In October 1899, the twenty-four-year-old Winston Churchill set sail from Southampton Docks for South Africa, where he was to cover the Boer War for the London Morning Post. The young Churchill's exploits on the North-West Frontier of India and in the Sudan had already won him a considerable following as an intrepid war correspondent, but for sheer audacity and excitement, nothing would rival his exploits in South Africa.
Scarcely two weeks after his arrival in Cape Town, Churchill found him-
self on a train, carrying out a reconnaisance mission in enemy-held territory.
The train was ambushed by a Boer patrol, and even though he was present only
as an observer, Churchill took charge, helping many of his companions to escape before he was captured. Taken as a prisoner of war to Pretoria, he managed to escape, quickly becoming the object of a massive manhunt. Churchill hid from his pursuers in a coal mine and was subsequently spirited across the border. He returned to the fray, participating in the battle of Spion Kop and witnessing the relief of Ladysmith, while enthralling his readers with vivid first-hand accounts of the war's progress.
Churchill's adventures in South Africa propelled him into the international arena, setting the stage for his political career; within three months of his return to Britain in 1900, he had become a Member of Parliament.
Celia Sandys, Churchill's granddaughter, retraced his footsteps, visiting campsites and battlefields and interviewing the descendants of those who crossed her grandfather's path-both friends and foes. The fascinating new details she discovered combine with the thrilling events of her grandfather's life to make Churchill Wanted Dead or Alive both a gripping adventure story and a unique insight into the early years of a man who would go on to become one of the world's great leaders.
CELIA SANDYS is a granddaughter of Sir Winston Churchill. Her mother
was Churchill's eldest daughter, Diana, and her father was Lord Duncan
Sandys, the former Cabinet Minister and member of his father-in-law's wartime government. She is married, has four children, and lives in Wiltshire, United Kingdom.
Industry Reviews
"A bestseller in the U.K., this portrait of Winston Churchill, written by his granddaughter, unapologetically presents the future prime minister as an action hero in the Boer War. It's rousing reading. Sandy's affection for her grandfather is obvious, but she shows enough of his grandiosity to maintain a reader's trust. . . . Sandys is fully aware of the extent to which her grandfather had a finger to the political winds during his exploits: he sought the limelight as aggressively as he chased adventure. Because of Sandys's brisk narrative, as well as their knowledge of the man Churchill later became, readers will not hold young Winston's ambition against him."--Publishers Weekly
-- (03/29/2013)
"A few years ago, Celia Sandys set herself a daunting task: Write something fresh and relevant about her famous grandfather, Winston Churchill. So far, she has succeeded. . . . In doing so, she is carrying on the family tradition: The Churchills have a rich and varied literary heritage, much of it focused on the family itself. . . . The flame-haired, thrice-married Celia became interested in writing about her grandfather, whom she called 'grandpapa, ' a few years ago when she found a treasure trove of his letters from ages 6 to 20, which had gone undiscovered by historians. . . . 'I decided to write a book, based on these letters, on his boyhood.' The result was 'From Winston with Live and Kisses: The Young Churchill, ' which revealed his lonely, introspective, sometimes miserable childhood. . . . Sandys planned next to write about her grandfather's young adult life as revealed through his letters. On a trip to South Africa, she encountered many people and places that recalled Churchill's career as a war correspondent in the Boer War. . . . Young Winston was captured by the Boers but escaped with a price on his head, hence the title of the lively book, 'Churchill Wanted Dead or Alive.' . . . glowing reviews of that stirring account with new detail--notable for its depiction of young Churchill, warts and all, as a very human character . . . ."--New York Times
-- (03/29/2013)
"During his nine-month stint in South Africa, Churchill, though officially classified as a noncombatant reporter, managed to send stirring dispatches to the Morning Post, engage in several bloody skirmishes with the enemy, be captured and incarcerated as a prisoner of war, and make a suitably sensationalized, yet nonetheless daring, escape from prison. Written in a lively narrative style, this affectionate biographical portrait of a very young, very spirited, and very enterprising Winston Churchill succeeds in foreshadowing the magnitude of the renown he eventually achieved. A rip-roaring good read chockfull of action, suspense, and history."--Booklist
-- (03/29/2013)
