No comments about Benjamin Disraeli (Very Interesting People).

2 comments about Disraeli: 2A Biography.

1. Dr. Stanley Weintraub's biography of Ben Disraeli is excellent. The scholarship is at the top. The only other biography that I would consider but I have some reservations is the one by Lord Blake the problem with his as compared to Dr. Weintraub's is it is too thick. This one spends plenty of time on his political and publishing career. I thoughly enjoy the biography, and for all those who harken back to a time when are politicans had some flare and style will enjoy this book.



2. I found this book to be a solid, scholarly biography of Benjamin Disraeli. The subject is thoroughly researched and presented in great detail. One will certainly come away with great insight into the Prime Minister who Queen Victoria so adored.
   But Weintraub's book is so detailed and his prose can be so very dry in places, that one finds oneself sometimes plodding along.
   I found Christopher Hibbert's biography (Disraeli: The Victorian Dandy Who Became Prime Minister) to be superior. Hibbert's prose is more lively, and one comes away feeling that they have gotten to know "Dizzy" far more intimately.
   Having said that, however, Weintraub's Disraeli is certainly well worth the effort.

No comments about Chasing Churchill: The Travels with Winston Churchill by His Granddaughter.

No comments about Churchill's Bodyguard: The Authorised Biography of Walter H. Thompson.

5 comments about Disraeli: The Victorian Dandy Who Became Prime Minister.

1. A miserably rendered biography of one of the most complex men in British history. Hibbert writes from within his comfortable, unexamined cell of "Britishness." He superficially dismisses Disraeli's Jewish upbringing with a wave of the hand, showing not a whit of insight or interest into how it may have affected Disraeli's adult behavior--his choices of dandyism, novel writing, and even his peculiarly powerful oratory. Hibbert just neatly fits Disraeli into categories he, Hibbert, pulls out of his own experience from within what's normal and usual in British life. Moreover, the book quotes huge, unedited swaths not only of Disraeli's letters and journals (somewhat defensible) but also from other recent biographers. So it reads like the work of an undergraduate. Ultimately, Hibbert is not at all inquisitive about what led this man of many and great parts to find such a singular way to live, and to succeed in what, in the book's only success, we see was a terribly hostile social environment for a Jew(populated by powerful anti-Semites like Carlyle and Dickens, Trollope, etc.). This is poorly done work.



2. An embarrasing and lazy pastiche of quotes from Disraeli's correspondence woven with an old fashioned snobbish viewpoint. There is no historical context and no discussion of what made Disraeli the importasnt figure he was. Disraeli comes off as a self-serving, superficial and useless fop, lusting after high-class recognition. This bojk should have been rejected in manuscript. Whatever reputation Mr. Hibbert may have had, it is vitiated by this piece of sophomoric drivel.



3. This is not so much a biography as an itinerary. Benjamin Disraeli went to a country house in High Bascombe-on-Boring, the seat of Lord Irrelevant Nobody, and his wife, the daughter of Viscount Who Cares? and the cousin of the mistress of the architect of another country house Disraeli visited ten years later. Oh, and he was vain and self-promoting, but gave great speeches. Or so he says, in his letters, which (as noted in the other reviews) appear to be the author's exclusive sources. We don't know what they were about, but, boy, did he ever think they were great! I don't know what the author thought, either, about Disraeli, or why he wrote such a book. What puzzles me, and what I have yet to figure out, is, who is the intended audience? Who would ever want an utterly non-political book about Benjamin Disraeli? His only interest to posterity -- which is substantial yet ignored here -- is as a politician and statesman. Everything else -- and especially his travelogue and endless fetes with foreign dignitaries --is unworthy of our attention. This is an astonishingly lazy book by a writer who apparently only wanted to add another impressive title to his bibliography. Fine. But leave us out of it.



4. As those before me have said, DONT BOTHER. It's sad that so great an author as Christopher Hibbert was allowed by his publisher to put out this book which is just a rehash of a book he wrote about Disraeli 30 years ago. Except that mostly it's with a lot of additional material that is only excerpt from letters he wrote and those written to him.
   
   Soooo much of the book is wasted on discussions of people who meant nothing to him in his later life and seem like nothing but fill. If this was a student paper it would fail.
   
   There is a very good short bio by Edgar Feuchtwanger, and two monstrous volumes (over 700 pages) by Robert Lord Blake, and Stanley Weintraub.



5. Christopher Hibbert is one of the greatest and best-beloved contemporary historians. His biography of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli is an excellent, informative, entertaining work that lives up to Hibbert's outstanding reputation. Disraeli is not easy to like. Though brilliant and highly talented, he is sarcastic, critical, and at times a bit of an arrogant snob. But Hibbert's prose is so fluid, and his skills so very well honed, that the book is a joy to read. I recommend it highly.

1 comments about Winston Churchill: His Life As a Painter.

1. I enjoyed reading this oversized book, I went through it like water! The book is well illustrated and gives a good sampling of his works (landscapes, still lifes & portraiture). It is an easy read, this book was not written for those in academia--its a very approachable book.
   The author, the daughter of Winston Churchill, Mary Soams, did a marvelous job of creating a lively narrative. She goes into the reasons why he began to paint, what his philosphy on painting was and how he learned (via a wide circle of artist friends). She also mentioned that he was accepting of using modern inventions (photos) to aid in his memory and composition of creating his paintings. She also included many humorous stories of her father.
   The book is very inspiring in that Churchill, who already had an extremely full life and who started late in life painting, was able to create such beautiful works of art. The book shows that he did have natural talent, BUT, that he also worked hard to build upon that talent and the book clearly shows this.
   The chapters are lavishly illustrated with his paintings, and many times the book describes the creation of the paintings that are in the book (and it includes the page number where you can find them). My only complaint is that in the last few chapters there are virtually no paintings and I wish I could have seen more of his later works, even though they may not have been up to the same artistic value of his earlier works.
   This was a fun and inspiring read, go out and buy this book.

No comments about ROOSEVELT AND CHURCHILL: MEN OF SECRETS.

1 comments about Jennie: The Life of the American Beauty Who Became the Toast--and Scandal--of Two Continents, Ruled an Age and Raised a Son--Winston Churchill--Who Shaped History.

1. This book is just a rehashing of what is pretty common knowledge of Jennie. No new information, and this book, unlike similar books about Jennie, does not have any photographs at all, so if you were expecting some rare photos or even a photo (other than the cover), you will be disappointed. This book may seem nice and thick, but it's somewhat illusional. Page 622 to 757 is all Notes, and this is 135 pages that isn't really "all book". The font and spacing also seems somewhat big, adding girth to this book due to 'largeness'. Also, a good portion of this book is letters, or excerpts from letters. I was not impressed with how the material was presented - it was textbook dry and actually left me more disenchanted with Lady Churchill than when before I started. I haven't read too many books about her, but I would not recommend this one for any sort of entertainment factor, it's terribly dry and boring, and due to its immense weight and girth makes a better doorstop.

5 comments about Roosevelt and Churchill: Men of Secrets.

1. An enjoyable account of the circumstances that brought the two men together, and the relationship that they forged.

   Often political friendships form out of necessity and mutual self interest. And that is obvious in this case.

   But the fact that the two most remarkable and influential men (in a positive sense) were to forge such an important relationship makes for great reading.




2. In the beginning of the war, Roosevelt sensed that Churchill even before he became Prime Minister would be important to the war effort. As time went on these men united by a fear of Hitler these men became friends as well as comrades in arms. This book explores there relationship though a rather unique perspective their intelligence departments. It explores how they got their intelligence and what they did with the knowledge that they gained from it. Despite their friendship the used it to advance the agenda of what they wanted for their own countries. At times their intelligence departments actually came into conflict as they both had different hopes and ambitions. As the war progressed these difference became more important.

   I found the book very easy to read. Full of information that although I am a WW2 fanatic I have never seen before. I can recommend this book if you want to learn about the relationship of between these two men.




3. I really enjoyed this book, not because I enjoy reading about FDR all that much, but because it gives so much new information about how he prosecuted the war -- and because it does the same for Churchill, one of my most favorite flawed heroes. The author makes many points about what each knew, but would not tell the other, how at times both men knew that the other knew, but withheld, information, etc., and how they played their parts (and one another) in the delicate diplomatic dance in light of these things.

   While admiring much about FDR's service to America and the world in WW2, I have a general antipathy to FDR's character and the way he did some things; but I do give him credit for having known how to move the American people by degrees, almost imperceptibly when that was necessary, into position to crush the Nazis, and this book reveals more about how he accomplished this. His foresight, diplomacy, and preparations surely shortened the war and saved untold lives. Having Churchill woven in as an equal on the world stage and in relation to FDR gave it a very savory counterpoise.




4. Very informative, but not "a good read". I enjoyed "Franklin and Winston" much more.



5. One of my college history professor's once told me that a secret in international affairs means that it is something you only tell one person at a time. The perfect example of "secrets between friends" is FDR and Winston Churchill. They kept secrets from everyone, their staff, the people the led, and even their own families. However, they had few secrets with each other. Thus David Stafford's book "Men of Secrets" is a fitting title for the special relationship between two of the greatest leaders of all time.
   
   Stafford traces a very good outline of the secret services during WWII and how both FDR and Churchill played an intricate role in creating and developing both nation's intelligence services. Colorful characters abound, see anything relating to "Wild" Bill Donovan, in FDR's burgeoning spyring and in Churchill's the dashing Ian Flemming (author the James Bond novels).
   
   What I found most interesting about the book is the relationship between FDR and Churchill. There are many conflicts of personality and political ideals of the two leaders. For example, FDR championed the freedom of British India; yet ordered Japanese-Americans into internment camps. Similarly, Churchill espoused civil liberties in England while attempting to crush rebellions in Ireland.
   
   In conclusion, Stafford provides a great overview and introduction into the world of espionage during WWII. He also gives extraordinary insight into the minds of FDR and Churchill. Arguably, FDR and Churchill had profound affect on the course of WWII and the secret they had an upper hand in the struggle.

No comments about Thoughts and Adventures.