Churchill
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Churchill

3.64 of 5 stars 3.64  ·  rating details  ·  414 ratings  ·  124 reviews
An acclaimed historian presents a revelatory look at the greatest statesman of the twentieth century

For eminent historian Paul Johnson, Winston Churchill remains an enigma in need of unraveling. Soldier, parliamentarian, Prime Minister, orator, painter, writer, husband, and leader-all of these facets combine to make Churchill one of the most complex and fascinating person...more
Hardcover, 192 pages
Published November 17th 2009 by Penguin Group (USA) (first published January 1st 2009)
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Jesse Broussard
Jesse Broussard rated it 2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for: Insomniacs.
Shelves: mediocre, non-fiction
All in all, rather badly done. Well researched, but his focus couldn't have been more limp-wristed and pathetic.

He wrote this book to answer the question, "Did Churchill save England?" The answer, if you were wondering, is yes. He saved not only England, but the world. If it weren't for Churchill, you wouldn't even exist. And neither would puppies or kittens or butterflies or ice cream. I was hoping to hear about the man, or at least some funny quotes from the legend....more
Dan Glover
Winston Churchill was one of the biggest figures ever to play upon the stage of the 20th century. More than any other man (or any other 20 men) he stopped Hitler's domination of Europe and the world but that is only one of the well known contributions he made to the world. The sheer force of his personality and will continue to shape the world today in many ways that the average person doesn't realize. He was flawed and in some ways deeply so, but he was just what the world needed when it was...more
Linda
Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars
From the ridiculous to the sublime, I finish first Cheever, then Churchill. I enjoyed Cheever more but certainly admired Churchill much more.


He was the only British Prime Minister to have received the Nobel Prize in Literature and the first person to be recognizes as an honorary citizen of the United States. He singularly impacted the twentieth century as no one else could. He is quoted to this day. http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/author... He was Prime Minister of England t...more
Mike W
Mike W rated it 4 of 5 stars
Shelves: biography
Paul Johnson has done an excellent job of encapsulating the life of a great man. Some readers will, no doubt, want to go on to read a longer and more through treatment. Johnson himself recommends Roy Jenkins' biography. But those who want to read a short book that captures the essence of the man would do well to look here.

Johnson clearly admires Churchill but this book, while admiring, never verges into idolatry. For example, it points out the inconsistencies in his political views, ...more
Pam
Pam rated it 4 of 5 stars
Shelves: non-fiction
My biggest problem with Churchill biographies (yes, I've read them all in detail) is the length. How do you do justice to arguably the most important leader of the 20th century and perhaps the most important leader of Great Britain ever while keeping it to a manageable size? Churchill himself does not help you. He lived for 90 years, 55 of those years he was a member of parliament, and of those years 31 he spent as a minister, and 8 of those years he was prime minister. Additionally biographe...more
Gerry
Gerry rated it 4 of 5 stars
Shelves: bio, history
Wow, for a short book (158 pages) Johnson provides an interesting overview of Churchill, a soldier, adventurer, journalist, pilot, politician, statesman, author and artist. OK, as a history buff I am well aware of Churchill though I admit I never knew his depth. In his 90 years of life he served 55 years as a member of parliament, 31 years as a minister and nearly 9 years as prime minister, he published nearly 10 million words, painted over 500 canvases and drank nearly 20,000 bottles of ...more
Rick
Rick rated it 3 of 5 stars
Shelves: non-fiction
Johnson, the conservative historian, has written a brief but entertaining and authoritative biography of the great British politician (and writer, painter, and builder, though only the first of those three sidelines challenged his political prowess). The author also has the advantage of living during Churchill’s finest era—he was 12 when Churchill became prime minister in the spring of 1940—and having met and interviewed him during his elder statesmen period. These latter two facts, coupled with...more
William Blair
The outpouring of books that reveal new facts about the life of Winston Churchill continues. This short, 181-page volume received (what I think is) only a so-so review at Slate.com, and not much better elsewhere. I think that is unfortunate. After reading the book, I now understand the reviewers' real objection: it's too short (as if they were trying to say "too short on facts" as opposed to errors of fact). I agree: the book is way too short. On nearly every page there was an event or...more
Naresh
Churchil by Paul Johnson, is a brilliant book and Mr.Johnson is a precise writer with full command of the music of words.

I did enjoy reading about Churchil, as he was one of the most charismatic,enigmatic and yet controversial leader the world ever had seen in the 20th century! it was pleasure to understand what make's him so special and what were the secrets behind, such a diversified persona.

Winston Churchil led a full life, and few people are ever likely to equal it - ...more
Nathan Moore
Nathan Moore rated it 3 of 5 stars
Shelves: biography
This was my first book on Churchill so my review must be taken with a grain of salt. I am a fan of short biographies, but only for one reason... to determine if I want to read full-length, multi-volume treatments of one's life. Given the magnitude and length of Churchill's life I find it hard to fault Johnson for his effort but found myself slightly disappointed. It wasn't until the end of the book that I realized most of my disappointment is due to the fact that this man's life cannot, perhaps ...more
Janis
Janis rated it 3 of 5 stars
A short, very readable biography of Winston Churchill (Winnie to those who love him) by the Englishman, Paul Johnson, the book reads like a novel, not for any lack of historical fact, but because Winnie led such a full life, both publicly and privately. And by privately, I don’t mean the sordid stuff. He was a devoted husband and father, a prolific writer, a painter, a bricklayer, a gardener, and much more. Most notably, Winston experienced success and failure on an incredibly grand scale (an...more
Kristen
Kristen rated it 3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for: people interested in a basic history of Churchill
Ever since visiting Chartwell, Churchill's house in England, I've wanted to learn more about him. Although I knew the basics about Churchill's life, and respected his accomplishments, I didn't realize how amazing he was, or how much he did, until I visited his house. This biography was a great place to start. It's very pro-Churchill, but, then again, I think it would be hard to be extremely anti-Churchill. Agree with his politics or not, he was one of the most influential figures of the 20th cen...more
Charlotte
This book caught my eye because I thought it would give me a view of the period presented in Doris Kearns Goodwin's book No Ordinary Time about the Roosevelt's from the British side of the ocean. The book was biographical so covered all of Churchill's life. There was less in it of the American-English teamwork than was presented in No Ordinary Time, though there were definite references to it. Goodwin implies their relationship as much closer than Johnson indicates, however it is seen as impor...more
Mike
More of an extended essay than a full biography, Churchill is a short summation of the man's life. I mean, even the title states the bare minimum, so that should give you an idea of the author's approach. Not that short equals shoddy. As Churchill himself once said, "Judge a box not by its size but by its contents."

OK, he actually never said that (that I know of anyway...), but you know what I mean.

It's obvious that Johnson cares greatly for his subject, so i...more
Deb
Deb rated it 4 of 5 stars
I picked this up because it was short and I didn't know really that much about the esteemed statesman except that he was purported to have a wicked sense of humor. Churchill has many more qualities that I admire now. His parents did not think he was too bright as a child and marked him for a military career, therefore he was largely self educated, he was a liberal and is credited with legislation that provided pensions and welfare, he was an artist who painted over 500 paintings and an author wh...more
Catherine
I highly recommend this enjoyable and accessible bio of Churchill. Author Paul Johnson notes "Few people who knew him well are left alive, and those who met him, as I did, are a dwindling band. But people will be writing about him in a thousand years' time, such is the magic of the man and his doings." If you don't ha...ve time to read it, check out the NPR interview with Paul Johnson http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...
or at least take to heart Churchill's response when as...more
Hava
I listened to this on CD and thoroughly enjoyed it. I of course knew who Churchill was, but did not know more than the basics about him, so I learned a lot from this biography.
Others have commented that this was too short and that you should read the longer biographies written about him. For me, however, this was the perfect length. There is so much to learn about in this world, I don't have the time to spend weeks on one particular prson. I want to learn about Churchill - I don't want to w...more
D Books
You can tell by the way that the author wrote this book that he was deeeeeply amorous of Churchill. He even boasted about having once slept in the same bed that Churchill once had slept. (Need I say more of how creepy this guy sounds.) It appears that the author could not depict Churchill’s life in any other way then being a British hero who had minor faults. This was definitely a one sided account of the life of Winston Churchill. If you only want to know the cold hard facts about Mr. Chur...more
Tim
This is a happy little biography of a great man. I've read a handful of bios on Churchill, and I think that this is the best (for its size). It progresses nicely through his life and gives a good feel for the development of the man. The author, Paul Johnson, highlights Churchill's political falls and his comebacks. In the end, Johnson even gives life lessons drawn from the study of Churchill, including 1) set your goals very high and 2) work very hard toward them. Those two lessons may seem comm...more
Karen
Karen rated it 4 of 5 stars
At first I couldn't believe that such a short book could really capture anything meaningful about Churchill's long, varied and complex life and career. But Johnson's book is actually a wonderfully written portrait of the man. His intent is clearly to try to capture something of who Churchill really was and how such a man was able to accomplish what he did, and I think he succeeds admirably in this. If you want any real detail about battles or Parliamentary proceedings or his family you will need...more
Paul Kerr
Paul Kerr rated it 5 of 5 stars
Shelves: biography
So far so good. Been meaning to read a book on Churchill for a while, just wanted to find a reasonable entry level reading. Looks like this might be it...and so it was. Extremely quick and easy read which, in my mind at least, provided me with an excellent overview of not just Churchill;s achievements (and defeats) but also provided me some further insights into other political characters of the day that Churchill interacted with. Overall, recommended to anyone who wants to understand more of Ch...more
BOC
BOC rated it 4 of 5 stars
Close to brillant, the book almost succeeds in delivering to the reader substance and soul of Churchill's life in 166 pages. Johnson's intelligently picks-out those times, those events and moments within those events to tell his view of Churchill. I love the fact that his biases are there for the reader and his views are articulated with both facts and passion. The precision of the detail so support the larger themes, without weighing down the narrative, is superb! I felt the book could have...more
Rita
Rita rated it 4 of 5 stars
This is a short book and quick read with a huge amount of interesting information about the life of Winston Churchill. If you do not have time to read the 1000 page volumes on his life, this is a perfect book to learn about Churchill and the impact he had on history. I learned alot, but one thing stands out, which is that Churchill was 65 when he was asked to lead England thru World War II. He worked 16 hour days and had several strokes during the war, but he never lost his ability to lead. ...more
Nicholas
I really enjoyed this short biography of Churchill. Johnson is a true fan of the subject (having met him in person) and doesn't hesitate to sing his praises. I plan to find another more in-depth volume as a follow-up (Johnson recommends a number of them), but this is a quick survey of Churchill's life and times that gives a sense of the scope of his accomplishments and personal strengths and weaknesses. Johnson assumes that his readers are familiar with Engilsh government and history--I recog...more
Elaine
Glancing through my reviews, you can see I love good biographies. I also enjoy Paul Johnson's histories. He is highly opinionated, but perceptive and original. Even if you disagree with him, you can respect his conclusions. So, having read some of his histories, knowing less than I should about Churchill, and loving biographies, I jumped into this book enthusiastically.

If you're looking for a Churchill biography replete with nasty secrets of his sex life or anything else, this is ...more
John
John rated it 3 of 5 stars
Shelves: biography
This was a strange biography. It was thorough in some parts, but completely negligent in others. Johnson gave us almost every detail about every joke or roaring speech, but it wasn't even until after the end of the war (about 90% into the book) that we learn that Churchill had 3 daughters, and it was just mentioned once in passing. This sort of select telling of the story made for a certain disconnect to Churchill throughout the bio.

Also, it seemed as if the author truly believed Chu...more
Penny
I listened to this book while taking my twice daily walks during the work day. The reader really added to it as he had an understandable English accent. His name was Preeble.

If ever there was a case of the right person being in the right place at the right time, Winston Churchill is certainly an excellent example. His early years were somewhat unremarkable and he didn't receive much in the way of nurturing from either of his parents. As a matter of fact it seems that his father d...more
Ryan Adair
This short, yet insightful book by Paul Johnson was a decent read. The last six pages of the book are worth the price. Given the brevity of the book, Johnson introduces a lot of aspects of Churchill's life. If the reader is not already familiar with these aspects of his life, then he will feel like he is swimming through uncharted territory. If you are familiar with Churchill, this is a good refresher course. If not, then start somewhere else. The book was roughly written and hard to plod throug...more
John
John rated it 4 of 5 stars
Shelves: read_2011
I listened to this book on CD.

I consider Winston Churchill one of the greatest leaders of the 20th century, so when I saw this book, “Churchill” by Paul Johnson, on CD about him I decided to listen to it as I drove back and forth to work.

This book details many of the factors and experiences that attributed to the man Winston Churchill. It portrayed his youth time experiences, educational training, and family influences on the young Churchill. It further characterized his man...more
Ben
Ben rated it 3 of 5 stars
Shelves: history, biography
I was only 182 pages. I simply enjoyed reading the book. I learned five values from Churchill's life. It is only a introduction and touches areas lightly mainly focused on his war years. He was born two months premature. He was very healty. Churchill once said we are are worms, I am a glow worm. lesson for life aim high there is no substitude for hard work. balance aginst play never allow mistake to get him waste little time on meaness wash your hands of it have room for joy in your life. born 1...more
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Paul Johnson works as a historian, journalist and author. He was educated at Stonyhurst School in Clitheroe, Lancashire and Magdalen College, Oxford, and first came to prominence in the 1950s as a journalist writing for, and later editing, the New Statesman magazine. He has also written for leading newspapers and magazines in Britain, the US and Europe.

Paul Johnson has published over 4...more
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