This week, our bookbencher is Matthew Hancock, the Conservative MP for West Suffolk.
Which book’s on your bedside table at the moment?
Finest Years: Churchill as Warlord 1940-1945, by Max Hastings. In biography, taking on Churchill is about as big as it gets. Many people thought that Roy Jenkins’ masterful work, with its insights drawn from first-hand experience at the pinnacle of politics, would be the last word on the subject for at least a decade. Yet by focussing on the years that define our greatest Prime Minister in the popular consciousness, and no doubt in history, Max Hastings has brought a fresh eye to the ‘finest years’. Finest years they may have been for stirring rhetoric and resolution in the face of adversity. But Hastings achieves more by getting below the surface myth of Churchill as a historical icon, and describes the complex, often lonely, politics of leading Britain. Churchill in those years was often unpopular, rarely unopposed, and by no means secure. At least I know how it ends.
Which book would you read to your children?
Burglar Bill, by Allan and Janet Ahlberg. Burglar Bill is a tale of derring-do, tension, love, and redemption. But more importantly, it’s very funny and the kids love it.
Which literary character would you most like to be?
My children suggested Harry Potter, but I can’t tell you why unless you’ve seen the final film. So my choice is Gulliver. He sees the world, lives life to the full, overcomes adversity, and learns of life on the way.
Which book do you think best sums up ‘now’?
This Time It’s Different, by Reinhart and Rogoff. Of course I’d like to say that ‘now’ is summed up by Masters of Nothing, but our book is undoubtedly trumped by the much grander This Time It’s Different. It’s a heavy book about political economy, but I make no excuses for that: we live in heavy times, dominated by political economy. The central thesis is that history repeats itself, with patterns of great similarity. Let us learn from these patterns, and from this history, it says, with a regretful nod to the times just passed in which many thought this time was different. Realistic, not utopian in vision, big, not small in scope, difficult rather than frivolous, it is about our times, and of our times.
What was the last novel you read?
Making Money, by Terry Pratchett. My wife has just introduced me to Pratchett, and this is my first. It’s not high-brow, but Making Money combines fast-paced text, high farce, and a deeper commentary on how the system works. Like someone who has only read one Shakespeare play, or watched the first series of The West Wing I’m lucky to have a whole series ahead of me.
Which book would you most recommend?
The Book of Books: The Radical Impact of the King James Bible 1611-2011, by Melvyn Bragg. Of any faith or none, if you love and use the English language, you will enjoy Melvyn Bragg’s entertaining guide to its greatest influence: the King James Bible. Bragg’s style is journalistic, and accessible rather than rigorous, and so succeeds in cantering through the history and power of the book. Despite his passion for the Good Book, which seeps through each chapter, Bragg avoids the trap of adulation, and of patronising the reader, each of which could easily befall such a work. Instead you will be treated to a deeper analysis of the roots of our language, with all the beauty it holds. In this anniversary year, it’s well worth a read.
Given enough time, which book would you like to study deeply?
Livy’s History of Rome. The enduring relevance of the classics derives from the unchanging nature of human behaviour. So I would love to dive deeply into Rome’s history, as told by the Romans. While the politics then carried higher stakes than today, the impulses were similar. Livy lived through periods of great stability and great turbulence, knew Emperors and witnessed the history of his day. With 142 known books comprising his History, there’s plenty of material.
Which book do you plan to read next?
I can’t wait for Robert Harris’ next blockbuster, but in the meantime, I want to get my hands on The Art of Captaincy by Mike Brearley. You can’t love English cricket without admiring Brearley. I’m preparing to take the Parliamentary Cricket Club on a tour of India, what better preparation than Brearley’s authoritative work on the subject? It comes highly recommended…
If the British Library was on fire and you could only save three books, which ones would you take?
I’d go for the oldest, irreplaceable texts: The Magna Carta, Shakespheare’s first known folio, and William Caxton’s first print of Canterbury Tales. All the rest will eventually be put on kindle, but you can’t digitise originals.
Comments