Jenkins concludes his book stating "I now put Churchill, with all his idiosyncrasies, his indulgences, his occasional childishness, but also his genius, his tenacity and his persistent ability, right or wrong, successful or unsuccessful, to be larger than life, as the greatest human being ever to occupy 10 Downing Street". His biography of Churchill supports that in every way. This was one of the most challenging biographies I have read- but also the most rewarding. I do not know what I enjoyed more- the story of Churchill himself or the writing style and delivery of Roy Jenkins. His exploration of Churchill was exceedingly well researched, used quotation from other sources elegantly and with complete relevance, while at the same time introducing his own analysis. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand Churchill and his preeminence in British politics in the twentieth century.

The author, a long time Labour cabinent minister and now a member of the House of Lords, is able to put the life of Churchill in perspective. We get an understanding not only of the man but of the organization he was so long associated with, Parliament, and by extention Cabinet. You realize how amazing it really was for Churchill to be writing books of history while running government departments. Exhaustively researched, Mr. Jenkins's writing is still lucid and not as dry as official academics. For a single volume work on the war time prime minister, this is probably the best there is.