Thirty Days: Tony Blair and the Test of History |
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Thirty Days: Tony Blair and the Test of History
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by Peter Stothard
Sales Rank: 359473
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$0.01
At Amazon
on 6-21-2008.
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Features
Cover Type: Hard Cover with 256 pages
Published by: HarperCollins July 17, 2003
Written in: English
ISBN 10 Number: 0060582618
ISBN 13 Number: 978-0060582616
Book Dimensions:
9.2 x 6.3 x 1 inches
Weighs: 1.1 pounds
From Publishers Weekly
In the days leading up to the recent Gulf War, Stothard was granted access to the besieged world of British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The result is in-depth political journalism with a touch of Upstairs Downstairs. Stothard, editor of the Times Literary Supplement and former editor of the Times of London, draws a critical but sympathetic portrait of Blair as a politician who is willing to risk his historical legacy in order to do what he believes to be the right thing: stick by President Bush and the unpopular (in Europe) attack on Iraq. It may come as a surprise to many American readers how close Stothard believes Blair was to losing his grip on power. They might also be surprised how close Blair, a political cousin of Bill Clinton, felt ideologically to Bush-and that the two shared a religious conviction to attack Iraq and oust Saddam Hussein. Blair, he writes, "has the powerful Christian seriousness of the not-quite-yet convert." Although the book is full of Briticisms-some members of Parliament are "runners," others "wobblers"-Stothard expertly shapes a narrative in which Blair manages to stick by his principles in the face of intense pressure, although he is now facing trouble regarding what he told the British public during those prewar days. At times, the book focuses on Blair's advisers and others who serve the prime minister at the expense of Blair himself, but Stothard offers scrutiny of one of the world's most important leaders during a critical juncture in his-and the world's-history.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From The New Yorker
Formerly the editor of the London Times, Stothard was given access to Tony Blair and his inner circle from the time of the last-minute attempts to get a second U.N. resolution on Iraq until the statues in Baghdad were toppled. Strangely, the closer one gets to Blair the more opaque his motives become, and even those around him seem uncertain whether his policies stem from quasi-religious conviction, shrewd realpolitik, or a simple desire to please. Stothard excels at showing the eccentric world of Downing Street, with its archaic, genteel rituals and sardonic banter (a "Robert Mugabe" is the frostiest possible handshake, reserved for a politician you really abominate; to "Kofi" means to wax idealistic about internationalism). Faced with the overwhelming might of their American allies, the English take refuge in irony: when Blair asks how he should begin a televised speech justifying the war, his right-hand man suggests, "My fellow Americans …"
Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker
Reader Reviews
Though they are very different in style, this book shares some important similarities with Bob Woodward's "Bush at War" (2002), in that both provide insider looks at political leaders in the weeks before they lead (or send) their nations into battle. But while the ubiquitous Woodward writes big, portentous books that themselves often end up affecting the debate, "Thirty Days" is a quick, journalistic snapshot that doesn't pretend to be a lot more than that. That made this a refreshing and sometimes enlightening read. I recently finished another title on the British PM ("Tony Blair: The Making of a World Leader" by Philip Stephens [2004]), so I felt relatively familiar with the central players in this book. Peter Stothard's quick, journalistic style introduces names and titles quickly, and while the players become clearer to us in the course of the narrative, Americans who don't have much contextual familiarity with British politicians may find themselves playing a bit of catch-up here. Since 9/11, of course, Tony Blair himself has become more familiar to American news-watchers than any British politician since Churchill -- with the possible exception of Baroness Thatcher. Therefore, even Americans who may not be up-to-date on the Who's Who of Whitehall will probably find a lot of interest and instruction here. Not least, they will see the influence -- for good or ill -- that American politics and political pressures have in the counsels of our allies. Peter Stothard's book isn't a biography of Blair or a political analysis of his policies and his decisions. Instead, it's a look inside the highest reaches of British politics during one of the more eventful months in recent British history. American as well as British readers can gain a lot from the unique access Stothard enjoyed, and the useful work that came out of those thirty days.
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Thirty Days: Tony Blair and the Test of History
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Updated on 6-21-2008.
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