Product Description

Here, Thatcher writes about her personal life, the formation of her character and values, and the training and experiences which led to her 1979 election victory.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #276559 in Books
• Published on: 1996-07-25
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 672 pages

Customer Reviews

A road less travelled...
In this book, the prequel to her more successful (and essentially more interesting) volume entitled 'The Downing Street Years', Margaret Thatcher gives us a glimpse into her life, and the events and people who shaped her, basically, who made her who she is.

You'll learn about her time at university, her early days in politics from a personal standpoint (for instance, she used to do her own ironing to press dresses immediately before going out, as she couldn't afford to have them pressed, and other small details like this abound), early days in the government and then leading up to the time in opposition prior to the elections of 1979.

Thatcher also adds a postscript to this book, completed after the account of her time as Prime Minister, in which she gives her prescriptions for a better Britain and Europe (in some ways, she might agree that her stance on the Eurocurrency is a la Nancy Reagan, i.e., 'Just say No!'). She has a few swipes at John Major, the man she helped into power, perhaps hoping to be able to be an active and effective agent from behind the scenes. Major retaliates a bit in his own autobiography.

In all, unless you're REALLY into British politics or Thatcher personally, this book could be easily missed. Read 'The Downing Street Years', and, as I've seen you can often pick this book up for some bargain-bin price, buy it so as to have the set. And you might peruse a chapter here and there.

It does have a good style of writing, but goes on quite a bit. Historians will appreciate it, but I often wonder if politicians think that most will actually read through all this material, considering they are invariably written when the author is off the centre stage?

A wide-ranging synthesis of Thatcher's political aims
The Path to Power is both a recollection by the author of her political formation and inspiration, and a forward-looking synthesis of her political, social, and economic thought. Her chapter on economic policy ('The Free Enterprise Revolution') offers a global perspective on contemporary trends and developments, and evinces a remarkable breadth of vision and clarity of thought. The reader quickly becomes immersed in a vivid and lucid account of a past which is inexorably moving forwards and seeking to shape the future. Shot through with humour and honesty, The Path to Power introduces the reader to a woman of sense and sensibility who never ceases to create and to achieve.

A road less travelled...
In this book, the prequel to her more successful (and essentially more interesting) volume entitled 'The Downing Street Years', Margaret Thatcher gives us a glimpse into her life, and the events and people who shaped her, basically, who made her who she is.

One learns about her time at university, her early days in politics from a personal standpoint (for instance, she used to do her own ironing to press dresses immediately before going out, as she couldn't afford to have them pressed, and other small details like this abound), early days in the government and then leading up to the time in opposition prior to the elections of 1979.

Thatcher also adds a postscript to this book, completed after the account of her time as Prime Minister, in which she gives her prescriptions for a better Britain and Europe (in some ways, she might agree that her stance on the Eurocurrency is a la Nancy Reagan, i.e., 'Just say No!'). She has a few swipes at John Major, the man she helped into power, perhaps hoping to be able to be an active and effective agent from behind the scenes. Major retaliates a bit in his own autobiography.

In all, unless one is really into British politics or Thatcher personally, this book could be easily missed. Read 'The Downing Street Years', and, as I've seen once can often pick this book up for some bargain-bin price, buy it so as to have the set. And one might peruse a chapter here and there.

It does have a good style of writing, but goes on quite a bit. Historians will appreciate it, but I often wonder if politicians think that most will actually read through all this material, considering they are invariably written when the author is off the centre stage?