Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Advance praise from Andrew Roberts: 'When Winston Churchill caught severe pneumonia in 1943, Doris Miles was there to nurse him back to health. It was vital for the cause of Civilization that she did so effectively... She was also writing regular letters to her husband who was serving in the Royal Navy. These letters are of genuine historical importance to anyone interested in Churchill and the Second World War. They provide a fascinating, and occasionally moving, account of wartime Britain, by one of its 'angels'. This book reminds us of the good-nature and humanity of the Greatest Briton, even while he was under unimaginable stress and a life-threatening illness. I heartily recommend it.' In February 1943, when the course of the Second World War hung in the balance, 68-year-old Prime Minister Winston Churchill was stricken with pneumonia. Doris Miles, from St Mary's Hospital in London, was appointed as his private nurse. During her time with Churchill, she wrote regularly to her husband, a Surgeon-Lieutenant with the Royal Navy, about life at the centre of Britain's war effort, and about Churchill himself. With unrivalled intimacy, her observations show a very human and seldom-seen side of the great man and include many amusing anecdotes. She describes with wry humour their arguments and conversations, and life at Downing Street and Chequers. She writes as well of the everyday events that carried on despite the war; weddings and parties, family and friends, births and deaths, and working life at one of London's busiest hospitals. She describes her feelings, her fears and her hopes for the future. This is a poignant and insightful collection of letters that shows an ordinary person's perspective of Churchill through a crucial period of the war, as well as how the war affected those at home, unfiltered by the lens of history. It is also a deeply moving love story, from a newly-wed young woman whose husband went to war. This unique wartime source is adroitly woven into the wider context of those turbulent times.
Synopsis
Advance praise from Andrew Roberts, author of The Storm of War: 'When Winston Churchill caught severe pneumonia in 1943, Doris Miles was there to nurse him back to health. She was also writing regular letters to her husband about what she was doing for Churchill, with humour, intelligence and much acute insight. These letters are of genuine historical importance to anyone interested in Churchill and the Second World War. They also provide a fascinating and occasionally moving account of wartime Britain by one of its 'angels'. Supported by the fine scholarship of the author, this book reminds us of the good nature and humanity of the greatest Briton, even while he was under unimaginable stress and a life-threatening illness. I heartily recommend it.' In February 1943, when the course of the Second World War hung in the balance, 68-year-old Prime Minister Winston Churchill was stricken with pneumonia. Doris Miles, from St Mary's Hospital in London, was appointed as his private nurse. During her time with Churchill, she wrote regularly to her husband, a Surgeon-Lieutenant with the Royal Navy, about life at the centre of Britain's war effort, and about Churchill himself. With unrivalled intimacy, her observations show a very human and seldom-seen side of the great man and include many amusing anecdotes. She describes with wry humour their arguments and conversations, and life at Downing Street and Chequers. She writes as well of the everyday events that carried on despite the war; weddings and parties, family and friends, births and deaths, and working life at one of London's busiest hospitals. She describes her feelings, her fears and her hopes for the future. This is a poignant and perceptive collection of previously unpublished letters that shows an ordinary person's perspective of Churchill through a crucial period of the war, as well as how the war affected those at home, unfiltered by the lens of history. It is also a love story, from a newly-wed young woman whose husband went to war. This exclusive wartime source is adroitly woven into the wider context of those turbulent times.
Synopsis
A fresh perspective on Churchill and wartime life through the eyes of the nurse charged with looking after the Prime Minister. In February 1943, when the course of the Second World War hung in the balance, 68-year-old Prime Minister Winston Churchill was stricken with pneumonia. Doris Miles, from St Mary's Hospital in London, was appointed as his private nurse. During her time with Churchill, she wrote regularly to her husband, a Surgeon-Lieutenant with the Royal Navy, about life at the centre of Britain's war effort, and about Churchill himself. With unrivalled intimacy, her observations show a very human and seldom-seen side of the great man and include many amusing anecdotes. She describes with wry humour their arguments and conversations, and life at Downing Street and Chequers. She writes as well of the everyday events that carried on despite the war; weddings and parties, family and friends, births and deaths, and working life at one of London's busiest hospitals. She describes her feelings, her fears and her hopes for the future. This is a poignant and perceptive collection of previously unpublished letters that shows an ordinary person's perspective of Churchill through a crucial period of the war, as well as how the war affected those at home, unfiltered by the lens of history. It is also a love story, from a newly-wed young woman whose husband went to war. This exclusive wartime source is adroitly woven into the wider context of those turbulent times.
Synopsis
In February 1943, when the course of World War II hung in the balance, 68-year-old Prime Minister Winston Churchill was stricken with pneumonia. Doris Miles, from St. Mary's Hospital in London, was appointed as his private nurse. During her time with Churchill, she wrote regularly to her husband, a Surgeon-Lieutenant with the Royal Navy, about life at the center of Britain's war effort, and about Churchill himself. With unrivaled intimacy, her observations show a very human and seldom-seen side of the great man and include many amusing anecdotes. She describes with wry humor their arguments and conversations, and life at Downing Street and Chequers. This is a poignant and insightful collection of letters that shows an ordinary person's perspective of Churchill through a crucial period of the war, as well as how the war affected those at home, unfiltered by the lens of history. It is also a deeply moving love story, from a newly-wed young woman whose husband went to war.