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Their Finest Hour by Winston S. Churchill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the second volume in Churchill’s 6-volume history of World War II. It begins with the invasion of France, and Churchill’s desperate attempts to keep France in the war and fighting. But France could not keep fighting, so the British evacuated what troop[s they could from Dunkirk. After that, Britain stood alone against a power the controlled all of continental Europe from Poland to the Atlantic, something that had not happened since Napoleon. Clearly Germany would try to take Britain next, but to launch a successful crossing of the English Channel they needed control of the skies, and that is when British pilots had “Their finest Hour.”

It is valuable as a view from a participant in the events of the war. As Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it,” and he did do just that. That said, while he was a participant, this is clearly not a disinterested reading of history, and should be looked at with a small grain of salt, and supplemented with good collection of works from professional historians if you want a more balanced view. Churchill is always concerned to make himself look good, so you need to keep that in mind. Still, he is such a good writer that I enjoyed the whole series.

I listened to this as an audio book.



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Triumph And Tragedy by Winston S. Churchill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the final volume in Churchill’s 6-volume history of World War II. It covers the end of the war from the Normandy Invasion through the fall of the Reich to the Potsdam conference.

It is valuable as a view from a participant in the events of the war. As Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it,” and he did do just that. That said, while he was a participant, this is clearly not a disinterested reading of history, and should be looked at with a small grain of salt, and supplemented with good collection of works from professional historians if you want a more balanced view. Churchill is always concerned to make himself look good, so you need to keep that in mind. Still, he is such a good writer that I enjoyed the whole series.

I listened to this as an audio book.



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Closing The Ring by Winston S. Churchill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the 5th volume in Churchill’s 6-volume history of World War II. This covers the period of the Allies going over to the offensive, with Mussolini falling, Soviet Russia pushing west, the US and UK invading Italy, and Japan losing its grip on the territories it had conquered.

It is valuable as a view from a participant in the events of the war. As Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it,” and he did do just that. That said, while he was a participant, this is clearly not a disinterested reading of history, and should be looked at with a small grain of salt, and supplemented with good collection of works from professional historians if you want a more balanced view. Churchill is always concerned to make himself look good, so you need to keep that in mind. Still, he is such a good writer that I enjoyed the whole series.

I listened to this as an audio book.



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The Hinge of Fate by Winston S. Churchill

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is the fourth volume in Churchill’s 6-volume history of World War II. As the book starts things look bad for the allies. The German army threatens to take Stalingrad, Rommel is running wild in North Africa, and Singapore falls to the Japanese. Then things turn around. The Soviets finally repulse the Germans at Stalingrad and start the long process of pushing the Germans back to Berlin. And in the Pacific, the victories at Midway and Guadalcanal began the turnaround against the Japanese.

It is valuable as a view from a participant in the events of the war. As Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it,” and he did do just that. That said, while he was a participant, this is clearly not a disinterested reading of history, and should be looked at with a small grain of salt, and supplemented with good collection of works from professional historians if you want a more balanced view. Churchill is always concerned to make himself look good, so you need to keep that in mind. Still, he is such a good writer that I enjoyed the whole series.

I listened to this as an audio book.



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The Grand Alliance: The Second World War, Volume 3 by Winston S. Churchill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the third volume in Churchill’s 6-volume history of World War II. It covers a key period that began with Britain standing alone against Nazi Germany. Then several key events changed all of that. The first was the German invasion of the Soviet Union, which brought the Soviets into the war as allies of Britain. The second was the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor which brought the US into the war. But the third, just as important, is that Hitler followed the requirements of his alliance with Japan and declared war on the US. As a result, Roosevelt was able to adopt a “Europe first” strategy.

It is valuable as a view from a participant in the events of the war. As Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it,” and he did do just that. That said, while he was a participant, this is clearly not a disinterested reading of history, and should be looked at with a small grain of salt, and supplemented with good collection of works from professional historians if you want a more balanced view. Churchill is always concerned to make himself look good, so you need to keep that in mind. Still, he is such a good writer that I enjoyed the whole series.

I listened to this as an audio book.



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The Gathering Storm by Winston S. Churchill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the first volume in Churchill’s 6-volume history of World War II. It begins with the roots of the conflict in the Treaty of Versailles that ended WWI, and the difficulties faced by the Weimar Republic as a consequence. This led to the rise of Adolph Hitler, the capitulation at Munich, and finally the declaration of war following the German invasion of Poland. During this period, Churchill was on the outside, almost literally the “voice in the wilderness” warning the world about what was to come.

It is valuable as a view from a participant in the events of the war. As Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it,” and he did do just that. That said, while he was a participant, this is clearly not a disinterested reading of history, and should be looked at with a small grain of salt, and supplemented with good collection of works from professional historians if you want a more balanced view. Churchill is always concerned to make himself look good, so you need to keep that in mind. Still, he is such a good writer that I enjoyed the whole series.

I listened to this as an audio book.



View all my reviews

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