Articles tagged book review:
Reflecting on the life of John Wilkes
- 25 Jul 2024
I always wanted to be a journalist, current and particularly political affairs have always fascinated me. I grew up admiring the television interviewing techniques of Alan Whicker and David Frost. I always admired the way they were able to be apparently so polite and yet so in...
The Forever War: will the US ever be a country at ease with itself?
- 25 Jul 2024
First published in Reaction The United States, a country born out of conflict, with a people whose founders displaced and destroyed the indigenous population. A country which for more than half its existence embraced slavery, the legacy of which still runs deep in its natio...
Review of Richard Davenport-Hines' 'History in the House'
- 9 Jul 2024
A book focussing on a largely unknown group of historians, based in the exclusive academic enclave of Christ Church College, University of Oxford, whose hallowed portals of learning are open to so few, might seem a rather narrow basis for a book that purports to explore the te...
Review of Damian Collins' biography of David Lloyd George
- 3 Jun 2024
David Lloyd George was unquestionably one of the twentieth century’s greatest Prime Ministers. He led Britain to a far from certain victory in World War I, he established the Cabinet Office and the administrative centre of government which essentially remains intact to this da...
The inside story on King Charles from the most authoritative of Royal chroniclers
- 31 Jan 2024
I have just spent fourteen hours in what felt like the close company of the Royal scribe Robert Hardman. Choosing to tackle his new book in audio rather than hard copy form was no great hardship, his is an easy voice to listen to. He narrates in a conversational tone and the l...
Britain Alone review – a flawed insight into post-War Britain
- 14 Aug 2021
Britain Alone by Philip Stephens (Faber & Faber), £18.29 Philip Stephens, the distinguished Financial Times columnist, surveys Britain’s recent history from Suez to Brexit in his new book Britain Alone, an account of the country navigating the post-World War era. Th...
Review: Greater: Britain After The Storm by Penny Mordaunt and Chris Lewis (Biteback), £20
- 25 May 2021
It is rare for a serving senior Minister to publish a book while in office, and what a book it is. Before you even reach the first chapter, there is a veritable Becher’s Brook of bedazzling “names” saying how wonderful it is – Boris Johnson, Tony Blair, Elton John, Richard Cur...
Review: Stop Bloody Bossing Me About: How We Need To Stop Being Told What To Do by Quentin Letts
- 14 May 2021
The words Quentin and Letts strike terror equally into the hearts of Parliamentary performers and members of the theatrical community. In his reviews of political performances and sketches of West End productions, this keen observer of those foolish enough to push themselves c...