I've always wanted to know more about Winston Churchill. I've studied World War II enough that I felt I had a pretty strong background but it was nice to hear his story told by a British historian. I chose an audio book; Winston Churchill by John Keegan, read by Richard Mathews.

As an audio book it was a little extra entertaining because Mathews does an excellent Churchill impr

ession.

The story begins with the author, who wasn't a Churchill fan during the war, listening to a recording of famous Churchill speeches. By the end of the recordings, he was a fan. Churchill had quite a way with words.

Myself, I became a bit less of a fan by the end of the book. Perhaps it was the story teller or perhaps it was the subject of the story but Churchill didn't leave that impressive of a life until he because prime minister when the war broke out.

He was accomplished both before and after the war. He fought in wars in India and in France during the first World War.

He was also tireless in his writings publishing numerous historical works. Or in Churchill's words "History will be kind to me. For I intend to write it."

I suppose it's really those years during the war that were so impressive. The rest just pale in comparison.

As Keegan reminds the readers, or in my case the listener, Churchill laid down the cause. That Britain shall fight for victory no matter what the costs. In speech after speech he aroused his audience and made them believe they could defeat Nazi Germany at a time when it didn't seem possible.

I'm afraid to write much more because listening to one book certainly doesn't qualify me to write a mini-biography myself. So, I'll end this abruptly.

As a whole, I'd rate the audio book as good. It wasn't very good only because I've read or listened to so many incredible biographies but it was good and importantly, it was entertainingly told.