ABOUT THIS BOOK
In my view this book is the most important publication on the Second
World War that has appeared. More than that, it is the most vivid
account of how a Government operates in war time and particularly of the
relationship between the civil Government and its military advisers.
In the foreground is the relationship between two outstanding
characters, the Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill, with his
brilliant genius and his strange lapses of judgment and Lord Alanbrooke,
the exceptionally able soldier who, convinced of the right strategy, had
to cope with the erratic qualities of his civilian head.
To the casual observer Lord Alanbrooke appeared to be at man of iron,
perfectly sure of himself and supremely competent. The diaries reveal
the strains and stresses to which he was subjected and the very human
side of this great man.
The diaries are not carried to the final victory, but I think the final
stages of the war vindicate the strategy of Lord Alanbrooke.
Sir Arthur Bryant is, of course, a most skilful historian and has used
his material with great ability so as to make a coherent story - no easy
task where so many threads are interwoven.
- Lord Attlee in the BROADSHEET |
