The End of the Beginning

Winston S. Churchill

Published by Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1943

This is the U.S. first edition, first printing of the third of Churchill's seven war speeches volumes. The End of the Beginning contains speeches throughout 1942. This year was a low point of the war, full of setbacks and disappointments across the globe for the British. Throughout the year Churchill's speeches conveyed sober, resolved, and eloquent defiance - with of course an occasional sparkle of Churchillian wit, even in the dark hours of the war. The title of this volume comes from Churchill's 10 November 1942 speech at the Lord Mayor's Day Luncheon in London at a time when fortune finally favored the British with victories in North Africa:"The Germans have received back again that measure of fire and steel which they have so often meted out to others. Now this is not the end.It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."Condition is very good in a very good dust jacket. The red cloth binding is square, clean, bright, and tight with sharp corners. The only defects of note are a bump to the upper rear joint and wrinkling at the spine ends. The contents remain bright with no previous ownership marks. A hint of spotting appears confined to the page edges and pastedown gutters. The dust jacket is highly complete, with only fractional loss at the spine ends and flap fold corners, and retains the original "$3.50" price on the upper front flap. The red jacket spine panel is only lightly sunned, the white print therein still clearly legible. The jacket shows general wear along the top edges and a few minor scuffs, but is nonetheless atypically clean. The jacket is protected beneath a clear, removable, archival cover.Few books are as emblematic of Churchill s literary and leadership gifts as his war speeches volumes. During his long public life, Winston Churchill played many roles worthy of note - Member of Parliament for more than half a century, soldier and war correspondent, author of scores of books, ardent social reformer, combative cold warrior, Nobel Prize winner, painter. But Churchill's preeminence as a historical figure owes most to his indispensable leadership during the Second World War, when his soaring and defiant oratory sustained his countrymen and inspired the free world. Of Churchill, Edward R. Murrow said: "He mobilized the English language and sent it into battle." When Churchill was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953, it was partly "…for brilliant oratory in defending exalted human values." Between 1941 and 1946, Churchill's war speeches were published in seven individual volumes in both British and U.S. editions. The U.S. first editions were generally published in smaller numbers and are considerably scarcer today than their British counterparts. Reference: Cohen A183.2.a, Woods/ICS A94(b.1), Langworth p.220. Seller Inventory # 007649

Bibliographic Details

Title: The End of the Beginning
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, Boston
Publication Date: 1943
Binding: Hardcover
Dust Jacket Condition: Dust Jacket Included
Edition: First edition, first printing.