Jun 30, 2017
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and bestselling author Thomas Ricks (Fiasco) presents a dual biography of Winston Churchill and George Orwell focusing on the pivotal years from the mid-1930s through the 1940s, when these two men combated the threat of fascism and communism, each in his own imitable way. The book received a starred review from Kirkus which described it as a “superb account of two men who set standards for defending liberal democracy that remain disturbingly out of reach.” While Orwell and Churchill, never met, Ricks argues that the two worked in tandem to support democratic principles. He recalls the lonely position that both men occupied, walking a fine line between a country that appeared all but torn in two by the divisive politics of World War II. Ricks makes the claim that, without ever working directly together, these two figures were essential in keeping the West’s compass set toward freedom.
Recorded live at Town Hall Seattle Tuesday, May 30, 2017