The Splendid and the Vile

Paperback

Published March 4, 2021 by William Collins.

ISBN:: 978-0-00-827498-6

(4 reviews)

On Winston Churchill’s first day as prime minister, Adolf Hitler invaded Holland and Belgium. Poland and Czechoslovakia had already fallen, and the Dunkirk evacuation was just two weeks away. For the next twelve months, Hitler would wage a relentless bombing campaign, killing 45,000 Britons. It was up to Churchill to hold his country together and persuade President Franklin Roosevelt that Britain was a worthy ally—and willing to fight to the end. In The Splendid and the Vile, Erik Larson shows, in cinematic detail, how Churchill taught the British people “the art of being fearless.” It is a story of political brinkmanship, but it’s also an intimate domestic drama, set against the backdrop of Churchill’s prime-ministerial country home, Chequers; his wartime retreat, Ditchley, where he and his entourage go when the moon is brightest and the bombing threat is highest; and of course 10 Downing Street in London. Drawing on diaries, …

On Winston Churchill’s first day as prime minister, Adolf Hitler invaded Holland and Belgium. Poland and Czechoslovakia had already fallen, and the Dunkirk evacuation was just two weeks away. For the next twelve months, Hitler would wage a relentless bombing campaign, killing 45,000 Britons. It was up to Churchill to hold his country together and persuade President Franklin Roosevelt that Britain was a worthy ally—and willing to fight to the end. In The Splendid and the Vile, Erik Larson shows, in cinematic detail, how Churchill taught the British people “the art of being fearless.” It is a story of political brinkmanship, but it’s also an intimate domestic drama, set against the backdrop of Churchill’s prime-ministerial country home, Chequers; his wartime retreat, Ditchley, where he and his entourage go when the moon is brightest and the bombing threat is highest; and of course 10 Downing Street in London. Drawing on diaries, original archival documents, and once-secret intelligence reports—some released only recently—Larson provides a new lens on London’s darkest year through the day-to-day experience of Churchill and his family: his wife, Clementine; their youngest daughter, Mary, who chafes against her parents’ wartime protectiveness; their son, Randolph, and his beautiful, unhappy wife, Pamela; Pamela’s illicit lover, a dashing American emissary; and the advisers in Churchill’s “Secret Circle,” to whom he turns in the hardest moments. The Splendid and the Vile takes readers out of today’s political dysfunction and back to a time of true leadership, when, in the face of unrelenting horror, Churchill’s eloquence, courage, and perseverance bound a country, and a family, together.

7 editions

Jonathan Arnold reviewed Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson

Review of 'Splendid and the Vile' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

This book tells the story of the Battle Of Britain, when the German air force (the Luftwaffe) bombed London and England from 1940 to 1941. It follows Winston Churchill as he became Prime Minister and tried to get America to help out. But, just as importantly, it follows all kinds of other people, like John Colville, one of his private secretaries and Mary Churchill, his 18 year old daughter. Both Mary and Colville, who was only a few years older than Mary, kept meticulous diaries, so we see their private emotional turmoil as well, from Colville's unrequited love to Mary's engagement to someone not very popular with the folks.

So that's why I think it would make a great book for someone who claims to be not interested in history, as they would learn so much and yet be so enamored with the description of the balls and parties, …

This book tells the story of the Battle Of Britain, when the German air force (the Luftwaffe) bombed London and England from 1940 to 1941. It follows Winston Churchill as he became Prime Minister and tried to get America to help out. But, just as importantly, it follows all kinds of other people, like John Colville, one of his private secretaries and Mary Churchill, his 18 year old daughter. Both Mary and Colville, who was only a few years older than Mary, kept meticulous diaries, so we see their private emotional turmoil as well, from Colville's unrequited love to Mary's engagement to someone not very popular with the folks.

So that's why I think it would make a great book for someone who claims to be not interested in history, as they would learn so much and yet be so enamored with the description of the balls and parties, catty remarks about other people and the like. The book really puts you inside the Churchill inner circle, in both public and private views.

To be honest, I got choked up in a few spots, especially at the beginning, as Churchill lays out his plan to the public. So many strong words and ideas made me weak in the knees in longing for a time when both our countries had real leaders, with backbones and integrity and courage and able to use complete sentences. Little things, I know, but I could hardly read them aloud without choking up.

The epilogue was nice, although he never really said what happened to Mary. According to Wikipeida, in 1947 she married Baron Soames, and they had 5 kids, while she continued to stay involved in all kinds of things, from being a writer to being on the board of the Royal National Theater.

A truly page turner history lesson and, once again, Erik Larson has scored a bullseye.

J. Trent Adams

rated it

Nov. 17, 2020

dks

rated it

Nov. 6, 2020

Lou Plummer

rated it

July 25, 2020