Thoughts and Adventures

I come to Churchill's writings about 50 years too late, so the inclusion in this collection of essays of a piece called "Fifty Years Hence", written between 1924 and 1931, is fortuitous, since it allows me to read, and then to marvel at, the great man's thoughts about a world I know, the world of the 1970's.

He's got it bang on, of course, especially with regard to the speed of change and the continuing need of the soul for a vision above material things, so it's a delight - armed with the knowledge thus gained of Churchill's insight and prescience - to read the remaining essays in this volume.

Of the 23 topics covered here, from cartoons and cartoonists, via memories of his election campaigns, to the value of hobbies, it is difficult to show more pick a single favourite; I would highlight four pieces, and for different reasons:

Firstly, "Consistency in Politics" for its understanding of statecraft, especially its appreciation of Gladstone on pg. 25.

Secondly, "The Siege of Sydney Street" for its eyewitness account, compellingly told, of an episode in British history which has echoes nearly a century later in the lives of Russian emigrants.

Thirdly, all the essays on aspects of the Great War, especially "With The Grenadiers" for its vivid depiction of the lives of soldiers in the trenches (e.g. the "sockatorium" on pg. 71), "The U-Boat War" for the way in which it illustrates the importance of the opinion of non-experts, "A Day with Clemenceau" as an example of the value of strategic thinking, and "Luddendorf's All or Nothing" for is perceptive analysis of the state of the combattant armies on the Western Front in 1917.

Finally, "The Irish Treaty" is a comment on the difficulties of securing peace in Ireland at a time of war in Europe, with interesting comments on two of the negotiators on the Irish side, Griffith and Collins.

Some of the other essays in this Volume are a little dark, but no more than you might expect from a statesman who has been at the apex of his country's fights against its declared enemies.

A worthy read. show less

As a friend exclaimed when she saw the cover, "I've never seen a photograph of him so young!" Lots of alarums and excursions and verve: the title puts it beautifully. What a wild and crazy guy!

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