The Splendid and the Vile

Name: The Splendid and the Vile
Rating: 4.6 (33875 reviews)

by Erik Larson

Amazon

4.6(33,875)

Winston Churchill becomes prime minister on 10 May 1940 as Germany attacks the Low Countries and France, leaving Britain to face Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain and the threat of invasion. During the following year, Churchill works to sustain public morale, strengthen aircraft production under Lord Beaverbrook and persuade Franklin D. Roosevelt that Britain can remain in the war. The Blitz brings repeated bombing to London and other cities while the government operates under constant military and political pressure.

Larson places high strategy beside the private life of Churchill’s household and inner circle. Clementine Churchill, their youngest daughter Mary, private secretary John “Jock” Colville and other family members and advisers move between Downing Street, Chequers and Ditchley as raids, romances, quarrels and official decisions overlap. Diaries and wartime records show how Churchill’s leadership was experienced daily by those closest to him during Britain’s most dangerous year.

Historical Periods

Battle of Britain1940 CE The Blitz1940–1941 CE

Genres

Court & Political Fiction

Historical people

Franklin D. Roosevelt1882–1945 Adolf Hitler1889–1945 Winston Churchill1874–1965 Clementine Churchill Mary Soames1922–2014 Jock Colville Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook