William Manchester – författare

An up-close look at John F. Kennedy by one of his closest confidants, a New York Times–bestselling biographer

Written by a prize-winning historian and biographer of such giants as Winston S. Churchill and Douglas MacArthur, this intimately detailed account provides a rare personal glimpse into the emotions behind the Kennedy administration—from the elation of victory to the frustrating challenges facing a young president at a pivotal turning point in US history.

Originally published in 1962—before the assassination of JFK—Portrait of a President is William Manchester’s first biography of the thirty-fifth president of the United States. In addition to firsthand encounters with JFK, the biography draws from over forty interviews conducted in the first year of his presidency. In speaking with those closest to the commander-in-chief, both in his administration and his family, Manchester captures a complete portrait of one of the most highly regarded figures of the twentieth century.

This edition includes a new introduction and epilogue written by Manchester in the aftermath of November 1963, adding to the mythos by documenting not just how President Kennedy lived but also the legacy he left behind.

William Manchester was friends with John F. Kennedy for two decades before the President’s assassination. In this work, the bestselling author of Portrait of a President and The Death of a President puts aside the tragedy of JFK’s death to celebrate the brightness of his life.

Manchester recalls in intimate detail everything from family gatherings at Hyannis Port, to grueling campaign trips, and quiet evenings alone with the President in the White House family quarters. The resulting portrait provides listeners with myriad anecdotes and insights into a life of a man that bristled with vigor, competitiveness, and an unflagging drive for excellence, and shone with elegance, intelligence, and compassion.

The book was important when it was first published, but now fills a new role as an antidote to the wave of political disillusionment in America.

The writing of Death of a President, William Manchester’s award-winning account of President Kennedy’s assassination, is the topic of the title essay in this collection, as it was a controversy like few others, pitting one of the most prominent historians of the day against Jackie Kennedy, the most famous, and private, widow in the world. The seventy-six page essay provides an insider’s account of the struggle to see the book published.

The rest of this sweeping collection examines the time period between World War II and the Vietnam era. It is an account that is both exactingly accurate and a pleasure to hear.

In this narrative of extraordinary richness, depth, and authority, America’s preeminent biographer/historian explored the German national character as no other writer has done.

The Arms of Krupp brings to life Europe’s wealthiest, most powerful family, a four-hundred-year German dynasty that developed the world’s most technologically advanced weapons, from cannons to submarines to anti-aircraft guns; provided arms to generations of German leaders, including the kaiser and Hitler; operated private concentration camps during the Nazi era; survived conviction at Nuremberg; and wielded enormous influence on the course of world events.

William Manchester’s galvanizing account of the rise and fall of the Krupp dynasty is history as it should be written—alive with all its terrifying power.

As the world still reeled from the tragic and historic events of November 22, 1963, William Manchester set out, at the request of the Kennedy family, to create a detailed, authoritative record of President John F. Kennedy''s death, including the days immediately preceding and following the assassination. Through hundreds of interviews, extensive travel, and firsthand observation, and with unique access to the proceedings of the Warren Commission, Manchester conducted an exhaustive historical investigation, accumulating forty-five volumes of documents, exhibits, and transcribed tapes. His ultimate objective—to set down as a whole the national and personal tragedy that was JFK''s assassination—is brilliantly achieved in this galvanizing narrative, a book universally acclaimed as a landmark work of modern history.

As the world still reeled from the tragic and historic events of November 22, 1963, William Manchester set out, at the request of the Kennedy family, to create a detailed, authoritative record of President John F. Kennedy''s death, including the days immediately preceding and following the assassination. Through hundreds of interviews, extensive travel, and firsthand observation, and with unique access to the proceedings of the Warren Commission, Manchester conducted an exhaustive historical investigation, accumulating forty-five volumes of documents, exhibits, and transcribed tapes. His ultimate objective—to set down as a whole the national and personal tragedy that was JFK''s assassination—is brilliantly achieved in this galvanizing narrative, a book universally acclaimed as a landmark work of modern history.

The preeminent popular history of civilization’s rebirth after the Dark Ages

From tales of chivalrous knights to the barbarity of trial by ordeal, no era has been a greater source of awe, horror, and wonder than the Middle Ages. In handsomely crafted prose and with the grace and authority of his extraordinary gift for narrative history, William Manchester leads us from a civilization tottering on the brink of collapse to the grandeur of its rebirth, the Renaissance, a dense explosion of energy that spawned some of history’s greatest poets, philosophers, and painters, as well as some of its most spectacular villains.

One of the most volatile periods of western history witnessed the passing of the Dark Ages and the dawning of the Renaissance, illuminated by magnificent scientific and artistic achievements and spectacular leaps of thought and imagination. Manchester’s narrative weaves together extraordinary figures, varied elements, and accomplishments of the period.

The nightmares began for William Manchester twenty-three years after World War II. In his dreams he lived with the recurring image of himself as a battle-weary youth "angrily demanding to know what had happened to the three decades since he had laid down his arms." To find out, Manchester visited those places in the Pacific where as a young Marine he fought the Japanese.

In this intensely powerful memoir, America''s preeminent biographer-historian, who has written so brilliantly about World War II in his acclaimed lives of General Douglas MacArthur (American Caesar) and Winston Churchill (The Last Lion), looks back at his own early life. He offers an unrivaled firsthand account of World War II in the Pacific: of what it looked like, sounded like, smelled like, and most of all, what it felt like to one who underwent all but the ultimate of its experiences.

This fine biography of H. L. Mencken tells of how, for better or worse, he rose to his unique position as comic genius and preeminent critic of American culture.

InDisturber of the Peace, one finds the facts of the stormy Mencken legend: his hectic and hilarious editorship with George Jean Nathan ofThe Smart Set, the memorable saga ofThe American Mercury, the famous Scopes "monkey trial" in Tennessee, and Mencken''s own trial in Boston when The American Mercurywas banned. Here is the story of a man whose massive power of invective inspired and infuriated his contemporaries and whose popularity and unpopularity mounted with the frenzied pace of the 1920s. Mencken sounded a loud, jarring note to a world governed by conformity and never hesitated to express his contempt for every kind of hypocrite, fake, and narrow-minded censor. Mencken also had a human side, which Manchester details—not just his rambunctious wit and pungent criticism but also his courtesy and hospitality, the warmth of his friendships, his support of many struggling writers, and his personal foibles and weaknesses. What emerges from this highly readable biography is a compelling portrait of an extraordinary man.

Originally published in 1951, this second edition includes a new introduction by the author and a new final chapter, "My Old Man," which recounts in moving terms his own experiences as a friend and prot├®g├® of Mencken in his later years.

"[Douglas MacArthur] was a great thundering paradox of a man, noble and ignoble, inspiring and outrageous, arrogant and shy, the best of men and the worst of men, the most protean, most ridiculous, and most sublime. No more baffling, exasperating soldier ever wore a uniform. Flamboyant, imperious, and apocalyptic, he carried the plumage of a flamingo, could not acknowledge errors, and tried to cover up his mistakes with sly, childish tricks. Yet he was also endowed with great personal charm, a will of iron, and a soaring intellect. Unquestionably he was the most gifted man-at-arms this nation has produced."—William Manchester

Virtually all Americans above a certain age hold strong opinions about Douglas MacArthur. They either worship him or despise him. And they are all wrong, because their premises are rooted in apocrypha. Now, one of our most outstanding writers, after a meticulous three-year examination of the record, presents his startling conclusions in this superb book. The narrative is gripping because the General''s life was fascinating. It is moving because he was a man of vision. It finally ends in tragedy because his character, though majestic, was tragically flawed.

Spanning the years 1940 to 1965, Defender of the Realm, the third volume of William Manchester’s The Last Lion, picks up shortly after Winston Churchill became prime minister—when his tiny island nation stood alone against the overwhelming might of Nazi Germany. The Churchill portrayed by Manchester and Reid is a man of indomitable courage, lightning-fast intellect, and an irresistible will to action. This volume brilliantly recounts how Churchill organized his nation’s military response and defense, compelled President Roosevelt to support America’s beleaguered cousins, and personified the “never surrender” ethos that helped the Allies win the war, while at the same time adapting himself and his country to the inevitable shift of world power from the British Empire to the United States.

More than twenty years in the making, The Last Lion presents a revelatory and unparalleled portrait of this brilliant, flawed, and dynamic leader. This is popular history at its most stirring.

Winston Churchill is perhaps the most important political figure of the twentieth century.

His great oratory and leadership during the Second World War were only part of his huge breadth of experience and achievement. Studying his life is a fascinating way to imbibe the history of his era and gain insight into key events that have shaped our time.

In political office at the end of WWI, he foresaw the folly of Versailles and feared what a crippled Germany would do to the balance of power. In his years in the political wilderness from 1931 to 1939, he alone of all British public men continually raised his voice against Hitler and his appeasers. For over fifty years, he was constantly involved in, and usually at the center of, the most important events of his age. It was, however, his obduracy on matters of principle, his fortitude in the face of opposition, and his perseverance in standing alone that defined him.

As a biographer, William Manchester is the standard by which all others are measured. And when a writer of his caliber is matched with a subject as colorful as Winston Churchill, look for results that are magisterial. This, the first in a three-volume biography, is a momentous piece of work.

This second volume in William Manchester’s three-volume biography of Winston Churchill challenges the assumption that Churchill’s finest hour was as a wartime leader. During the years 1932–1940, he was tested as few men are. Pursued by creditors (at one point he had to put up his home for sale), he remained solvent only by writing an extraordinary number of books and magazine articles. He was disowned by his own party, dismissed by the BBC and Fleet Street and the social and political establishments as a warmonger, and twice nearly lost his seat in Parliament. Churchill stood almost alone against Nazi aggression and the British and French pusillanimous policy of appeasement.

Manchester tracks with new insights this complex, fascinating history without ever losing sight of Churchill the man, a man whose vision was global and whose courage was boundless.