Churchill & Orwell by Thomas E. Ricks
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Thomas E. Ricks, this dual biography of Winston Churchill and George Orwell reveals how their far-sighted vision and inspired action in the face of the threat of fascism and communism helped preserve democracy for the world. Orwell and Churchill are two of the most important figures in modern British history, and widely recognised for their vision and courage to campaign tirelessly, in words and deeds, against the totalitarian threat from both the left and the right.
In a crucial moment, they responded first by seeking the facts of the matter, seeing through the lies and obfuscations, and then acted on their beliefs. Together they kept the West's compass set toward freedom as its due north.However, in the late 1930s they occupied a lonely position: democracy was discredited in many circles, and authoritarian rulers were everywhere in the ascent. There were some who decried the scourge of communism, but saw in Hitler and Mussolini 'men we could do business with.' And there were others who saw the Nazi and fascist threat as malign, but tended to view communism as the path to salvation.Churchill and Orwell, had the foresight to see clearly that the issue was human freedom - and that any government that denies its people basic freedoms is a totalitarian menace and has to be resisted.
In the end, Churchill and Orwell proved their age's necessary men. The glorious climax of Churchill & Orwell is their drive in the 1940s to triumph over freedom's enemies. Churchill may have played the larger role in the defeat of Hitler and the Axis, but Orwell's reckoning with the menace of authoritarian rule in Animal Farm and 1984 would define the stakes of the Cold War for its 50-year course, and continues to give inspiration to fighters for freedom to this day.
In a crucial moment, they responded first by seeking the facts of the matter, seeing through the lies and obfuscations, and then acted on their beliefs. Together they kept the West's compass set toward freedom as its due north.However, in the late 1930s they occupied a lonely position: democracy was discredited in many circles, and authoritarian rulers were everywhere in the ascent. There were some who decried the scourge of communism, but saw in Hitler and Mussolini 'men we could do business with.' And there were others who saw the Nazi and fascist threat as malign, but tended to view communism as the path to salvation.Churchill and Orwell, had the foresight to see clearly that the issue was human freedom - and that any government that denies its people basic freedoms is a totalitarian menace and has to be resisted.
In the end, Churchill and Orwell proved their age's necessary men. The glorious climax of Churchill & Orwell is their drive in the 1940s to triumph over freedom's enemies. Churchill may have played the larger role in the defeat of Hitler and the Axis, but Orwell's reckoning with the menace of authoritarian rule in Animal Farm and 1984 would define the stakes of the Cold War for its 50-year course, and continues to give inspiration to fighters for freedom to this day.