Paul Johnson Books

Originally published in 1983 and named one of the Best Books of the Year by the New York Times, this bestselling history is now revised and updated and includes a new final chapter.

An examination of the way the matrix of the critically and subjected to examination.

This account of the Lakota Indians traces their rich and often surprising history from the early sixteenth to the early twenty-first century. Pekka Hamalainen explores the Lakotas' roots as marginal hunter-gatherers and reveals how they reinvented themselves twice: first as a river people who dominated the Missouri Valley, America's great commercial artery, and then -- in what was America's first sweeping westward expansion -- as a horse people who ruled supreme on the vast high plains. Red Cloud, Crazy Horse, and Sitting Bull are iconic figures in the American imagination, but in this book they emerge as something different: the architects of Lakota America, an expansive and enduring Indigenous regime that commanded human fates in the North American interior for generations.

A national bestseller, this brilliant 4000 year survey covers not only Jewish history but he impact of Jewish genius and imagination on the world. By the author of Modern Times: The World From the Twenties to the Eighties.

In his book INTELLECTUALS (1988) Paul Johnson asked whether intellectuals were morally fit to give advice to humanity (no, was the usual answer). In contrast, this book is about the creative and heroic side of outstanding individuals.There are many themes but no typical creator. Courage is always required, and self-confidence. Some never lacked recognition or sales, like Turner and Victor Hugo, Picasso and Durer. For others, like Bach or Jane Austen, the scale of their achievement was unrecognised in their lifetime. Luck can play a crucial part - as in Worsdworth's meeting with Coleridge and T.S. Eliot's with Ezra Pound (Eliot needed strong martinis too). Ruthlessness is important too - Mark Twain was not even his own pseudonym, he pinched it from another Mississippi-pilot-turned-writer who he savaged so severely he gave up writing. If there is no one typical creator, there is a common theme: putting excellence before any other consideration. Walt Disney and Christian Dior did this in their own way as surely as Chaucer or Shakespeare, William Morris or Turner.

HEROES ranges widely across human experience, achievement and character. The biblical heroes Deborah and Judith appear along with King David and Samson. Mary Queen of Scots is contrasted with Queen Elizabeth I. There are inspiring national leaders, military geniuses and warrior-queens. On a lighter note, Lady Pamela Berry represents the heroism of the hostess and Jane Carlyle the heroic wife. He ends with three figures who dismantled the Soviet empire: Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II.

From the “most celebrated and best-loved British historian in America” (Wall Street Journal), an elegant, concise, and revealing portrait of Winston Churchill In Churchill, eminent historian Paul Johnson offers a lively, succinct exploration of one of the most complex and fascinating personalities in history. Winston Churchill's hold on contemporary readers has never slackened, and Johnson’s analysis casts new light on his extraordinary life and times. Johnson illuminates the various phases of Churchill's career—from his adventures as a young cavalry officer in the service of the empire to his role as an elder statesman prophesying the advent of the Cold War—and shows how Churchill's immense adaptability and innate pugnacity made him a formidable leader for the better part of a century. Johnson's narration of Churchill's many triumphs and setbacks, rich with anecdote and quotation, illustrates the man's humor, resilience, courage, and eccentricity as no other biography before, and is sure to appeal to historians and general nonfiction readers alike.

"The creation of the United States of America is the greatest of all human adventures," begins Paul Johnson's remarkable new American history, a reinterpretation from the first settlements to the Clinton administration. This work covers all aspects of U.S. history—politics, economics, art, literature, society, and religion—focusing on the influential figures and ordinary people who shaped the nation. Utilizing letters, diaries, and conversations, Johnson aims to provide an authentic narrative. He presents fresh perspectives on key historical figures, including John Winthrop, Franklin, Washington, and Lincoln, while emphasizing the significance of religion and America's ties to England. The narrative explores the emergence of big business under Cleveland and Roosevelt, and reassesses the roles of Harding, Coolidge, and Truman, among others. Johnson's engaging style and sharp profiles make the history "compulsively readable." He examines America's journey from fragile beginnings through the struggles for independence, the challenges of slavery, and the nation's rise as a superpower. Contemporary issues such as racism, education, and political correctness are also discussed. Ultimately, Johnson portrays Americans as problem-solvers, suggesting that the nation's story is one of overcoming difficulties through intelligence, faith, and perseverance, with an optimistic view of its future. His interpretation is original, critical, and