Overview

Prime Minister Gordon Brown explores the lives of eight outstanding twentieth-century figures, in order to better understand courage. These eight heroes are very different people, with very different strengths and frailties, but all share an extraordinary and inspirational courage that Brown celebrates in these fascinating and moving portraits.

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9780747593317

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'Trust me: this is a fine book' Spectator 'The book tells us as much about Brown's own personal journey as it does about the courage of those he describes ... very moving' Guardian 'His approach is refreshing ... readable and intelligent' Sunday Times 'I'm steeped in Brown style. It's inimitable, and it's all over Courage ... His writing reflects his character: a ferociously clever and studious man' PR Week

UK Prime Minister Brown (Moving Britain Forward: Selected Speeches, 1997-2006, 2006, etc.) considers eight political mavericks who fought for righteous social causes, often sacrificing their lives.Four of his subjects are of unquestioned global stature: Raoul Wallenberg, Martin Luther King Jr., Robert Kennedy and Nelson Mandela. Four, perhaps lesser known, quickly prove worthy of Brown's scholarship. Edith Cavell innovated nursing practices during World War I and helped many Allied prisoners escape from occupied Belgium; she was eventually court-martialed and shot. German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer resisted the Nazi regime. Cicely Saunders single-handedly upgraded standards of palliative care for the terminally ill and developed the hospice idea. Aung San Suu Kyi, under house arrest in Myanmar since 1989, won the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize for her advocacy of democracy and nonviolence. Occasionally, the book benefits from Brown's personal acquaintance with his subject. His affectionate profile of Mandela, for example, is full of refreshing insights into the South African leader. Other chapters - such as those covering Wallenberg, King and Kennedy - are not groundbreaking, but they do convey the author's sense of reverence and respect; readers learn as much about Brown's worldview as about the people he depicts. The generous inclusion of correspondence, first-person interviews and other primary-source materials invests each meticulous profile with an air of authenticity. Brown consistently demonstrates the lucid, unwavering, objective eye of a historian, detailing all the frustrations and errors of his subjects, whose character flaws he is unafraid to point out. His portraits do not sanctify sociopolitical icons; instead they celebrate ordinary men and women called to extraordinary feats in the service of causes that stirred their passion.Well-written and heartfelt - a worthy companion to its obvious inspiration, John F. Kennedy's Profiles in Courage (1956). (Kirkus Reviews)

Author Information

Gordon Brown was born (1951) and educated in Kirkcaldy. He studied at Edinburgh University from the age of sixteen and graduated with Master of Arts at nineteen with 1st Class Honours, later gaining a Doctorate of Philosophy. He was elected Rector of Edinburgh University by the student body and from 1972 to 1975 was Chairman of the University Court. From 1976 to 1980, he lectured at Edinburgh University and then Glasgow College of Technology, before taking up a post at Scottish TV. From 1983-1984 he was Chair of the Labour Party Scottish Council and in May 1983 became MP for Dunfermline East. He was Opposition spokesperson on Treasury and Economic Affairs (Shadow Chancellor) from 1992. With the election of the Labour government in May 1997, Gordon Brown became Chancellor of the Exchequer, and held the post for ten years, making him the longest serving Chancellor for 200 years. Following the resignation of Tony Blair, he became Prime Minister in June 2007. He is married to Sarah Macaulay and they have two sons.

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