BOOKS

“The men of destiny do not wait to be sent for; they come when they feel their time has come. They do not ask to be recognized, they declare themselves; they come like fate; they are inevitable.” – Alexander MacCallum Scott

Of all of the fascinating anecdotes on the life of Winston Churchill, this book is centered on what may be his most amazing feat: the fact that he called his own shot, an incredibly epic one at that. When Churchill was just 16 years old, he confided to a close friend that he would save Britain from a foreign invasion. This deeply held belief lead young Winston through a life more adventurous than almost any figure in human history, either imagined or real; all preparing him for his ultimate test in during the Battle of Britain in 1940 and the Second World War. 

Winston’s first lesson in leadership was forged during the Battle of Omdurban in 1898, when he learned firsthand the importance of staying calm and retaining high morale in the face of heavy odds. He quickly developed a reputation of extreme calm even as bullets were flying around him. It was the many experiences in his life that built his enormous self confidence, speaking out in nearly prophetic accuracy about world events in the early 20th Century. The life of Churchill seemed to fit Joseph Campbell’s archetypal hero, as Winston’s early failings, like Gallipoli, lead to his years in the wilderness. This book provides an excellent, easy to read narrative of the climactic moment when Churchill answered the call of history and more than any other individual, saved western civilization. 

Some great quotes found in the book:

“What is Capitalism? It is merely the observance of contract, that’s all. That’s why it will survive.” – WC

“The public trusted him in 1940 not because they believed he had always, or even generally, been right – all too clearly he had not – but because they knew he had fought bravely for what he believed in, while many other, more self-serving politicians had not.”

“The whole history of the world is summed up in the fact that when nations are strong they are not always just, and when they wish to be just they are often no longer strong” – WC

“By May of 1940, Churchill’s personality had been shaped by his experiences so completely…the singleness of purpose was there, of course, which merged into an undeniable ruthlessness when the occasion demanded…yet allied to that was a calmness under pressure and a sense of humor that allowed him to crack jokes however bad the situation got.”