Winston S. Churchill: Volume VII, 1941-1945 Road to Victory

This penultimate entry in the monumental series is as comprehensive as a biography could possibly be and remarkable for the intimate view it presents of Britain's wartime leader. Not only does Gilbert describe the day-to-day development of war plans, foreign policy and internal politics, but he pays close attention to Churchill's private life including his health (which, we learn here, was often poor). No other biographer has succeeded in conveying the breadth of Churchill's daily productivity, his daring improvisational skills or his flexibility of thought during the crisis-ridden war years. The story told here is based primarily on two sets of unpublished material: Churchill's papers and the papers of the Prime Minister's Office and Ministry of Defense. The sheer size of the volume (1417 pages) allows Gilbert to present considerable detailed material regarding Churchill's dealings with Roosevelt and Stalin that has not heretofore seen print. Photos. (November 26)