No comments about A Vigorous Institution: Sir Patrick Geddes.

2 comments about William Tyndale (Heroes of the Faith).

1. This is a wonderful book. I have never read anything so well writen. There are even explanations for the less common words right next to the word instead of having to go to a dictionary or the back of the book.
   Very honest writing they always tell you when something is speculation and not proven fact.
   Lots of information about the people surrounding the main subject, I really couldn't put this book down. Only took me a day and a half to finish it even with working full time and household chores.
   I plan to read many more from this series.
   Well worth the price.



2. From the cover (loosely): Five hundred years ago, no one had a copy of the Bible in the English language. One man dreamed of spreading the gospel by putting the Bible into words the English peasant could understand. Then church officials objected to his work, Tyndale determined to continue his translation efforts, no matter what the risk. In spite of persecution, hunger, and hardship, Tyndale persevered with his mission until he was betrayed, arrested, convicted as a heretic, and burned at the stake.

1 comments about Admiral Lord Nelson: His Context and Legacy.

1. I cannot think of another Briton who has had more written about them for as long a time as Nelson. Now we are approaching the 200 year anniversary of his death at the Battle of Trafalgar. And we are hearing again of his famous signal 'England expects every man will do his duty.' And his famous last words 'Thank God I have done my duty.'
   
   In this new book, nine noted historians contributed articles. Each views Nelson's life and legacy in a different light. In Part 1 of the book the subjects are Seamanship, leadership, orgiginality, Friendship, Freemasonry, Fraternity, Manliness, patriotism and body politics.
   
   Of particular interest was Kate Williams article Nelson and Women which discusses how Nelson was marketed to the female consumer of the time. This included romance novels, fantasies about how sailors whould behave, and various consumer items offered for sale. This is a view of early nineteenth century England not seen before.
   
   Part 2 of the book goes into the Nelson legacy. This legacy didn't just happen, it was carefully constructed by the British Navy, Government and others. They did a good job, the legacy has now lasted for 200 years and shows no sign of dimenishing.
   
   A most interesting book that discusses parts about Nelson that haven't been emphasized.

No comments about Benjamin Disraeli Letters: 1838-1841 (Volume 3).

No comments about Winston Churchill and His Inner Circle.

No comments about Algernon Sidney and the English Republic 1623-1677 (Cambridge Studies in Early Modern British History).

No comments about A. W. H. Phillips: Collected Works in Contemporary Perspective.

3 comments about Churchill and the Secret Service.

1. This is an excellent work from an author that thoroughly researches every detail of the subject before it is put to print. As all of Staffords work, the factual basis is unquestionable. Anyone that reads this work will have a deep understanding of the time period and the personalities involved.



2. "Churchill and Secret Service" documents the life long connection between him and secret intelligence. The author traces this back to Churchill's experience as a journalist in the Cuban revolt against Spain. His romantic nature, combined with the undisputed effectiveness of the guerillas, instilled in him a faith in guerilla warfare and its requirement of good intelligence. The book continues through Churchill's association with "room 40" during WWI, and his continued receipt of intelligence reports during the years "in the wilderness". Naturally the bulk of the work concerns itself with the Second World War, the creation of SOE and the secret armies. The author delves into the "special relationship" between the UK and US and reveals in detail the serious conflicts between SIS/SOE and the OSS-an area that often does not receive much attention by historians. Churchill's second term as prime minister,and subsequent retirement conclude the work. What it shows is that Churchill, probably more than any other political leader, understood the value and the dangers of secret intelligence, and knew how to employ it (most of the time). His experience provides excellent lessons to those who collect or use strategic/operational intelligence,"intelligence was not an end in itself and did not belong to those who produced it." Would that our current intelligence structure followed this advice...



3. As Stafford says that Churchill appreciated the value of good intelligence and how it could influence the outcome of any struggle .But on the whole I must express my profound disagreement on some of the information contained in this book. The LUSITANIA episode: Fortuitously-Magdeburg incident 26th August 1914- the Room no.40 of the British Admiralty cracked German Navy's tactical codes .Bulk of naval traffic related to the movements of U-boats and German High Seas Fleet it was able to read .Churchill as the First Lord of Admiralty was privy to this fact .What now follows is difficult to digest for a rational mind .If one were to believe the author the movement of U-20(which sank the American ship)was detected and all ships in the immediate vicinity warned of its presence.Message received by LUSITANIA but ship's captain instead of changing course continued with the voyage thus courting disaster. In other words author has implied the American ship was commanded by a mad man who sent her to the watery grave, a chain of reasoning difficult to follow.It looks as though Stafford wanted to defend the British leader from accusations of his detractors who have claimed the latter staged the incident to bring America on a collision course with Germany. It is very hard to accept Churchill's innocence in certain matters because I know him as a shrewd practitioner of Realpolitik .Desmond Morton ( an influential figure in the Whitehall corridors of power and later SIS officer )connived with Churchill to forge Zinoviev's letter which damaged Labour Party's electoral prospects in the early 20's. Coming to the Second World War, soon after the captitulation of France there came invasion hysteria . Now it must be said when it came to invading Britain the Nazi dictator was strangely reluctant . Early July 1940 Hitler disclosed his intention of invading Soviet Union to Schmundt his chief-adjutant and Von Brauchitsch the Army Commander-in-Chief .Churchill via ULTRA decrypts knew that much of German troop deployments along Channel coast was sham. Yet he kept up the invasion bogey because this was bringing public support. Later in January 1941U.S.Presidential envoy Harry Hopkins visit to war-torn Britain was stage-managed to draw American support for Britains' war effort. Author has demolished claims that Churchill sacrificed Coventry (heavily bombed by Luftwaffe on 14 November 1940) for protecting ULTRA. The target was identified very late but the argument that it was not brought to PM's attention sounds skeptical. Instead Crete was sacrificed .However I am of the view that Britsh Commonwealth forces could have defended the island without blowing ULTRA.The battle for Crete hinged upon the possession of Maleme airfield . A spotter aircraft could have been sent to show it had detected the approach of German aerial armada carrying elite paratroops instead of denuding Maleme defences for masking ULTRA.The exercise is cleverly contrived attempt to cover up British Middle East Command's lack of resolve in defending Crete.I endorse Stafford's view that British leader was not knowing Japanese plans to attack Pearl Harbor.However it is difficult to accept the naivete of US political establishment in this matter . Suffice to say the US intelligence had broken codes used by Tokyo to exchange information with Consul -General Kita in Honolulu.String of messages showing Japan taking unusual interest in Pearl Harbor were intercepted . One such message intercepted divided the place into five areas asked for exact location of Pacific Fleet warships and carriers . Washington correctly guessed this could be a grid system for a bombing attack.Had Roosevelt and his men been shrewd ,vigilant, the ensuing tragedy could have been averted The author has misinterpreted the train of events that led to the German intervention in the Balkans April-May 1941. It was Mussolini who dragged Hitler into the Balkan mess .On 28 October 1940 Italian troopsinvaded Greece . Invaders were soon bogged down which gave British the pretext to land troops in that country .Besides RAF bombers started operating from bases in Crete.They had the range to strike Ploesti in Rumania from where Wehrmacht drew bulk of its oil..British deployment also menaced the southern flank of German armies slated to take part in Barbarossa :invasion of Soviet Union .Germany intervened to neutralise the flank threat . Churchill's role in fomenting guerilla warfare in Nazi-occupied Europe forms underlying theme of this book. British leader's brush with partisans in the far reaches of the Empire during heydays of his youth made him advocate this mode of fighting. It must be said , however , in the final analysis the role of the guerillas in the victory over Nazi Germany appears minimal.Owing to reasons of geography guerilla warfare never struck roots in Europe,much of the continent lay inert under the Nazi jackboot.Exceptions being Greece , Yugoslavia where mountainous terrain favoured large -scale guerilla operations .Finally a few things I like about this book: Churchill during prewar years exaggerated the capabilities of Luftwaffe,failed to appreciate the role tanks would play in the coming war ,underestimated the threat posed by Japan . Information such as that he bought Spain's neutrality in the war through bribes , came very close to compromising ULTRA during the speech marking German invasion of Soviet Union , approved a plan to assassinate Hitler , 'Operation Foxley', came close to carrying it out. Upon reading this book I gained the impression that Stafford has condoned the British leader's misdemeanours ,author no doubt is a Churchill apologist. To me Churchill was the most reactionary politician thrown up by the Western World. He stroved to ensure the Britains' domination of the post war world .He resisted Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy not because they were fascist regimes rather to their interference with Britains' imperial interests. Neverthless a remarkable man ,patriot who presided his country's fortune at a critical time of her existence .To his credit it must also be said Churchill realised, unlike other leaders of the Conservative party, the threat posed by Nazi Germany could only be contained by entering into a defence alliance with the Soviet union .In June1940 he took the decisive step in his career by deciding to continue the war against Germany.

5 comments about The Life of Charlotte Bronte (Penguin English Library).

1. Such sad lives were led by the the Bronte's, loneliness, loss, despair, all were experienced and fed into the imaginations on charlotte, emily and anne. This book is a brilliant book by E C Gaskell (who i normally dont really like), it is basically a collection of letters by charlotte and a great narrative, when speaking of the deaths of emily, anne and charlotte, i actually felt tears in my eyes!



2. A very nicely written biography by Mrs. Gaskell about the life of her friend Charlotte Bronte, although most of the content was made up of letters written either by or to Charlotte Bronte rather than Mrs. Gaskell's own writings. Still this is a very concise book containing mostly everything that an ordinary reader, or well, a beginner of the Bronte novels, should know about this famous family. Nonetheless at some point of the book, I do find Mrs. Gaskell a bit too subjective, especially when it comes to the depiction of Charlotte's brother Branwell Bronte and his downfall. But consider the fact that this book was written only within one and a half year, with Mrs. Gaskell herself alone traveling all the way from Manchester to Haworth, and then to Brussel, doing all the necessary researches and interviews on her own, I must say that this is just an awesome piece of work!! And just as what Patrick Bronte himself had said about this biography, 'It is every way worthy of what one Great Woman, should have written of Another...it ought to stand, and will stand in the first rank, of Biographies, till the end of time'.

   One more word though. From a more scholarly point of view, however, I think so far the 'best' biography on the Brontes should be Juliet Barker's 'The Brontes'. If, after reading this biography written by Mrs. Gaskell, you still want to know more about the Brontes, then I will say: go and buy this other book by Juliet Barker and you definitely will never regret it!




3. Mrs. Gaskell understood a man's or woman's life to be lived within a social and natural context -- and her deployment of anecdotes and impressions of the North of England in the early pages of this book is captivating. But she also understood us to be souls, present to but distinct from God. Hence, even though in a few instances Gaskell's facts may been correctible (which the editor has done for us in this Penguin Classics edition), she is concerned with truth, and this gives readers the opportunity (rarely offered by modern entertainments) to escape from the trivial.



4. Have tried to read Elizabeth Gaskell's biography of Charlotte Bronte several times but found it so depressing that I couldn't get through the first chapters. I thought it would be easier on tape which, to some extent it is. However, the content is no less depressing and tragic. The family live at Howarth Parsonage, an isolated place in the north of England. There are six children, two of whom die from tuberculosis and consumption in their school years; the mother dies young;the brother dies of alcoholism and Emily and Ann both die in their 20s. The tragedy is that of extraordinary talent snuffed out so early in life.
   The majority of the book is taken up with the the lonely life of Charlotte and her selfish father, which, try as she might, Elizabeth Gaskell cannot make interesting. Charlotte's trips outside the confines of Howarth are few and far between but one very rarely hears her complain. She finally has a few years of married life before she too dies young. I have alway loved reading the Bronte sisters novels - this autobiography shows to what extent these girls live in their imagination and how rich those imaginations are. Being so isolated from society, reveals why their novels are so dark and and sinister - herein lies a book, but Elizabeth Gaskell is no psychoanalyst. A great friend and admirer of Charlotte Bronte, she prefers to emphasize her virtues and forebearance in the face of adversity and gives us little more than a hagiography of her friend. There is very little analysis, if any, of Charlotte's works; thankfully, later scholarship delves more deeply into the intricate minds of Charlotte, and her two sisters.
   Being from the North of England myself, I would have perhaps felt more "connected" if the narrator had been English. Elizabeth Gaskell was from Manchester, England, and to hear Flo Gibson (as good a narrator as she might be otherwise) trying to get across the English northern accent was quite painful.
   I would not recommend this work, especially if one is looking for any kind of critical analysis of Jane Eyre, Shirley or Villette.



5. While the definitive overall Brontes biography is Juliet Barker's 'The Brontes', and the various Bronte-related works of Edward Chitham are invaluable in their own right, this still stands as an important contribution to understanding the Brontes, and Charlotte above all.
   
   Despite its flaws, and I agree with other reviewers, that this is a rather dark picture of events, Elizabeth wrote a detailed and very sympathetic account of Charlotte's life and her relationship to her family. Her inclusion of letter content, epecially in relation to Ellen Nussey, was somewhat self-edited, and the lack of references to the romantic friendship that so clearly existed between the two women, was probably Elizabeth's attempt to protect them.
   
   For anyone who is interested in the truth of their passionate relationship, I highly recommend Elaine Miller's detailed essay 'Through All Changes and Through All Chances' from the book Not A Passing Phase, compiled by the Lesbian History Group. The letter excerpts that Elaine includes clearly indicate that Charlotte and Ellen not only loved each other, but that they jointly expressed a long-term desire to live together 'until Death'.
   
   When Ellen Nussey wanted to publish her own 'The Story of the Brontes' which would have included many excerpts from the hundreds of letters that Charlotte had sent her, Arthur Nicholls blocked permission, as he owned copyright to the contents of the letters, even though Ellen owned the letters themselves. Nicholls - Charlotte's husband of only nine months - also destroyed all of the literally hundreds of letters from Ellen to Charlotte, and even tried to insist that Ellen destroy all of Charlotte's letters to her, during Charlotte's lifetime.
   
   Elizabeth is clearly no fan of Nicholls, but that is hardly surprising in view of his destruction of so much of Charlotte's personal writing material.
   
   For an insight into the lives of Charlotte and her family and the Haworth area in that time period, this is still and always will be an important book.

No comments about The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Alone, 1932-1940.