Read more
Published on 27 Jan 1997
An objective Churchill would have devoured this volume!
Manchester at his best, skillfully integrating the product of meticulous and exhaustive research with a literate and engaging portrait of one of the Twentieth Century's most... Read more
Published on 15 Jan 1997
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