Book read . . .

By Evelyn C. McDonald

March 31, 2020

Feeling a bit trapped in the house and unable to shop for anything, the word “curbside” intruded into my thoughts. I ordered a book, paid for it over the phone, and had it dropped in my car in Story & Song’s parking lot. This book, The Splendid and the Vile, by Erik Larson, covers Winston Churchill’s life from early 1940 when he became Prime Minister through one year of the war. I wondered how it would be as there are literally hundreds of books on Churchill and World War II.

Erik Larson may be the king of the non-fiction writers. His forte is being able to find a unique perspective on his subject. In this case, he found diaries, one from Churchill’s daughter, Mary, and one from of his secretary, John Colville. These diaries and other materials enabled him to shine a different light on possibly one of the greatest orators of our time. Examples – Churchill in a silver blue onesie that he liked to wear, Churchill not really liking tea all that well. The effect of this is to let us see the human side of a figure that has become near mythic.

It brings home how horrific the German bombing of Britain was. Most of the bombs fell on London but when Hitler was preparing to invade Russia, he wanted Britain finished off quickly. Goring ordered bombing of several sizeable cities. I’ve been in Coventry in England and seen the remains of the cathedral. I didn’t realize that other cities got the same treatment. The first wave of planes dropped incendiaries so that the second wave could see where to unload their bombs.

Two incidents in the book were of particular interest to me. One described German bombing along the River Clyde in Scotland. My grandmother lived in the Clydeside. She was in a wheelchair and didn’t like to go down to the shelters. One night they persuaded her to go. The next morning when they emerged from the shelter, her house was gone.

The other incident is less personal in family terms but pertinent to our present situation. Many items were rationed during the war. Some items were not rationed but were often hard to get. Larson reports that one brand of toilet paper was in such a short supply that King George had to write to the British Embassy in Washington, DC to have some sent to him.

The book is engrossing and I recommend it. If you decide hard cover books are too expensive, make a note to wait for the paperback as I’m sure there will be one.

Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. Evelyn is vice-chair on the Amelia Center for Lifelong Learning and is on the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.