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Citizen Clem

A Biography of Attlee

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Citizen Clem

By: John Bew
Narrated by: Roger Davis
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About this listen

Winner of the Orwell Prize for Political Writing.

Winner of the Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography.

Book of the year: The Times, The Sunday Times, New Statesman, The Spectator, Evening Standard.

Clement Attlee was the Labour prime minister who presided over Britain's radical postwar government, delivering the end of the empire in India, the foundation of the NHS and Britain's place in NATO. Called 'a sheep in sheep's clothing', his reputation has long been that of an unassuming character in the shadow of Churchill. But as John Bew's revelatory biography shows, Attlee was not only a hero of his age but an emblem of it, and his life tells the story of how Britain changed over the 20th century. Here, Bew pierces Attlee's reticence to examine the intellect and beliefs of Britain's greatest - and least appreciated - peacetime prime minister.

©2016 John Bew (P)2017 Quercus Editions Limited 20th Century Modern Politicians Politics & Activism Politics & Government Presidents & Heads of State Winston Churchill Imperialism Interwar Period Socialism Liberalism Biography Thought-Provoking War Soviet Union Suspenseful Self-Determination United Kingdom Royalty Russia Taxation Middle Ages Africa Franklin D Roosevelt Latin American Capitalism

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Critic reviews

"Outstanding.... We still live in the society that was shaped by Clement Attlee." (Robert Harris, The Sunday Times)
"The best book in the field of British politics." (Philip Collins, The Times)
"Easily the best single-volume, cradle-to-grave life of Clement Attlee yet written." (Andrew Roberts)
All stars
Most relevant  
long and a dull in places, but worth reading to the very end.
thank you

long and dull in places, but worth reading to the

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Clem was the last Victorian to occupy No10 (excluding Churchill’s second term) transformed the UK into a welfare state and moved the centre of British politics to the left. Much in the same way as Mrs Thatcher moved it to the right in the 1980’s. The very opposite of flamboyant this quiet man kept the Labour Party together for 20 years. Many of it’s problems can be traced back to the 1945-51 government. John Bew explains why Churchill last the 1945 election and what motivated this extraordinary figure to reshape the UK after WW2

A valued number two to Churchill during the War they would remain on friendly terms for the rest of their lives. Bew tells of lunches where the two discussed the novels of Trollope. Attlee’s Socialism came not from Marx, but from William Morris and William Blake. An extraordinarily enjoyable book which makes a great companion piece to Andrew Roberts recent biography of Churchill

The last Victorian at No10

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He was from Bristol not Yorkshire and is very annoying when narrated in a Yorkshire accent
Otherwise very good and accurate

Ernie Bevin

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I’m not a fan of biographies and this book didn’t change my view on them. It can be very dry in places and I only picked it up because it was about a politician I knew very little about. Still, it’s a fascinating account of a man who ushered in the NHS and the welfare state and who should always be remembered for that.

This book finally made me realise a strange sounding school in South Shields was named after a Labour politician.

Narration was ok.

Well now I know.

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Absolutely brilliant I highly recommend to everyone. In my opinion one of the finest biographies done on a political leader

Brilliant

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An excellent book. The quality of the historical accounts and the insight into Attlee's character and works are very good indeed (though on their own would not likely be worthy of the five stars). What elevates the book is the angle that Bew finds: of exploring Attlee through his reading material at the point in time, and the contextual clues as to what he thought of it. This gives unique insight into the development of his ideas and gets inside the mind of an intensely private and reserved person (and it also works very well as a framing device within chapters). Davis's narration is highly competent and mostly engaging (though his stock voice for American characters leaves a little to be desired...) A hefty tome but - in my opinion - well worth your time.

Very good biography elevated by unique angle.

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The Mouse that Roared. Amazed at how such an unassuming man remained leader of Labour Party for 20 years, during the country's most tumultuous times. Seemed to possess humility, not the narcissistic qualities a lot of leader's have and also a proud to be British and a socialist. How times have changed

Really good listen. Great book, excellent narrator

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A wonderful book. Scholarly, readable, measured with a skilled balancing of narrative and nalysis, and the personal and the contextual. Rightly hailed by critics, it's contemporary relevance is never forced and is the more powerful for that. The audio book does justice to this excellent biography.

outstanding biography

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A very important book. Brilliantly read by Roger Davis but with one major problem - he gives Ernest Bevin a northern accent! The great man - Attlee’s most important ally in the Labour Movement - was a working-class trade unionist from Somerset and Bristol. He famously had one of the few West Country accents to be heard at the top of British politics. This is a serious error and a slight to one of the most substantial political figures this country has ever produced.

Terrific

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How dogged determination and quiet resolve are extremely valuable leadership skills in political life. Also the ability to let others have their say and further not to be afraid to a change of mind where the facts or circumstances changed.

A Man of the People

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