Synopsis
The Long Recessional The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling
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About the Author
David Gilmour's books include the prize-winning biographies, Curzon and The Last Leopard: A Life of Giuseppe di Lampedusa. He is also the author of Cities of Spain, The Hungry Generations and several works on the politics of Spain and the Middle East. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a former Fellow of St Antony's College, Oxford, he is a regular contributor to the New York Review of Books. He lives in Edinburgh.
From Booklist
*Starred Review* For 50 years, Rudyard Kipling projected his political and social views in prose fiction and, more pointedly, in verse. He was a British imperial propagandist but also an artist who took no orders. As Gilmour presents him in a biography focused on his political life, but that cites and evaluates numerous poems and stories, noting their aesthetic qualities as well as their messages, Kipling was the greatest, because he was the most humane, British imperialist and also the empire's great, pessimistic prophet. His early working years in India convinced him that British rule there had to be paternal: guiding but not dominating, helping but not exploiting native peoples. The British in South Africa had similar duties, he thought, and needed also to restrain the Boers, whom he warned would establish a racist regime: apartheid. He despised liberals and socialists because he believed they would dismantle the empire, leaving India to be torn asunder by contending Hindus and Muslims--another accurate forecast. He undermined his own effectiveness with his ideological purity and permanent grudges. Still, as Gilmour makes abundantly clear, he was a major player in the affairs of the mightiest power on Earth, which lost its potency in tandem with his loss of practical influence. A remarkable man, a remarkable book. Ray Olson
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The Long Recessional: The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling
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John Murray Press, United Kingdom, London, 2002
ISBN 10: 0719555396
ISBN 13: 9780719555398
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Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Rudyard Kipling was a unique figure in British history, a great writer and at the same time a great imperial icon. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature and added more phrases to the language than any man since Shakespeare, whilst his poems incarnated an era for millions of people who did not normally read poetry. A child of the Victorian age of imperial self-confidence, Kipling lived to see the rise of Hitler threaten his country's existence. The laureate of the Empire at its apogee, he foresaw that its demise would soon follow his death. His great poem Recessional celebrated Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897; his last poems warned of the dangers of Nazism. The trajectory of his life matched the trajectory of the British Empire from its zenith to its final decades. He himself was transformed from the apostle of success to the prophet of national decline, a Jeremiah warning of the dangers that successive governments refused to face. While previous studies of Kipling have concentrated on his writing and on his domestic life, this book studies his public role and his influence on the way Britons saw both themselves and their empire.Based on extensive research in Britain and in the under-explored archives of the US, David Gilmour has produced a study of a man who embodied the spirit of his country a hundred years ago as closely as Shakespeare had done 300 years earlier. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR001909300
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. The Long Recessional: The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. . Seller Inventory # 7719-9780719555398
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The long recessional : the imperial life of Rudyard Kipling / David Gilmour
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London : John Murray, 2002
ISBN 10: 0719555396
ISBN 13: 9780719555398
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First Edition. Near fine cloth copy in a very good if slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust-wrapper. Remains particularly well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Physical description: xii, 351 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, portraits, maps ; 24 cm. Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Subjects: Kipling, Rudyard 1865-1936; Kipling, Rudyard 1865-1936 Contributions in politics; Kipling, Rudyard 1865-1936 ; Biography; Kipling, Rudyard, 1865-1936 Late Victorian period English literature ; Biography; Kipling, Rudyard; Biography; Great Britain Colonies History; India Imperialism in literature; Great Britain Colonies. 3 Kg. Seller Inventory # 413727
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The long recessional : the imperial life of Rudyard Kipling
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ISBN 10: 0719555396
ISBN 13: 9780719555398
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1st edition. Near fine cloth copy in a near-fine, very slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust-wrapper. Remains particularly well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Physical description: xii, 351 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, portraits, maps ; 25 cm. Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Subjects: Kipling, Rudyard 1865-1936; Biography; Contributions in politics; Political and social views; Colonies History.India Imperialism in literature. 3 Kg. Seller Inventory # 420885
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The long recessional : the imperial life of Rudyard Kipling / David Gilmour
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Reprint. Near fine cloth copy in a near fine, very slightly edge-bumped and dust-dulled dust-wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains well-preserved overall. Physical description; xii, 351 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, portraits, maps ; 25 cm. Notes; Includes bibliographical references and index. Subjects; Kipling, Rudyard (1865-1936) Biography. Kipling, Rudyard (1865-1936) Contributions in politics. Kipling, Rudyard (1865-1936) Political and social views. Authors English 19th-20th century Biography. Great Britain Colonies History. India Imperialism in literature. 3 Kg. Seller Inventory # 448731