Diaries of a Poor Judge of Character
Henry ‘Chips’ Channon: The Diaries (Volume Two): 1938–43 Edited by Simon Heffer. Hutchinson, 2021. Hardcover, 1120 pages, $45.90. Reviewed by John Rossi “Chips” Channon was born in Chicago in 1897 to a moderately wealthy family. During the First World War he served in...
A. J. P. Taylor’s History of England
The Book that Shaped the Study of England Between the Wars English History, 1914–1945. The Oxford History of England, Volume XV. by A. J. P. Taylor. Oxford University Press, 1965. By John Rossi Alan John Percivale Taylor (1906–1990) was the “bad boy” of the...
Ireland Since the Famine: An Appreciation
Ireland Since the Famine: 1850 to the Present by F. S. L. Lyons. Fontana Press, [1971] 1985. Paperback, 880 pages. Reviewed by John Rossi Fifty years ago, a book appeared that refined the writing and understanding of modern Irish history. F. S. L. Lyons’s...
A Splendid War Companion
Britain at Bay: The Epic Story of the Second World War, 1938–1941 By Alan Allport. Alfred A. Knopf, 2020. Hardcover, 590 pages, $35. Reviewed by John P. Rossi There is nothing an author fears more than that his or her book will appear shortly after one with a similar...
There are metaphorical hills on which I would be willing to die. The Oxford comma is one of them.
So easy to forget that the best way to educate yourself is to read great works of literature and philosophy, then talk about them. Bring back the salon!