The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Volume II: Alone, 1932-1940: Winston Spencer Churchill, Volume II: Alone, 1932-1940

By: William Manchester

Narrated by: Richard Brown

Length: 36 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

This second volume in William Manchester's three-volume biography of Winston Churchill challenges the assumption that Churchill's finest hour was as a wartime leader. During the years 1932-1940, he was tested as few men are. Pursued by creditors (at one point he had to put up his home for sale), he remained solvent only by writing an extraordinary number of books and magazine articles. He was disowned by his own party, and dismissed by the BBC, Fleet Street, and the social and political establishments as a warmonger, and twice nearly lost his seat in Parliament. Churchill stood almost alone against Nazi aggression and the pusillanimous British and French policy of appeasement.

Manchester tracks with new insights this complex, fascinating history, without ever losing sight of Churchill the man - a man whose vision was global and whose courage was boundless.

©1988 William Manchester (P)1990 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

"Manchester is not only a master of detail but also of 'the big picture'....I daresay most Americans reading The Last Lion will relish it immensely." ( National Review)
"[Manchester] can claim the considerable achievement of having assembled enough powerful evidence to support Isaiah Berlin's judgment of Churchill as the largest human being of our time." (Alistair Cooke)

Great story, bad narration

Story is great and full or detail, this book would've been 5 stars if not for the narration, when listening to this in the car I have to turn up the volume to hear but the narrator occasionally says something shrill which is a bit piercing.

Completely engrossing

If you've gotten through Volume I, I don't need to encourage you to continue. The story just gets more and more interesting. Manchester writes quite well and and did an extremely thorough job of researching these years, providing rich detail from the diaries and letters of many of Churchill's contemporaries, as well as the great man himself.

Some may find R. Brown's Churchill impersonation tiresome as Churchill is quoted so frequently in the text, but I did not since it let me know immediately that Churchill was being quoted. Brown wisely did not do dramatic impersonations of the other individuals quoted, and the narration flows very smoothly.

By the way, these volumes represent one of the best bargains to be found on Audible, with many, many hours of listening per credit.

Amazing story

Always a great story. The audio is a little unrefined in volume and tone consistency. A few sentences are repeated like a broken record. Other than that it is amazing.

Excellent, but wordy

Wonderful recounting of the life and development of Winston Churchill. Engrossing. My only criticm is excessive detail, resulting in a flood of words. Masterful scholarship. While recognizeting that the focus was on his warlord personage,,I would have liked more coverage of his years out of the limelight.

The Missing Link...

Would you listen to The Last Lion again? Why?

No question, I would. A compelling story about the man who could arguably be the greatest statesman of the 20th Century. So much information demands another listen.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Churchill. Clever, funny, articulate, brilliant and a man who shaped the destiny of the world as we inherited it.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

The three volumes combine to just over 150 hours... so that wasn't an option.

Any additional comments?

A must listen...insignt gained will transform your understanding about the world as it unfolds before us in the "now." Churchill provides a link from the 19th Century to the 21st Century; this in turn produces a symmetry that produces an explosion in understanding of the world as we know it today.

How did the world not listen to this man?

I cannot understand how Churchill managed to keep his dignity throughout his "banishment". He was clearly a genius, but most folks didn't realize this. Granted, he had his quirks--which I learned about in this book. I admired him in that he worked his tail off to keep his family fed and housed and going on extended trips.....but that was how the upper class lived. And I found that interesting, as was realizing that Hitler understood what a genius Churchill was and that he was going to be Hitler's greatest challenge among the allies. The book is long. Very long. But the narrator did a good job and the material kept me listening.

Excellent

What made the experience of listening to The Last Lion the most enjoyable?

The gentleman reading the book sounded just like Winston.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Last Lion?

I got to share it on a trip with my brother and we both were glued to the story.

Have you listened to any of Richard Brown’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

He was the best.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes but there was no sitting. I listened to the second book on a trip to Ga. and the third one entertained me while painting my laundry room. A great series that I am sure I will listen to again.

Great author, bad reading

As others have said, this narrator is far worse than the one for the first volume, and the audio quality of the recording is also noticeably worse.

Both aren’t bad enough to ruin the book but take away a lot

Great book and read well

Enjoyed it as much as part 1. looking forward to part 3. Also for more by this author.

Remarkable

Churchill's life is perhaps the richest and most remarkable in our time. William Manchester's storytelling – both what he chooses and how he puts it forward - is truly a masterpiece.