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A review by mmf1889
Nye: The Political Life of Aneurin Bevan by Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up.
This is a good, balanced and empirical study of one of Britain's greatest parliamentarians. At times, however, it is almost too balanced and too empirical - I can't help but feel that a biography of someone like Bevan needs a bit more life, a bit more love or a bit more hate. Perhaps, this is just me comparing it with Michael Foot's lyrical and, at times, hagiographic, two volume biography, but I think that's only natural [b:Aneurin Bevan. Vol 1: 1897-1945|1167962|Aneurin Bevan. Vol 1 1897-1945|Michael Foot|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1423664715s/1167962.jpg|23897756][b:Aneurin Bevan, Vol 2: 1945-1960|15719128|Aneurin Bevan, Vol 2 1945-1960|Michael Foot|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1483802871s/15719128.jpg|1155666].
Coming in around 1000 pages shorter than Foot's biographies, this is a much more focused and easily digestible study. It focuses (as the title says) on Bevan's political life, from his introduction in local politics in the early 1920s where he held essentially syndicalist views, to his death in 1960, by which point he was a committed and at times conciliatory parliamentarian. There are little tidbits of gossip contained in this volume too and Thomas-Symonds is more willing than Bevan's close friend Foot to question some of Bevan's actions away from politics.
Through Thomas-Symonds' tracing of Nye Bevan's political life he also presents a clear history of the Labour Party itself - in particular, the section on the 1945-51 government is very good and Thomas-Symonds' analysis of Attlee's role is useful . Unlike Foot, Thomas-Symonds was not a contemporary of the political characters that featured in Bevan's life and he is able to judge them more objectively than Foot (if that's your thing).
This is a good historical biography. Unlike Foot's volumes there is a distance from the subject - both personally and in years- and this enables Thomas-Symonds to write an objective and focused study of Bevan. At times though I did crave some of the warmth, passion and life of Foot's volumes. As such, Nye: The Political Life of Aneurin Bevan is a valuable biography and a helpful aid to understanding Bevan's politics and his career, but to bring Bevan's character to life, Foot's volumes are insurmountable. Read both.
This is a good, balanced and empirical study of one of Britain's greatest parliamentarians. At times, however, it is almost too balanced and too empirical - I can't help but feel that a biography of someone like Bevan needs a bit more life, a bit more love or a bit more hate. Perhaps, this is just me comparing it with Michael Foot's lyrical and, at times, hagiographic, two volume biography, but I think that's only natural [b:Aneurin Bevan. Vol 1: 1897-1945|1167962|Aneurin Bevan. Vol 1 1897-1945|Michael Foot|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1423664715s/1167962.jpg|23897756][b:Aneurin Bevan, Vol 2: 1945-1960|15719128|Aneurin Bevan, Vol 2 1945-1960|Michael Foot|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1483802871s/15719128.jpg|1155666].
Coming in around 1000 pages shorter than Foot's biographies, this is a much more focused and easily digestible study. It focuses (as the title says) on Bevan's political life, from his introduction in local politics in the early 1920s where he held essentially syndicalist views, to his death in 1960, by which point he was a committed and at times conciliatory parliamentarian. There are little tidbits of gossip contained in this volume too and Thomas-Symonds is more willing than Bevan's close friend Foot to question some of Bevan's actions away from politics.
Through Thomas-Symonds' tracing of Nye Bevan's political life he also presents a clear history of the Labour Party itself - in particular, the section on the 1945-51 government is very good and Thomas-Symonds' analysis of Attlee's role is useful . Unlike Foot, Thomas-Symonds was not a contemporary of the political characters that featured in Bevan's life and he is able to judge them more objectively than Foot (if that's your thing).
This is a good historical biography. Unlike Foot's volumes there is a distance from the subject - both personally and in years- and this enables Thomas-Symonds to write an objective and focused study of Bevan. At times though I did crave some of the warmth, passion and life of Foot's volumes. As such, Nye: The Political Life of Aneurin Bevan is a valuable biography and a helpful aid to understanding Bevan's politics and his career, but to bring Bevan's character to life, Foot's volumes are insurmountable. Read both.