Roy Jenkins

Captivating... I read every single one of the 749 pages of this long book with relish and fascination. It is a splendid tribute to one of the greatest British politicians and writers (not necessarily in that order) of the last century.

Peter Oborne, Daily Telegraph

Campbell is simply a master of the art... This book is effortlessly superior.

Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times

Marvellous... The highest praise I can give to John Campbell's biography is that Roy Jenkins would have been proud to have been its author.

Alan Johnson, Guardian

A splendidly thorough biography.

Craig Brown, Mail on Sunday

Campbell is an excellent biographer. He has a strong narrative grasp and knows how to use evidence. His books are not showy, but if you test their propositions, you almost always find them fair.

Charles Moore, Daily Telegraph

Wonderful... It is the well-rounded life of its subject that makes this book such an entertaining, as well as an instructive, read.

Rachel Sylvester, The Times

A riveting and vital contribution to an understanding of postwar British politics.

Matthew Engel, Financial Times

Stylish and absorbing.

David Marquand, New Statesman

One of the best political biographies you could hope to read.

Sunday Times

Superb.

Matthew d'Ancona, Daily Telegraph

A wonderful, readable book. Jenkins himself would have been proud to have produced a masterpiece of this calibre.

Leo McKinstry, Daily Express

The fact that, at the end of this long and thoughtful book, one ends up admiring and liking Jenkins more rather than less is a tribute to Campbell's skills as a biographer but even more to Jenkins's own personality and achievements.

Philip Ziegler, Spectator

Excellent.

Charles Moore, Spectator

Magnificent… As plump and benign as its subject.

A N Wilson, Evening Standard

Thoroughly researched… Commendably honest.

Simon Heffer, Literary Review

This biography is as substantial as its subject.

Shirley Williams, Tablet

An excellent new biography.

Spectator

A revealing, informative and entertaining biography of one of the 20th century’s most convivial and intelligent bon viveurs.

Sebastian Shakespeare, Tatler

A meticulous, authoritative work.

Robbie Millen, The Times

One of the very best political biographies this year… A biography of admiration, but not hagiography.

Keith Simpson, Total Politics

Jenkins himself would have been proud to have written such a masterful biography.

Alan Johnson MP, Radio Times

A page-turner of a biography, written with subtlety, clarity and considerable skill.

Alan Johnson, New Statesman

[Campbell’s] Roy Jenkins…is a towering achievement.

Alan Johnson, Spectator

My political book of the year.

Matthew d’Ancona, Evening Standard

[Campbell] provides a masterly picture of a complex man.

Philip Ziegler, Spectator

The year’s best conventional biography.

Roland White, Sunday Times

Campbell catches his subject as Jenkins caught Churchill.

Terry Philpot, Tablet

This book is a triumph and a must for anyone who wants to understand the turbulent politics of late 20th-century.

Gary Sheffield, BBC History Magazine

This is a political biography that doesn’t just appeal to political anoraks.

Robbie Millen, The Times

A wonderfully entertaining depiction of another political era.

Rachel Sylvester, The Times

A fascinating, brilliantly researched biography of a major politician.

Good Book Guide

Magnificent... A compelling account of a remarkable life

Observer

Campbell’s masterly biography is a triumph: beautifully written and never less than fascinating

5 stars, Daily Telegraph

a rich and well-crafted account of Jenkin’s life and career

Neil Robinson, Irish Examiner

magnificent… [Campbell] brings his subject to life in a way few would have thought possible.

Iain Dale