The Fairfax
Library Book Discussion Group will meet Thursday, May 10th at 7 p.m. in the
meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our May book, Hero of the
Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape and the Making of Winston Churchill by
Candice Millard.
Discussion
questions are below.
Here are some
links for additional background and information:
Coming up, we
have the following book to look forward to reading:
Thurs. June
14th Pond by
Claire-Louise Bennett
Thanks for
reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.
Beth Bailey-Gates
Friends of
the Fairfax Library
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Hero of the Empire by Candice Millard
1. What were your first
impressions of Winston Churchill as a young man? Did you admire his
confidence and his “unshakable conviction that he was destined for greatness”?
2. Were you surprised to
learn that Churchill enlisted the services of a “palmist” to predict what the
future held for him?
3. In Chapter 7, we
learn the provenance of the iconic Burberry trench coat. The average life
expectancy of a horse during the Boer War was six weeks. What other facts
of this nature did you find most interesting or surprising?
4. “Nothing but being
shot at will ever teach men the art of using cover,” writes George Warrington
Steevens from Ladysmith (p. 121). Discuss how the Boer War transformed
British military strategy.
5. Class plays an
important role in Churchill’s exploits during his early life. How does
his status as a member of a wealthy, prominent family work for–and against–him?
6. What were your
impressions of Jennie Churchill? Did you think she was a modern woman
ahead of her time or an opportunist?
7. Did you find the
circumstances of Churchill’s escape from the Staats Model School foolhardy or
was Churchill simply taking advantage of what may have been his only chance to
escape?
8. Kidnapped, Treasure
Island, Plato’s Republic, Aristotle’s Politics, Decline
and Fall of the Roman Empire: Are there any books on Churchill’s
reading list that you would like to try?
9. Several famous names
make cameo appearances in the book, from Rudyard Kipling to Mahatma Gandhi.
Were you surprised by this intersection of history? Have you read other books,
either nonfiction or fiction, in which the lives of historical figures overlap
in unlikely ways or places?
10. What additional
thoughts did you have about apartheid and the fight for human rights and social
justice, later led by men like Nelson Mandela, after reading about the history
between the Boers and native Africans, both before and during the Boer War?
11. After Churchill
returned to England there was a controversy surrounding his escape, and he was
accused of intentionally leaving his friends behind. Do you think he had a
choice? Was he wrong to go on without them, or did he find himself in an
untenable situation?
