Nelson

Kent: Chatham Publishing, 2001. This from the dusterapper: " For C S Forester, a young novelist with a love of the sea, whose Hornblower novels would be read by millions, the subject of Nelson must have been irresistible. A national hero during his own time, whose heroic status grew even further after his death, Nelson was also a deeply contradictory character whose often mysterious motivation represents a challenge to any biographer. In Forester, he found one who was both perceptive and sympathetic. Without avoiding Nelson's flaws, Forester delineates a character he obviously liked, one whose personal side is always observable, and who was so much more attractive than his two great contemporaries, Wellington and Napoleon. Forester brilliantly brings the man alive and, as a student of human nature, is able to understand the contradictions and peculiarities of his character - his apparent dislike of the sea, his fatalism and his strong religious sentiment, his poisonous hatred of Frenchmen and all things French, his devout belief in the institution of the monarchy and his perception of republicans as damnable atheists, his surprising knowledge of human nature despite his limited range of experience, his sound judgment which was, however, to become clouded by his attachment to Emma Hamilton. What comes across most strongly, though, is the sheer force and vigour of his personality. Forester writes that biography tends to be about people who have achieved great things and that this gives us a warped sense of humanity. Nelson's achievements, so well described here, were indeed extraordinary but, through his humanity, he is a man to whom the modern reader can easily relate. First published in 1929, this biography remains the most readable and gripping introduction to Britain's most popular naval hero. This is real-life Hornblower. jacket illustration: Oil sketch of Nelson by Sir William Beechey, extended at top by computer graphics. (Courtesy National Portrait Gallery, London)". 232 pages, with the original illustrations of the 1929 edition, 5.5 X 8.76 inches, Near fine book in a near fine dustwrapper.. Reprint.