Christopher Patten
Laying out the Choices
Making Foreign Policy
By John Coles
John Murray 224pp £17.99
In his commendation on the cover of this book, Lord Butler (the former Cabinet Secretary) salutes the passion with which it is written. Perhaps five months in Brussels have raised my passion threshold, but, whatever its other virtues, this modestly useful book does not quicken the pulse.
Nor was it meant to do so. Beginning with a long footnote apologising for the use of the abbreviated term ‘Foreign Office’ (the customarily appended ‘Commonwealth’ has been excised), Sir John – the recently retired Permanent Secretary in the amputated Office – goes on to eschew anecdote and judgement at
Sign Up to our newsletter
Receive free articles, highlights from the archive, news, details of prizes, and much more.@Lit_Review
Follow Literary Review on Twitter
Twitter Feed
It is a triumph @arthistorynews and my review @Lit_Review is here!
In just thirteen years, George Villiers rose from plain squire to become the only duke in England and the most powerful politician in the land. Does a new biography finally unravel the secrets of his success?
John Adamson investigates.
John Adamson - Love Island with Ruffs
John Adamson: Love Island with Ruffs - The Scapegoat: The Brilliant Brief Life of the Duke of Buckingham by Lucy Hughes-Hallett
literaryreview.co.uk
During the 1930s, Winston Churchill retired to Chartwell, his Tudor-style country house in Kent, where he plotted a return to power.
Richard Vinen asks whether it’s time to rename the decade long regarded as Churchill’s ‘wilderness years’.
Richard Vinen - Croquet & Conspiracy
Richard Vinen: Croquet & Conspiracy - Churchill’s Citadel: Chartwell and the Gatherings Before the Storm by Katherine Carter
literaryreview.co.uk