Rating: 
Summary: In London There Was Such a Man
Review: Those seven words strike like a thunderclap at the end of one of the most passionate and compelling openings you'll ever read. The introduction captured my imagination in a manner that recalls the first time I saw Star Wars as a ten year old; it alone is worth the sales price of the book. The work that follows will hold the reader's attention in a vice-like grip. Manchester manages to imitate Churchill's captivating storytelling style while peppering his work with references that will make you want to skip to the bibliography and read his sources. A perfect example of both qualities comes at the introduction, where Manchester writes: "It had been over a thousand years since Alfred the Great had inspired his countrymen and led them into battle transformed. Now, in this new exigency, faced with the mightiest conqueror Europe had ever known, England needed another Alfred.." It was all I could do not to drop the book and go running to look up Alfred the Great. Do not miss this opportunity to draw inspiration from this impressive biography of "the greatest English statesman since Disraeli."
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Summary: Exciting, very readable, as much history as biography.
Review: A history of the events leading to WWII as well as a continuation of the Churchill biography. Does not get bogged
down in trivia. Excitement builds as war approaches, the outcome is placed in such doubt you will want to page ahead
and see if he really becomes Prime Minister after all!
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Summary: Manchester Evokes the Age
Review: Persons wishing to get the complete, official story of the life of Winston Churchill had best get a copy of the official biography by Martin Gilbert (8 vols.). However, for those who lack the monumental time and patience it takes to wade through the tens of thousands of pages in the official bio, (as I am now doing) this is an admirable biography. Where Manchester succeeds (and where Gilbert fails) is in painting a portrait of the age into which Churchill was born. Churchill is next to impossible to understand in the context of our modern society. His character and something of his essence become clear, however, due to Manchester's vivid, insightful, and entertaining explication of the late Victorian era in Britain. Churchill was, as manchester deftly explains, the last of the Victorians. Readers are transported back in time, to feel what it was like to be an aristocrat, the elite of the elite, in the capital of the Empire upon which the sun never set. Bravo for William Manchester. One can only hope the third and final volume of this biography series is not long in coming
Rating:
Summary: Volume 1 of the life of Winston Spencer Churchill
Review: "The Last Lion: Visions of Glory, 1874-1932," is the first of William Manchester's projected three-volume biography of Winston Spencer Churchill. I found it a superbly crafted, supremely well researched account of the first 58 years of the life of the 20th century's greatest statesman. With wit and candor, Manchester chronicles Churchill from his earliest days as the neglected and troublesome first child of Lord Randolph Churchill and his American-born wife, Jennie, to his entry into the political "wilderness" over home rule in India in 1932. Manchester's portrait of his subject is balanced and objective; we see Churchill at his finest: a courageous (almost to the point of foolhardiness) army officer, and later a gifted Member of Parliament who became one of the youngest Cabinet ministers in British history. We also see him at his worst: a Cabinet minister with appalling political judgment at times, quick to meddle in other ministers' affairs while neglecting his own, and with an uncanny ability to alienate not only his political foes, but almost all his political allies as well. In addition to a wonderfully written chronology of Churchill's life, Manchester provides an overview of the times in which Churchill lived. I was fascinated by the author's account of Victorian England -- its culture, its mores, and its view of itself in the world. The sections which describe Churchill's times make highly entertaining and absorbing reading by themselves. "The Last Lion: Visions of Glory, 1874-1932," clearly shows why William Manchester is one of the pre-eminent biographers at work today. The book is written with obviously meticulous scholarship, insightful analysis, and crisp, sparkling prose; I have yet to find a better account of Churchill's life. Now, if only Mr. Manchester would give us that third volume . . .
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Summary: The "Adventure Tale" portion of Churchill's life
Review: Before the cigar-chomping, top-hat-wearing portly gentleman hit the scene, there was a young man who nearly flunked out of school, chased war around the world, played polo, participated in the world's last meaningful cavalry charge, was a war correspondent, and escaped imprisonment as a POW in the Boar War. Churchill got around plenty before settling down in Parliament and "Visions of Glory" covers that portion of Churchill's life.
This book takes an exciting life and brings you into it. As good as biography gets.
Rating:
Summary: The Man of the Century
Review: Manchester's work is extraordinary and a journey into the making of a great leader of the world that was the 20th century. Churchill was a man of vision and he was molded in his early years. Manchester makes a case for his growth coming in the Boar War period. There is a beginning of greatness. Manchester introduces us to the world that formed this great man.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating
Review: Now that we are firmly into the 21st Century, it might be appropriate to ask, who was the greatest man of the 20th Century. (We might we ask, who was the greatest person of the 20th Century since this was the century that gave us reason to be inclusive with the question). I'm sure I echo the thoughts of many when I suugest that the answer is easy: Winston Churchill. Rather than make my case here, I would direct you to read Manchester's biography of the man, "The Last Lion". William Manchester set out to write the biography of Winston Churchill and found that it was not going to fit neatly into one volume. We have, in "The Last Lion:Visions of Glory" the first of, presumably 3 or 4 volume. This is quite an undertaking. For me, the prospect of reading so large a book just to get the facts on the first third of a man's life seemed pretty intimidating. I left this book on the shelf for a number of years. Finally, I decided to give it a shot and I immediately found myself immersed in the early years of Churchill. There really is plenty to write about this man and Manchester is just the person to handle the job. I found this book not only hard to put down, when I finished it I got started right away on the second volume; "Alone". I have been waiting patiently while the author continues to age. I have tried to ignore the rumors that there will be no further output from Manchester. Such is the quality of his writing and his thoroughness that this biography ranks at the apex of 20th Century historical writing. Read this book and the second volume and you, too, will demand its' proper conclusion.
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Summary: This is the real thing
Review: There are many good biographies out there, but a great one is rare. This is one of the great ones; William Manchester has taken the art of biography to a new level. Most biographies are merely "interesting," rarely making any effort to give the reader a sense of what it would have been like to be or know the subject. Manchester does just that. Rather than write a narrative story of Winston Churchill's life, he has chosen instead to give us a rich tapestry of Chrchill's life as it was woven. Many biographers are simply idolizers of their subjects; this is not so with Manchester. He reserves no harsh judgment, just as he reserves no due praise; when he is reporting something negative that Winston did he says it was negative, and explains why. But The Last Lion is more than just a biography. In attempting to capture the essence of Churchill Manchester has written some of the best material about World War I and the appeasement crisis. It is rare that historical events can be made to feel like the present, but Manchester has done this. Both volumes of this work are well worth your money, your time, and your attention. Indeed, the only bad part of Manchester's biography is that he will not be able to finish it. It is not known how much of the third volume he was able to put together before Alzheimer's made work impossible for him, but it can be hoped that whatever he was able to do will someday be published, no matter how unpolished it may be.
Rating:
Summary: Arguably the greatest biography ever written
Review: It is hard to tell who is the larger hero -- Churchill or Manchester. Not because the historian is bigger than history, but rather because the historian has so captured history. Churchill aficionados don't need to read heroic prose to be attracted to all that has been written about him. But for the rest of us, Manchester has strung together the words that truly capture the place Churchill created in world history. This volume is the first in what was obviously intended as a trilogy. Unfortunately, we have yet to see the concluding book. I hope it makes it. Here is a challenge. Pick up the book and read the first two pages. You will find yourselve with two major problems. First, about 2000 pages (volumes one and two) of reading that you will want to complete faster than you have time for. Worse, a dull ache of longing for the third volume that may never materialize.
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