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OverviewTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND TIMES BEST BOOK OF 2022 Power. Privilege. Parties. It's a very small world at the top. 'Brilliant ... traces Brexit back to the debating chambers of the Oxford Union in the 1980s' James O'Brien 'A searing onslaught on the smirking Oxford insinuation that politics is all just a game. It isn't. It matters' Matthew Parris 'A sparkling firework of a book' Lynn Barber, Spectator 'Exquisite and depressing in equal measure' Matthew Syed, Sunday Times Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, David Cameron, George Osborne, Theresa May, Dominic Cummings, Daniel Hannan, Jacob Rees-Mogg: Whitehall is swarming with old Oxonians. They debated each other in tutorials, ran against each other in student elections, and attended the same balls and black tie dinners. They aren't just colleagues - they are peers, rivals, friends. And, when they walked out of the world of student debates onto the national stage, they brought their university politics with them. Eleven of the fifteen postwar British prime ministers went to Oxford. In Chums, Simon Kuper traces how the rarefied and privileged atmosphere of this narrowest of talent pools - and the friendships and worldviews it created - shaped modern Britain. A damning look at the university clique-turned-Commons majority that will blow the doors of Westminster wide open and change the way you look at our democracy forever. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Simon KuperPublisher: Profile Books Ltd Imprint: Profile Books Ltd Edition: Main Dimensions: Width: 12.80cm , Height: 1.80cm , Length: 19.60cm Weight: 0.209kg ISBN: 9781788167390ISBN 10: 1788167392 Pages: 256 Publication Date: 30 March 2023 Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , General/trade , Tertiary & Higher Education , Professional & Vocational Format: Paperback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: Out of stock  The supplier is temporarily out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you on backorder and shipped when it becomes available. Table of ContentsReviewsA fascinating book ... his prose will be ticking along quite amiably, then all of a sudden some toff is on the floor with a knife in his back... Altogether, the picture he draws is of a nation with a decadent and deeply unprofessional ruling class, a diagnosis with which it is impossible to disagree. And, while Oxford University may not be the only reason for the dim, entitled and chummy flippancy that curses us, it does seem to be the main one. You cannot help but wonder in turn how much better off we might be if the bloody place had never existed, or at least if all these bloody people had gone somewhere else. Also, just so you know, I went to Cambridge -- Hugo Rifkind * Times * Praise for The Happy Traitor: Kuper provides a different and valuable perspective, humane and informative -- John Le Carre Truly enthralling ... a deeply human read, wonderfully written, on the foibles of a fascinating, flawed, treacherous and sort of likeable character -- Philippe Sands An enjoyable and lively retelling of a story now largely forgotten ... Blake's [name] has largely faded from the public consciousness ... Simon Kuper's new biography aims to set that right * FT * A clear and credible account of [a] flawed and enigmatic subject ... The most illuminating book yet written about the spy and his defection to the Soviet Union * Guardian * The most comprehensive and insightful biography to date -- Ben Macintyre A searing onslaught on the smirking Oxford insinuation that politics is all just a game. It isn't. It matters -- Matthew Parris A gripping read ... exquisite and depressing in equal measure -- Matthew Syed * Sunday Times * A sparkling firework of a book -- Lynn Barber * Spectator * Incisive, insightful and timely -- Richard Beard * New Statesman * A penetrating analysis of the connections that enabled an incestuous university network to dominate Westminster and give birth to Brexit ... perceptive and full of surprises -- Tim Adams * Observer * A brilliant book -- John Harris * Guardian Weekly Politics podcast * Fascinating ... The picture Kuper draws is of a nation with a decadent and deeply unprofessional ruling class, a diagnosis with which it is impossible to disagree -- Hugo Rifkind * Times * Immensely entertaining ... a tremendous romp jam-packed with delicious indiscretions -- Tim Luckhurst * Daily Mail * Praise for The Happy Traitor: Kuper provides a different and valuable perspective, humane and informative -- John Le Carre Truly enthralling ... a deeply human read, wonderfully written, on the foibles of a fascinating, flawed, treacherous and sort of likeable character -- Philippe Sands The most comprehensive and insightful biography to date -- Ben Macintyre A searing onslaught on the smirking Oxford insinuation that politics is all just a game. It isn't. It matters -- Matthew Parris A gripping read ... exquisite and depressing in equal measure -- Matthew Syed * Sunday Times * A sparkling firework of a book -- Lynn Barber * Spectator * Incisive, insightful and timely -- Richard Beard * New Statesman * Fascinating ... The picture Kuper draws is of a nation with a decadent and deeply unprofessional ruling class, a diagnosis with which it is impossible to disagree -- Hugo Rifkind * Times * Immensely entertaining ... a tremendous romp jam-packed with delicious indiscretions -- Tim Luckhurst * Daily Mail * A brilliant book -- John Harris * Guardian Weekly Politics podcast * A penetrating analysis of the connections that enabled an incestuous university network to dominate Westminster and give birth to Brexit ... perceptive and full of surprises -- Tim Adams * Observer * Johnson, Cameron, Rees-Mogg, Gove and Cummings all feature in this look at the hidden depths of our current political establishment and its inextricable link to Eton and, in particular, Oxford University -- 50 Best Books for Summer 2022 * Sunday Times * Shows how the culture of Oxford decisively influenced the tone of British politics and led to Brexit. Brilliantly written, it gripped me -- Paschal Donohoe * Irish Times * Kuper is alert to the deficiencies of the Oxford Union style, the tendency to substitute some glib debating point for hard-headed analysis ... Engagingly brief with delightful details -- Andrew Gimson * Conservative Home * Intellectually bracing ... a deep dive into the culture of the upper-crust public schools and university that produced ten of the UK's 15 post-war prime ministers -- Andrew Lynch * Business Post * Elegant, witty, economical ... it is absurd how much influence this tiny, moneyed circle has been able to wield, and deeply depressing -- Zoe Williams * TLS * Chums is not just about the smallness of Britain's privileged elite or the early advantages it enjoys. Simon Kuper goes further ... to critique a system that attaches more importance to winning debates than shaping policy -- Mike Phipps * Labour Hub * Praise for The Happy Traitor: Kuper provides a different and valuable perspective, humane and informative -- John Le Carre Truly enthralling ... a deeply human read, wonderfully written, on the foibles of a fascinating, flawed, treacherous and sort of likeable character -- Philippe Sands The most comprehensive and insightful biography to date -- Ben Macintyre Author InformationSimon Kuper is an author and Financial Times journalist, born in Uganda and raised around the world. An Oxford graduate, he later attended Harvard as a Kennedy Scholar. He has written for the Observer, The Times and Guardian, and is also the author of The Happy Traitor. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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