De Gaulle

by Julian Jackson

Having read quite a few histories of the 20th Century including a run of Winston Churchill books in 2018 I was pleased to hear about Jackson’s De Gaulle biography. It is long but worth it. I listened to the audio version and it ran for 40 hours. The hardcover is 900 plus pages. But this is a very readable book full of facts that I didn’t know. Who knew what a bloody conflict the Algerian Independence movement was. De Gaulle was dedicated to France and his place in the history of France. He was belligerent, ungrateful and cunning. But he managed to keep France at the table after it’s defeat in WWII and the result was the French Zone in conquered  Germany and a seat on the UN Security Council. It is worth reading if you want to see what the 20th Century looked like to someone who is not English or American.