In Churchill's Military Histories: A Rhetorical Study, Algis Valiunas breaks new ground by examining not only Churchill's works themselves, but his intentions in writing them. In clear and eloquent prose, Valiunas shows that Churchill's many volumes of military history, written throughout his lifetime, teach readers the prudence needed for self government in a democratic age. Valiunas argues that the defining feature of Churchill's histories is the way in which they maintain an aristocratic perspective on democratic times, without losing their democratic sympathies. Churchill's histories are largely tales of war, and they delineate the actions of great captains and political men, but they also honor the heroism of ordinary men, individually and in the mass. Valiunas offers readers an engaging interpretation of Churchill's military histories and demonstrates that Churchill knew war as few men do. From the cavalry charge at Omdurman to the defeat of Hitler, Churchill's achievements as a soldier and statesman were equaled only by his powers as a historian.

"A valuable book about Churchill's literary achievement. An excellent inroduction to the great man's moving and detailed accounts of wars ranging from the Norman Conquest to World War II." - National Review

"Digging beneath Churchill's rolling prose, Valiunas shows us a first-class mind pondering the lessons that warfare teaches. With Churchill's Military Histories, Algis Valiunas shows that we cannot grasp Churchill the historical figure without an understanding of Churchill the historian." - The Weekly Standard

"Both a relic of the past era and a spokesman to this one." - The New York Times

"[Valiunas] writes in a fluid and eloquent style. His prose is clear and understandable. For anyone interested in the facts about Churchill's literary life, he or she can get a pretty good survey from the Valiunas book." - H-Net: Humanities and Social Science Reviews Online