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  • Churchill

  • Walking with Destiny
  • By: Andrew Roberts
  • Narrated by: Stephen Thorne
  • Length: 50 hrs and 28 mins
  • 4.9 out of 5 stars (1,081 ratings)

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Churchill

By: Andrew Roberts
Narrated by: Stephen Thorne
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

Winston Churchill towers over every other figure in 20th-century British history. By the time of his death at the age of 90 in 1965, many thought him to be the greatest man in the world.

There have been over a thousand previous biographies of Churchill. Andrew Roberts now draws on over 40 new sources, including the private diaries of King George VI, used in no previous Churchill biography, to depict him more intimately and persuasively than any of its predecessors. Masterfully narrated by Stephen Thorne, this audiobook in no way conceals Churchill's faults, and it allows the listener to appreciate his virtues and character in full: his titanic capacity for work (and drink), his ability see the big picture, his willingness to take risks and insistence on being where the action was, his good humour even in the most desperate circumstances, the breadth and strength of his friendships and his extraordinary propensity to burst into tears at unexpected moments. Above all, it shows us the wellsprings of his personality - his lifelong desire to please his father (even long after his father's death) but aristocratic disdain for the opinions of almost everyone else, his love of the British Empire, his sense of history and its connection to the present.

During the Second World War, Churchill summoned a particular scientist to see him several times for technical advice. 'It was the same whenever we met', wrote the young man. 'I had a feeling of being recharged by a source of living power.' Harry Hopkins, President Roosevelt's emissary, wrote, 'Wherever he was, there was a battlefront.' Field Marshal Sir Alan Brooke, Churchill's essential partner in strategy and most severe critic in private, wrote in his diary, 'I thank God I was given such an opportunity of working alongside such a man, and of having my eyes opened to the fact that occasionally such supermen exist on this earth.'

©2018 Andrew Roberts (P)2018 Penguin Audio
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What listeners say about Churchill

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  • Overall
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Chapter headings one out

The chapter listing is one out of sync with the narrator , really annoying and didn’t realise until 10 mins in , thinking I’ve listened to this. I.e shows chapter 4 , and narrator says 3 and so on .

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Detailed account of Churchill's life but long

When I purchased this I missed it was 50 hours of listening and with the same narrator!
After 2 to 3 hours I nearly gave up to be honest. But a bit like Churchill I persisted and set myself a challenge to finish it.
Due to the length and every little detail talked about you end up missing the important parts due to zoning out which was a shame. It could easily be condensed to 10 hours or less.
However it is very informative and once you commit to the 50 hours you learn a lot of British history. Balanced account of Churchill and I was sad when it finished.

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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50 hours and 160,000 cigars later...

An extraordinary achievement. I loved the summing up that included the stat that of 3,000 students polled in 2008 20% thought that Churchill was a fictitious character. That he has descended into myth already is a testament to the remarkable span of his life.

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2 people found this helpful

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A must read for all students of Churchill

Brilliantly researched and wonderfully delivered Andrew Roberts' book is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the unparalleled life and times of Winston Churchill.

The author gets to the very nub of what made the great man tick like no other writer and reveals a very human side to a very great man.

Without doubt, this is the book of the year for me.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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A Magnificent book

I can't praise this book enough. a remarkable honest telling of Churchill's life which touched me deeply at times both in terms of his childhood and his incredible strength of character. His loyalty to his friends and courage in holding to his views as well as his physical courage are shown in spades but also the book is clear about his numerous mistakes and flaws. Truly a superb highly readable book.

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Excellent

An amazing tale told well of a truly amazing character.
Almost unbelievable how many lives Churchill lead.
At the centre of events from The reign of Victoria to the atomic era.

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Excellent biography

Andrew Roberts new biography is a most interesting and joyable analysis of Winston Churchill. He focuses rightly on his strengths but also have eye for his weaknesses. It is an important book because it confronts the rehabilitation of Appeasement and underlines that Churchill was instrumental in the continued struggle for freedom during the Second World War.

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Outstanding

I loved this book, every single minute of it and feel bereft it has finished

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Marvelous!

This is probably the best biography I have ever read. Although the book is long I felt it was a pity when it ended. Never boring, with a wonderful narrator.

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A Afantastic story excellently read

A gripping walk through the life of Churchill and thereby that of his country and the world. An excellent performance from the reader makes you feel you are there at the time of these momentous events. At first I thought 54hours of audio might be too much, but it turned out to be too little. Highly recommend.

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