An example in an open, honest life

This book shows very clearly Gandhi's dedication to peaceful protest, spiritual development and open, honest living. It is this lesson that you take away from this book more than anything else. He lived his life with dedication and integrity and the book shows that immensely well. A clear, lucid read and highly enjoyable and inspiring.

Fever Pitch for Politicos

Occasionally I see someone on the tube reading this book and I always feel envious that I no longer have the opportunity to read this book for the the first time again. I am of the same (general) age as O'Farrell so I am not sure that people in their twenties who don't remember Maggie T would get as much out of it as those of us who lived through the era O'Farrell describes but nevertheless I am confident that what they DO get out of it is more than they will get from most books out there on the shelves. As an utter cynicist who cannot see organised Labour (either the Old or New incarnation) through the rose-tinted glow as often does O'Farrell, I nevertheless acknowledge him as one of the finest humorists of his generation and I salute him! This book was a landmark for me as a review of the world in which I grew up and also restoring my faith in the power of the written word to make me laugh out loud in public.

A beacon of light

"A beacon of light which the passing of two centuries has scarcely dimmed". This is Hague's concluding assessment of Wilberforce. This fine biography should keep that light blazing. I think it will probably be the definitive biography of the great abolitionist for quite some time to come. Hague writes well and keeps one's attention throughout a long book. He is masterful at setting the historical scene. No doubt his previous biography of Wilberforce's friend Pitt was a great help in researching the period. One is given a real feel for a very different world where only men of means could afford to enter politics for getting elected, except to a rotten borough, could mean huge expense. It was a time when party allegiance was not so well developed and Wilberforce maintained his independence as a member of parliament for Yorkshire. He was a friend of Pitt but opposed him over the war with France as he opposed a later government over Queen Caroline. Hague does not fall into the trap of judging an historic figure by more modern criteria. Contemporary critics of Wilberforce disliked his social conservatism. His radicalism was aimed at stopping an evil trade not promoting cause of the poor close to home.Hague explains it. Wilberforce would give no support to those who would be socially disruptive and those applauding the French Revolution. His detestation of what had happened in France, Hague rightly identifies as Wilberforce's opposition to all things against religion.<br /><br /><br /><br />One expects Hague to be good on the politics of Wilberforce's life but I was pleasantly surprised by his understanding of his subject's Evangelical faith. Christian faith we know transformed Wilberforce from a pleasure seeking young man into an ardent reformer. It was the motivation in all his subsequent life. As well as abolition it also moved him to seek the opening of India to Christian missions. Hague seems to have a sympathetic understanding of Wilberforce's Christianity as well as a great appreciation of his political achievements. here was an MP who was most diligent in his duties though he never held an office of state. There is also admiration for the personal character of his subject. He was a man who made friends, was hugely charitable and a loving husband and father. Here was a notable orator and a man of wit, welcome at the tables of the great and the good. His character was indeed that of a joyful Christian as Piper writes in his short biography. He died impoverished by his own personal charity and the foolishness of his eldest son. He declined ennoblement and wanted a quiet burial place but was laid to rest in Westminster Abbey for his contemporaries judged him to be great as well as good. <br />

Read this book!

This is one of the best books I have read for a very long time, as well as being a very moving story I also found that at times it was very funny.

Grandiose work falls short of the mark

Churchill, it may be said, was great but not good. This book, it might equally be said, is good but not great. This is a pity, for in Jenkins Churchill potentially had a suitably colourful and erudite biographer. Unfortunately this offering, trumpeted on its release as the 'definitive' life of the great man, falls noticeably short of the standard set by Martin Gilbert back in the 1970s, even if it is a little more readable. <br /><br />Criticisms have been justly levelled at Jenkin's style. Whilst capable of the most sparking witticisms, particularly in his character assessments, Jenkins' grandiose prose often seems turgid and affected. As might be expected, his analysis of Churchill's political evolution - from liberal Conservative to radical Liberal and back again - is perceptive and even-handed, although is lacking in detail. Much use is made of original sources, often quoted verbatim, frequently to illuminating effect and particularly so in the chapters dealing with Chruchill's wartime Premiership. <br /><br />However, there is little here that has not been said before and with greater brevity. A good introductory text to Churchill, if you're not daunted by the scale, but it does neither subject nor author any great credit.

Great listening

When I'm sick of Radio 4, I occasionally listen to this. No modern politician that I can think of can compare with Churchill; he makes you realize just how poor at speaking many of them are. This CD helps you to imagine what it must have been like in the war, when you might have listened to some of these speeches on the wireless. They can be very moving.

Inspiring account by a great and human man

This inspiring book is the result of conversations held in 2003-05. It is an autobiography à deux, `an oral summing-up of Fidel Castro's life by Fidel himself'.<br /><br />Chapters cover his childhood and youth, his meeting Che Guevara, the 1959 Cuban revolution, the failed US attack at the Bay of Pigs, the 47-year US blockade, the incessant media attacks on Cuba, the US state's terrorist attacks on Cuba which have killed 3,500 people, the October 1962 crisis, Che's death, the collapse of the Soviet Union, globalisation, Cuba's relations with Spain, France and Latin America, and Cuba today. <br /><br />Fidel is rightly proud of Cuba's magnificent achievements in education and health. Cuba's primary school children are first in the world in languages and maths. Cuba is first in the world in teachers per person and has the smallest class sizes. Cuba is educating thousands of people from Africa, Asia and Latin America, without charging a cent. Cuba provides government-sponsored scholarships to nearly 30,000 students from 121 countries currently enrolled in Cuba's universities, some 23,000 of whom are being trained as doctors.<br /><br />Cuba is first in the world in doctors per person and is the largest educator of doctors in the world, ten times more than the USA. Cuba sends thousands of doctors to Africa, with its 30 million AIDS patients, while the whole EU cannot send even a hundred doctors there, instead stealing Africa's doctors and nurses. 37,000 Cuban health workers, including 18,000 doctors, are providing services in 79 countries. Since 2004, Cuba's Operation Miracle has restored sight to 1,000,000 patients from 32 countries.<br /><br /> Fidel has much to contribute to the debate on globalisation. He points out that the total debt owed by the countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America is $2.5 trillion, and that they get $53 billion a year aid, while paying interest of $350 billion a year. He notes that 500 monopolies control 80% of the world's economy, profiting from poverty-level wages.<br /><br />Fidel points out that capitalism undermines all reforms and that one can't build socialism by capitalist methods. He attaches great importance to ethics, ideas, knowledge, values, and culture. As José Marti, another of Cuba's heroes, said,"Being cultured is the only way to be free."<br /><br />

enjoyable and stimulating critique

I've nothing to add to the excellent review by PhilosopherKing except to say that the economics can be quite tough going at times -- nothing worse than what you need for the business pages of a broadsheet, but challenging for those like me who don't have any economics training.<br /><br />And nothing yet has happened under Brown to belie their gloomy assessment.<br />

Brilliant!

Being A 15Year Old Teen I Loved This Book So Much I Finished It On A Flight To Greece N Was Finished 4Hours Later When We Arrived.<br />This Book Was Filled With Good Times And Horrific Times..I Got A Few Weird Looks From The Air Stewards And A Few" Are You Ok?" When Some Parts Of The Book Left Me With Tears Rolling Down My Face =[<br />Over All This Is A Wonderfull Book And I Would Reccomend This To Anyone!<br />xx

Non qualified historian

A brilliant book. Made me look forward to getting on the commuter trains from London Bridge and Paddington so I could read the next few chapters. if that comes out has been a popularist then good because i didn't see any of the TV programmes but enjoyed the book!

One really minor criticism, which is probably very pedantic, is that many dates are quoted as day and month without the year. So I had to refer back to know which year we were talking about.

Other than that the simply conclusion is buy and read it if you have any interest in Wellington and his period.

Never judge a book by it's cover!

I travelled through SE Asia with 2 friends who both read this book while we were there. I kept looking at them holding the book with the harrowing title on the front cover and thinking 'why on earth would you read that? We've seen the museums, they were tough enough, why read something with such a traumatic title?' ... Then I read it.

Only about 100 pages and amazingly enthralling. The author is amazing, the editing is excellent as this story could easily have been spread out into 1000 pages. I don't want to enthuse too much about this book as one of the reasons I was so moved by it was that I had no expectations.

I wouldn't go as far as to say it changed my life. However, I think I have thought about the story at least once a month for the last 18 months since I read it. Not many books have affected me in that way.

A good insight into the underside of Glasgow

Coming from Glasgow I know that the line between life and death is very thin. This book highlights just how thin that line is and how people can live like this, better to have lived like this and died young, than never have lived at all. I was shocked to read how corrupt parts of the Strathclyde Police force were, where they believe that the ends justify the means. I always knew they were not squeeky clean but to see how dirty it is/was, was shocking.
The reason I only gave this 4 stars was I respected Ferris’s honesty about what he had done and how he had gone about things, the matter of factness about sorting people out was the basis of that honesty. I also got the impression that if you met Ferris in a pub he would be a bit of a laugh, just don’t get on the wrong side of him. BUT, the honour amongst villans, where you never did it to non-villans, women or children was a step too far. He admitted slashing someone in a pub who struck him by accident because they were fighting someone else, being a case in point.
Despite that small flaw, it was an excellent read and I couldn’t put the book down, read it non stop, cover to cover.

Behind the scenes look at journalism

The work of journalists, perhaps moreso than that of other professions, is often viewed in a stereotypical light. Andrew Marr’s book however sweeps away much of the romance and glamour in favour of a down to earth this-is-how-it-is approach. He is well suited to the task, having moved through many of the important stages in the print and broadcast hierarchy over the course of his career.

Although the book is billed as a"short history of British journalism", most of the book is taken up with impressively detailed accounts of what a journalist does, how they do it, and why, addressing also issues of personal motivation, bias, editorial influence, government pressure... The historical section in fact only ends up occupying one chapter of this fairly dense book. Whilst it is undoubtedly fascinating, Marr is not a historian and a lot of the substance and cohesion you would expect from a historical essay is lacking; that said however it takes up only about 15% of the book and does provide valuable context for the rest of his narrative.

The main body of the book gives a blow by blow account of the various roles which newspaper (mainly broadsheet) journalists play, right from the commanding national editor down to the latest teenage provincial apprentice. He recounts a range of issues which the layman might not think about too often: What makes a story? What keeps a story alive? What should the balance of stories within a newspaper be? How does the editor decide what to put on the front page? These are then linked in with a more logistical account (based on his period as an editor), explaining how it all gets put together into something printable, how long it takes, what the priorities are for printers. He gives the reader an acute sense of how stressful and monotonous a lot of this routine work can be.

A study of this nature cannot avoid tackling journalism’s relationship with politics. Marr also dedicates a lot of space to the tightrope, cloke and dagger world of the political hack, how journalists go about building up sources, developing and maintaining contacts, where they can sniff for stories. His account of this all too closed world is revealing and for me was the best part of this book.

His treatment of broadcast journalism is a bit more thin (a reflection on the few years spend on television) and talks about a world with which most people are probably more familiar. We are treated to an overview of the running battles between various governments and the BBC, along with explanations of the BBC’s special status and the reasons why the rules of the game are that bit stricter for the Beeb.

Finally, Marr is acutely aware of the massive changes inflicted on the industry by the electronic revolution, and charts their impact on a range of fields. As well as the obvious practical changes (computer-based editing, email, satellit communications, internet), our new world of instantaneous communication and constant availability has also led journalists to think differently and in some cases has paradoxically made finding the story more difficult.

Although only one inch thick, the book is pretty long, at least 150,000 words at a rough guess. Marr does an impressive job of keeping it all hanging together and maintaining the momentum right up to the last page. Although densely packed with information, this book is very well written and the user friendly writing style makes the text flow easily along.

Any gripes? Perhaps one: in his discussion of the pressures an editor is under, in particular from politically-minded proprietors (which in the end covers most newspaper owners), not much space is given to the impact of commercial interests on journalistic decisions. Whilst the owner’s impact is direct and obvious, the influence of advertisers’ business interests is indirect yet, as acknowledged in passing by Marr, has a bearing on what a paper is willing to print. Newspapers really only stay afloat because of advertising revenue; in fact you could even say that instead of selling the news (the product) to us (customers), papers are selling our attention (the product) to advertisers (customers). How many newspapers are going to have the conviction to document the impact of companies like BMW and Mercedes on climate change when the very same two are writing the cheques which keep the paper’s profits healthy? Other than this point however, the book is excellent and well-worth reading.

GRAND INQUISITOR

There are very few slouches, if any, among the political interviewers that I have seen in Britain and the USA. Paxman is not perfect by any means, but I have never quite seen his equal. He has two besetting sins. One is in overdoing questions of the 'Why are you beating your wife?' variety and the other is a propensity to naff debating points, trying to manoeuvre ministers who admit to the slightest change of mind into saying that they should be considering resignation on that account. He is quick-witted, forceful and tenacious, and he is guiltless of the mindset known in America as 'respect', something that can disconcert his American interviewees who consider respect to be their right.

The tone he adopts in this book does not surprise me, but it may have surprised some of his victims. It is analytic, the wit and perception is often acerbic, but in general it is far from unsympathetic to politicians. Paxman muses on what the job is, what it is perceived to be both by those who do it and by the general public, and what persuades people to go in for it. He sees the whole political circus as a combination of the inspiring and the demeaning, its actors a combination of the powerful and the completely futile, helpless, naïve and manipulated. He does not spare individuals, and even American readers ought to be entertained by the part about the ludicrous Sir Gerald Nabarro, whom older British citizens will wince to recall and who would have been thought highly improbable if he had been a character in fiction. He has no strong political convictions of his own so far as I can see, and he is candid about any he ever did have. Like myself, he joined the Labour society at university not through any great belief in Labour but because he could not even stomach the alternative. He feels some obvious nostalgia for the days when there was a clear philosophical divide and not just a choice of managements, as when Clement Attlee's post-war government aspired to 'the socialist commonwealth of Britain', but he is not so simple-minded as to suppose that any such clear ideological choice is possible without disastrous results these days. How much, or rather how little, really depends on ideology as opposed to perceptions, outside influences, individual decisions and particularly individual mistakes, sheer luck and above all what Macmillan called 'events, dear boy, events' is something on which I find him particularly clear-headed and illuminating.

He writes in much the way he talks. That suits me in general, except to say that he is prone to giving too many instances. On air these come over very effectively as pungent asides, in print they tend to dilute the thrust of his argument which is somewhat discursive anyway. This is good-quality journalese, the work of a thoughtful, intelligent and battle-experienced professional, and I found it a very easy and agreeable read. As a writer he is no Muggeridge, but as a thinker he is less egocentric and much fairer-minded. He is witty and entertaining, but in fact the funniest thing is not in the text of the book at all, but the last two quotes from reviews on the back page, and I'm sure he picked those, or at least approved them, himself. He would not, I'm sure, expect me to award him 5 stars, and consequently I have not done so.

Old and hard to find - but an excellent read

This is a really good, muck-raking biography of Ian Paisley. The authors are well-clued up local journo's who paint an intimate picture of Big Ian, with lots of fascinating detail (e.g. How Big Ian served queen and country in the dark days of WW2 by skipping off to the front-line in er,...Wales.).

Big Ian shows up as a none-too-bright personality who is usually the front man for more able and thoughtful brains (Desmond Boal in the 70's, Peter Robinson in the 90's). He is however clearly a charismatic personality who has always operated as an outsider from mainstream loyalist, orange and unionist bodies. He has been very successful in assembling his own independent power-base and it is clear he is loathed among UUP circles.

Far from the famous image of the ranting, not-an-inch mouthpiece Big Ian has actually pogo-sticked a fair bit around the Irish political landscape. The book outlines his astonishing dealings with loyalist paramilitaries in the late 70's (and makes a total mockey of his denunciations of 'terrorists'). More surprisingly it details his flirting with nationalism and the 'Dublin infidel' at the start of the 70's.

Whilst well dated now, I would thoughrouly recommend this hard to find book to anyone with an active interest in Irish politics.

Excellent

<br />This novel was the first I'd read by David McCullough, I found the book to be both interesting and very enjoyable.<br /><br />Whether you're interested in reading biographies or history, this is the novel for you.<br /><br />David McCullough did an excellent job piecing together John Adam's life story. It was a compulsive read. :-)<br /><br /><br />

A very interesting book

A biography written by a political insighter. Very readable. Minor mistake on the election period in the Weimar republic. Can be recommended if you want to read more on Churchill otherwise the best short biography is Bests:"Churchill: A study in greatness".

Thorough, balanced, very good... but not an all time great

This is a very readable book - I enjoyed it and chomped my way through it in no time at all. (Bite sizes structure made it splendid reading on the loo in fact!).<br /><br />Seldon has clearly had great access to Blair's advisors, though it's a bit light on new material from Blair's politician peers. There's a lot lifted from autobiographies from people like Campbell and Blunkett.<br /><br />Analysis of issues is strong: very balanced and concise. <br /><br />But - other than the marvelous blow by blow section on how Blair and his team handled the 7/7 bombings - the book a bit short on the human interest details that could have made this a really great book. <br /><br />As it stands it's well worth a read for people interested in general modern UK politics, or those wishing to gain an insight in to the machinations of life inside Number 10 during the second half of the Blair years. <br /><br />