The Second World War (6 vols)

The Second World War is Winston Churchill's formidable six-volume account of the conflict that defined the twentieth century, written from the unique vantage point of a head of state who shaped its course. Churchill received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953 largely on the strength of this work, which combines personal memoir, strategic analysis, and sweeping historical narrative with characteristic rhetorical brilliance. As Churchill himself reportedly quipped, 'History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it,' and the result is the definitive Allied account of the war.

Created during the early years of the Cold War, Churchill's history of the Second World War provided the Western democracies with a commanding narrative of their recent struggle and ultimate triumph. Writing from the perspective of Cold War Britain, Churchill shaped how an entire generation understood the war's causes, conduct, and consequences, producing a work that is at once invaluable historical document and masterful literary achievement.