Rating: 
Summary: great information; difficult read
Review: Prior to embarking on Jenkins' biography of Churchill, I knew little about the most accomplished Prime Minsiter in the 20th Century. After reading this enormous work, I believe I have a better understanding of this great 20th Centruy figure, but believe I may have been better served by reading a different biography on Churchill; I just found Manchester's work more daunting.The trouble with the book, in my opinion, was not the depth and knowledge that Jenkins shows on Churchill, but the writing style in which it is presented. What comes out in this 900 page (soft cover)work is that you need to have a better understanding of the parlimentary system in Britan to get the full flavor of Jenkins' insider information. While Jenkins provides some parlimentary terms in the begining of the book, they fall far short of the necessary tools to enjoy this work to its fullest extent. Further, I found myself reading Jenkins' Churchill alongside a dictionary, looking up several words in a chapter. I enjoy learning new words I may use someday, but some of the English did not even appear in my dictionary!! Despite this, it was an enjoyable, one volume work on an extremely brilliant and fearless leader who I admire for his courage and tenancity. In WWII, Churchill, was, without question, based on Jenkins' work as well as other accounts, the primary reason Europe did not fall to Hitler and Mussolini. When the chips were down (particularly in those difficult, almost amazingly depressing, "twenty-one days in May"), it was amazing, based on Jenkins' stoy, how Churchill could keep so upbeat and positive that things would ultimatley turn out well. Churchill's relationship with Stalin and Roosevelt was, I thought, well presented in Jenkins' book. What you take from Jenkins' work is that Winston started the fight and was (despite his continued and unfettered persistence) relegated to the "back benches"(a Palimentary term used throughtout the book) of the "big boys" when the United States and Russia began to reach the pinnical of their power in WWII. Again, Churchill, though his persistent and never give up attitiude, keeps Britan "on the map" so to speak in the talks in Malta and Yalta. Jenkins' intimates Churchills' attempts to go with pre-meetings in these sessions with Roosevelt and/or Stalin, but he is rebuffed as the two real superpowers do not want to begin to agress against one-another. This gives insight into the diplomatic prowes of both Stalin and Roosevelt in the efforts to solve the European crises. After reading this, I find myself better educated, but worn out.
Rating: 
Summary: Horrible Disappointment
Review: Roy Jenkins turns the life of one of history's most interesting men into one of the world's most boring biographies. He is more interested in footnotes and asides than story arcs and feelings...I barely have any idea what Churchill was like as a person from reading this artless bio. Please avoid this book at all costs.
Rating:
Summary: Where was the editor?
Review: I have a long-standing interest in history with a particular interest in american military history and FDR. I've read extensively and was interested in a biography of Churchill to dove-tail with my prior reading. As an american reader I find that at least a quarter of the book could have been deleted as it contains asides wherein Jenkins discusses other British historical figures and makes comparisons of Churchill's political positions with prior British parlimentary figures. Some of that is somewhat interesting as it points out how interrelated the members of the British ruling class were up until WWII but the information is not particularly relevant to understanding Churchill. I have no quarrel with Jenkin's comments and insights into Churchill, the author's political background I think is helpful and important in his analysis of Churchill. For a British reading public the British minutia may be interesting, for me it made reading the book more of a chore than it needed to be. Fortunately most of the trivia is in the chapters about Chrchill's earlier life. I'll have to read Manchester.
Rating: 
Summary: Biased and an incredibly boring read.
Review: I bought this book after finishing the first two volumes of William Manchester's biography on Churchill and discovering that the concluding third would not likely be finished. This book had received all sorts of praise from national reviewers and magazines so I gave it a shot. I was/am incredibly disappointed. Firstly, for a nearly one thousand page book Mr. Jenkins glosses over huge parts of Churchill's life. You don't get the taste of personality that you do from Mr. Manchester. Secondly, Mr. Jenkins knew Mr. Churchill, was a Peer and obviously harbors strong personal feelings for good old Winston, and not the overly flattering kind. There are far to many uses of the first person and too many instances of "In spite of" or "I think" and of course "In my experience." If you read Manchester and then Jenkins it's almost like reading about two seperate personalities. Do yourself a favor and stay away from this book. We need heroes in our history and Mr. Jenkins seems intent on depriving us of them.
Rating: 
Summary: The passing of an era
Review: Roy Jenkins died recently and his obituaries were many, detailed and lengthy. He is remembered both as a skilled politician of the first rank both in Britain's Labour party and then as a co-founder of the Social Democratic Party with David Owen and Shirley Williams. And as a superlative political biographer of the first rank with definitive works on Gladstone, Asquith, and, now, Churchill. Your reviewers' very broad range of reactions to this biography are entirely consistent with the reactions Churchill himself produced during his long career. Never was a british politician more hated, reviled, loved and honoured than Churchill. Indeed, during the Thirties, it appeared that he would go down in history as a politician who missed greatness by a significant margin. Jenkins has achieved a political biography that is readable, clear and, for its subject matter, concise. His distinguished political career in the House of Commons gives him a unique ability to evaluate Churchill as a man of the commons, the quintessential parliamentary practitioner. He starts by evoking Churchill's remarkable early years, where he moved from an undistinguished school record to daring and arduous travels as a soldier/ journalist. Wracked by money troubles most of his life, we read entertainingly of Churchill's correspondence with his mother, the slightly scandalous, and frequently broke Jenny Jerome as they commiserate/ complain to each other about their stratitened circumstances. There was in Churchil a tremendous need for power, one that often went unsatisfied. He achieved extraordinary political success at an early age (by the standards of the times) but then his career stalled severely. He was trusted neither by the Liberals nor by the Tories (and at times by very few others). The story of his early opposition to Hitler is too well known to be repeated in a review. History records that he was raised to power and became the lynchpin of England's ultimately successful (though terribly costly) prosecution of the second world war. Jenkins does a masterful job of describing Churchill's relationship with FDR, and the history of WWII unfolds magisterially in his hands. One has, however, the distinct impression that the longer the war lasted, the less Churchill was able to affect its outcome, a necessary consequence of American entry, and the need to consult/ co-exist with Stalin. Churchill's prescience was just as marked post-war when he coined the "iron curtain" as an expression to describe the advent of the cold war. While much could perhaps have been done towards the end of WWII to change this outcome, FDR was too sick, and Churchill too weak. However, his ability to foresee outcomes opaque to others remained exceptionally sharp. In between these massive subjects, Churchill's unique relationship with his wife, Clementine, is treated sympathetically. At one point, Jenkins describes Clementine's "astonishing ability to be absent at all of the really important times in Churchill's life". Once Churchill left power he became, inevitably, less interesting; therefore his final years are treated briefly by Jenkins. Indeed, in old age, Churchill became a little pathetic and it is seemly for his biographer to avoid a detailed chronicle of his prolonged decline. I was in my final year at Oxford when Churchill died. His funeral, self-designed under the tile "Operation Hope Not", was really the end of the victorian era. As his coffin left Westminster Abbey for its final journey by boat and train, the Queen gave Lady Churchill precedence, an unprecedented act at the time underlining the unique place Churchill still occupied in English society. England had won the war but lost its empire, its economy, its place in the world and now its emblematic wartime leader. Jenkins has written an important, accessible political biography of one of the giants of the twentieth century although in all material respects, Churchill's roots were firmly anchored in the Victorian and Edwardian eras. As his last major work, it serves to underline Lord Jenkins' status as the premier english political biographer of his time. He notes that when he began this biography he regarded Gladstone as the pre-eminent Prime Minister of modern british history. When he finished the book, he had changed his mind and anointed Churchill in his place -- most would agree.
Rating:
Summary: It's no William Manchester, but it has some merit.
Review: I was both delighted and perplexed by Roy Jenkin's biography of Churchill. Having read Gladstone and enjoying it thoroughly, I expected the same with Jenkin's lastest tome. I also picked this work because I know that Jenkins is a liberal (Labour) and I thought this might add an interesting perspective to my understanding of the "greatest man of the century."
To begin on a positive note, it is clear that this biography will provide future chroniclers of Churchill some invaluable "insider" information on this great man. Jenkin's comes to the subject with not only the writer's gift, but the practical experience of having worked with Churchill and within the "beltway" of Whitehall. While the name dropping gets a bit tiresome, it is clear that Jenkin's understanding of British politics helps to define Churchills place within it.
Unfortunately, this amounts to "sound and fury" without capturing the true essence of Churchill. I "discovered" Sir Winston through the amazing (so far two volume) work of William Manchester. Not only is Manchester the greatest biographer of our time, but he makes Churchill come alive. I was so inspired by Manchester's work, that I added a new hero to my collection. I was dismayed to see that the few times Jenkin's refers to Manchester it is entirely negative. I also found it disconcerting that Manchester is not cited in the bibliography. This is unfortunate. What is ironic, is that Jenkin's is clearly "Eden" to Manchester's "Churchill" when it comes to capturing the greatest of PM's. Furthermore, this biography does almost nothing with Churchill's remaining 10 years and has the most abrupt ending of any biography I've ever seen. Indeed, it rather ended like my 11th grade student's term papers end - having given you a wealth of facts and a dearth of true understanding.
Rating:
Summary: Not that good
Review: Probably, nowadays a lot of people do not know who Churchill was. He was a British Politician whose career started before the First World War and finished in the 1950s. He was mainly famous for leading Britain during the dark days of the Second World War. This occurred when he was in his late 60s. Churchills greatest achievement was his decision not to make peace with Nazi Germany in 1940. Clearly a brave decision and one that was important in shaping the world. (If he had not then there would have been two possible scenarios. Germany not having to fight on two fronts may have defeated Russia. Alternately if Russia could have defeated Germany Western Europe would have become communist. Clearly two outcomes which would have made the world a worse place) Churchills career otherwise was largely a failure. He had been responsible for the disastrous Dardenelles campaign in the First World War, he switched parties from the Liberals to the Conservatives and did not even attain Ministerial status after Baldwin regained power in the 30s. Although Churchills statements waring of Hitler can be commended and showed insight his other causes such as retaining British Rule over India are best forgotten. Even after leading Britain through the war he lost the 1945 election as conservative leader again lost in 1950 and only narrowly won in 1951. Jenkins has written a biography which although reasonably long seems simply to skim Churchills career. As he was a politician for so long it is hard to write an in depth biography and some of the other books written about him exceed 10,000 words. Probably people who know little about British history will struggle with this book. Jenkins assumes that everyone knows who Asquith, Lloyd George and Baldwin are. He provides little background material to put the events he describes into context. As a result most readers will have problems understanding the various political battles which are described and the role that Churchill played in them. Jenkins of course is a former Labour politician and he has an intense knowledge of the system and he has written extensively on British history. His depth of knowledge probably leads him to being a little optimistic about his reading publics depth of knowledge. The majority of the book is a little bit of a slog. It mainly develops some passion and interest in describing Churchills role in the Second World War. In reality that is no real surprise as the events were momentous. The book is reasonable in recounting Churchills life and it certainly conveys his charm, the positives of his character and his importance in history. It is however just a little disappointing and that disappointment is that the author assumes a little bit to much of his reader.
Rating:
Summary: Political Biography, Lots of Details
Review: Roy Jenkins is probably the perfect scholar to write the definitive biography of Winston Churchill. His credentials are impeccable: as a former Home Secretary, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and member of the House of Lords, he has the necessary political insight and knowledge to write the biography. On top of that, he is the author of several well received books on politics, including a biography of Gladstone that won the Whitbread Prize, giving him the literary spurs as well. All of these skills and experiences are evident in the reading of the book. It even has a glossary of parliamentary terms, which I found particularly helpful. There is an abundance of detail in the less famous years of Churchill's life, particularly the years between World War I and Hitler's rise to power. But, there is very little detail about Churchill's pre-political life. Some of the most exciting years were his years in the army, and very little is told about them. However, the detail in the other areas makes up for this. It is mostly a political biography, and not for the faint of heart. With this book, the reader will need Churchill's resolve just to finish it. But, like many other long books, the rewards far outweigh the time put in. It is safe to say that the reader will have a mastery of British politics in the 20th century after reading this book.
Rating: 
Summary: The Best
Review: There is no better work describing Churchill's politcal life.
Rating:
Summary: Remarkable
Review: There is no better work detailing the political life of Churchill.
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