Release Date: February 25th, 2020
Genre(s): Non-fiction, History
Publisher: Crown
Pages: 464
Rating: 
.5
The Splendid and the Vile is Erik Larson’s newest non-fiction history release. It features World War II but specifically centers around Winston Churchill, his home life, and wartime happenings from his family’s perspective. This in-depth book features a variety of statistics, dialogues, and other details as time progresses chronologically.
I must admit while writing this review that I don’t read history books as often as I’d like, not am I well-versed on World War II aside from the timeline of most significant events. However, after reading Larson’s The Devil in the White City last year, a history and true crime book detailing what took place during Chicago’s World’s Fair, I knew I wanted to read more of his work.
Given that I’m not the biggest history buff, I can’t say how much information in this book exists in other books on the subject. However, I was thoroughly impressed when it came to the pure amount of detail that came with this book. Specifically, I was impressed with some of the survey data that was collected among U.K. residents regarding their day-to-day life during the air raids. There was a lot of information about how culture itself changed during the war, and how certain aspects once considered taboo started to become the norm. I’ve read a few historical fiction novels on World War II in the past, but cultural descriptions like these made me interested in seeking memoirs that might tell me more about people’s day-to-day during this time.
I did find though that the pros and cons of this book remain the same – there is such an incredible amount of detail, but so much that it becomes a bit overwhelming. The book continuously switches between what is going on in the streets of England and what is happening with Churchill and his family. This also includes the lives of people that worked very closely with him. And with all of these details on top of the progression of the war (and specifically airstrikes in England), there’s a lot to absorb.
All that being said, I spent a lot of time on this book to make sure I was understanding the timeline and all of the information this book offers. I do think that this book would have been much better for me had I known much more about World War II than the most significant events of the war. Additionally, having learned about the war from an American classroom, it may have been more difficult for me to keep track because I know more about the war from the perspective of America and when America got involved. I’d love to read The Splendid and the Vile again after reading a history book that tackles World War II from a global perspective. I still got some very good insights on what was presented in this book, but again, I’d love to revisit this book after reading others so I can get more out of it.
All in all, The Splendid and the Vile is an incredible in-depth book about World War II and the perspective of Winston Churchill and his decision-making and impacts throughout. I do still prefer The Devil in the White City, one of Larson’s other books, to this one. However, the amount of detail that was put into The Splendid and the Vile was incredible. I’m not sure how a World War II expert would rate this book in terms of content, but I found it very informative. I’d recommend it to those that are comfortable with the depth of information presented in books from this genre.
