Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill - Softcover

Millard, Candice

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0307948781 ISBN 13: 9780307948786

Publisher: Anchor Books, 2017

Synopsis

"A thrilling account.... This book is an awesome nail-biter and top-notch character study rolled into one." --New York Times Critic Jennifer Senior's Top Ten Books of 2016

At the age of twenty-four, Winston Churchill was utterly convinced it was his destiny to become prime minister of England. He arrived in South Africa in 1899, valet and crates of vintage wine in tow, to cover the brutal colonial war the British were fighting with Boer rebels and jumpstart his political career. But just two weeks later, Churchill was taken prisoner. Remarkably, he pulled off a daring escape--traversing hundreds of miles of enemy territory, alone, with nothing but a crumpled wad of cash, four slabs of chocolate, and his wits to guide him.
Bestselling author Candice Millard spins an epic story of bravery, savagery, and chance encounters with a cast of historical characters--including Rudyard Kipling, Lord Kitchener, and Mohandas Gandhi--with whom Churchill would later share the world stage. But Hero of the Empire is more than an extraordinary adventure story, for the lessons Churchill took from the Boer War would profoundly affect twentieth century history.

About this title

Review:

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Chosen as a Washington Post and New York Times Book Review Notable Book of 2016

"A thrilling account...This book is an awesome nail-biter and top-notch character study rolled into one...Could someone be persuaded to make a movie about this episode of his life? I'd watch."
--New York Times Critic Jennifer Senior's Top Ten Books of 2016

"Gripping...tremendously readable and enjoyable..."
--Alex von Tunzelmann, The New York Times Book Review

"[A] truly fascinating book."
--Financial Times

"A gripping story...It's a thrilling journey and Millard tells it with gusto."
--The Guardian

"Millard's tome is a slam-bang study of Churchill's wit and wile as he navigates the Boer War like [a] proto-James Bond."
--USA Today

From the Back Cover:

At the age of twenty-four, Winston Churchill already believed he was destined for greatness. This is the story of one dramatic year in Churchill's life, an adventure that involved war in South Africa, imprisonment, endurance and escape. It would, as Churchill said, lay the foundations of his extraordinary life.

'Few can match the originality and narrative power of Candice Millard's elegantly written and surprisingly revealing account of the young Churchill's exploits' Saul David, Daily Telegraph

'A thrilling account ... This book is an awesome nail-biter and top-notch character study rolled into one' Jennifer Senior, The New York Times, Books of the Year

'Gripping ... thrilling ... Millard tells it with gusto ... casts an interestingly oblique light on Churchill's personality, and on a traumatic war' Lucy Hughes-Hallett, Observer, Books of the Year

'Completely engrossing' Andrew Roberts

About this edition

• Publisher: Anchor Books
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 0307948781
• ISBN 13: 9780307948786
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416