His Finest 50 Hours (and 28 minutes)

I have to say, first and foremost, before anything else, that this is hands down the best audiobook I've ever listened to--and I've listened to a few.

It's not for any particular love of Churchill, although I do confess to having adored him long before I came to this book. It's rather the incredible complexity of his seemingly never-ending life; I never fail to remark that he usually had done (or achieved) more things before noon on his average day than I have in my lifetime, and that furthermore, at 61 I find my life winding down. Contemplating _directing a world war_ three years from now and then continuing that for a _further five years_ is, well, inconceivable, but the fact that he did it with such wit, intelligence and just unparalleled WISDOM is just beyond words.

And to have almost every moment of this incredible life--I would put Churchill's ultimate importance to humanity in the top five, if not at the very top--recorded to be played at my leisure, for so many hour (upon delicious hour) read, I might add, by the most able and enjoyable narrator I have EVER had the pleasure to listen to . . . well, never in the making of audiobooks was so much enjoyment created by so many for so few (dollars).

May I ask the Right Honorable Attending to accept my strolling (just about everywhere) ovation.

6 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Immersion in a life of Churchillian proportions

The narrator did an excellent job and the biography was not the singe thread sequential life stories I’ve encountered before biased by authors perceptions ... it was a fascinating patchwork of al that was going on around the man and others in his times - letters. diaries, personal papers available to researchers in archived in 2010. It was a marathon listen ... and I will listen to it again and again ... I often did listen to sections several times as a result o playing it at bedtime & losing my place when I fell asleep ... and never fast forwarded through stuff I heard before .... mostly I was astonished at what I didn’t hear the first time ... the pace, like the man’s life & his fellow men, never let up. Remarkable life, remarkable times & remarkably woven together this coat of many colours ...

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

Excellent Read

Author is obviously a Churchill fan and that is to be kept in mind. However the fact that he keeps going back on Churchill's childhood neglect as the reason for his perseverance and will is really annoying. It's enough to mention it, saying it could be a motivating factor, but to keep implying it was one of the main reasons for his success is ridiculous. Churchill was a man built for greatness, and he achieved all of it himself through sheer will. And even if his childhood circumstances were favorable, I doubt it would have changed the many things he achieved and the ideologies he held. This is purely hypothetical ofcourse - just like the author was in every other chapter.
Also, one point to note is most of the book is a lot of direct quotations from various characters, with minimal commentary from the author, who was just sewing events together. This, I realized is what made this book wonderful. The ending, where the author himself expressed views on the various events in Churchill's life- almost categorizing them, arbitrarily, into good and bad left me annoyed. So although I loved the book, I like the author for his compilation - not his writing.

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

Best Churchill biography

If you want to be a resilient person and how to learn from your blunders you must read this book. I was so pleased during the reading of the book that certainly I lost my sense of space and time.

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

Fascinating

What an interesting man! This is an extremely well-researched and written book which gives a fascinating insight into a tense time. I didn't know much about Churchill before starting this 50 hours long journey but was utterly absorbed and am now a big fan of the legend with all his idiosyncrasies.

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

must read

amazing reading, amazing story. imensly informative and touching. an unbelievable story, yet fully supported by the facts

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

A very human yet informative biography

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. The book (as well as the reader ) did an excellent job capturing Churchill's great oratory, humour, idiosyncrasies, sense of history, and great love for the English-speaking Peoples.

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

The book was so fascinating I could have listened for another 51 hours

Before this book my knowledge about Churchill was superficial. This book was so fascinating that I could have listened for another 51 hours.

It was wonderful to get to learn about such a unique individual. He was simply a hero of mythical proportions and most politicians since have only a fraction of his energy, passion, courage and tenacity.

Amazing reading. Amazing book

Churchil is by far the "nicest" leader in the 20th century.
human
honest
family man
husband

Absolutely magnificent

Took me 7+ months to finish, and I loved every minute of it. Highly entertaining, captivating, funny and enlightening. Both Andrew Roberts and Stephen Thorne deserve praise.