The Course of My Life: Edward Heath's Autobiography

His opposition to recent Conservative leaders is less the personal pique sometimes alleged than a determination not to see his legacy destroyed. His resolution not to let the Eurosceptics rewrite history sometimes bogs his story down in repetitive score-settling; given the charge of disloyalty so often made against him, it is legitimate that he establish his credentials. At the book's occasional best, he shows a dry humour and an unexpected sense of his own absurdity; there are some surprising vignettes as well, like Fidel Castro drunkenly ranting about his hero- worship of Winston Churchill, and Enoch Powell promising to break an NHS strike by importing Jamaican nurses. --Roz Kaveney

Reader Reviews:

Not always well tempered (0/0 people found this helpful)

There seems to be a rule: the worse the politician the better the memoirs. Heath's aren't bad. He was an odd figure. Chosen as Tory leader to rival the modern Wilson style, he proved to be an awkward, lonely and rather inflexible Prime Minister. His Premiership is often judged a failure. This book doesn't reveal much of his emotional life. He confesses that "I am told I do not always find it easy to express my appreciation of people to their faces." Otherwise the private man remains just that.

And yet this book goes a long way to rescue his reputation. Heath goes back earlier than I had realised. His Europeanism was sincerely and profoundly rooted in 1940's wartime duty as an artillery commander in the allied invasion of Germany. As Tory Chief Whip in the 1950's he held his party together during the Suez debacle and emerged with honour (unlike Prime Minster Eden, here described telling his cabinet secretary to burn incriminating documents). Heath grappled early with deep and intractable issues, especially Britain's long term economic decline, immigration, Powell, Ulster (the IRA bombed his home) and above all unruly and over-wheening trade union power. Long before there was any sort of consensus about how to deal with them (the Thatcher/Blair generation's achievement) Heath's old fashioned Butler/Macmillan one-nation Toryism simply did not measure up to the awfulness of trying to govern Britain in the 1970's.

Heath's Europeanism never falters and reflects a very English pragmtatism. On the vexed issue of losing sovreignty to Europe Heath relies on the simple formula that we are pooling, not surrendering it. On the Federal question he calls the EU "sui generis", neither free trade area nor super state in waiting, never imitated and always different to any abstract theory or model.

Heath's book has a few gems which enliven a sometimes not lively narrative. Visiting Soviet leaders Khrushchev and Bulganin could not grasp Heath's explanation of what he did as a whip ("How do you mean, persuade them to support you? Surely you just tell them to?")

Perhaps two moments define the man. Having achieved his poltical dream of actually getting the UK into the EU, this classless moderniser turns his back on the burgeoning celebrations, retires alone to his solitary room at Number Ten where he gather strength by playing a Bach prelude from the Well-Tempered Clavier on his clavichord. The other, 1968 and he quotes his old enemy Enoch Powell as Health Minister saying in the cabinet room that there was no need to cede a nurses' pay claim because " I can bring in all the nurses we need from the west Indies." Game set and match there, Enoch. Overall not an easy read; but then not an easy man.

Very interesting read, and far better than expected (0/0 people found this helpful)

I expected this book to be a winge... why the press treated Heath unfairly, why Margaret Thatcher did it all wrong by not listening to Uncle Ted, why Saddam Hussein is actually a very nice chap etc.. and yet I finished the book in absolute admiration for the longest serving MP in Parliament.

Edward Heath paints a fairly honest view of his life, of his achievements and regrets as a politician, of his interests outside of politics, notably music and sailing. He writes openly and honestly of his distain for Margaret Thatcher and regardless of the reader's opinion on whether he is right or not, I felt as a reader he was being honest with what his feelings were.

Heath also reflects fairly openly on where his failures as Prime Minster were, often with the apparent view that it would have been the same for anyone else in his position, but nonetheless it is a reflection. He paints himself as an interesting combination of a man of absolute principle as well as a very stubborn man.

Most enjoyable for me in his book though is his explanation and nurturing of his long-standing belief in his own political views shown throughout the book as well as his views of Macmillan, Eden, and of course Thatcher and Major. A cynic might argue that his views are biased in his favour... but that's only fair, they were his views after all.

A valuable insider's view of British politics (1/3 people found this helpful)

A fascinating insight into the mechanisms of a political genius. Heath's individual and honest style harks back to an age when British politics was a fascinating and open political battleground rather than the stagemanaged posturing served up today. This book will appeal to Westminster junkies from acroos the political spectrum. At times during the excesses of the Thatcher government Heath spoke with an honesty and openess more harmful to her powerbase than Neil Kinoock's opposition. It took the rest of the party a further eleven years to concur with his reservations.

Intersting structure but useful all the same. (2/3 people found this helpful)

I felt that Sir Edward's book, although a welcome addition to the shelves of any student of politics or modern history, is written in a way that is poorly organised. Leaving the reader slightly curious at his unusual style of writing, it still contains some very useful chapters that kept me reading. Heath's premiership, was an important one for the UK as it lead us into the EEC and brought about the clash with the unions. The book deals with the complex issue of the original European negotiations and with his role as Chief Whip in the Suez Crisis of 1956. It is worth buying to read his views on how the crisis could have thrown the party into opposition. When reading the earlier chapters readers can appreciate fully quite how long Sir Edward's career and involvement in politics has been. His involvement after his premiership is considerable and covers many areas. Although I have read Heath's book a better suggestion is John Campbell's 'Edward Heath A Biography' which gives a good account of the key elements with a better structure and is much easier to read. I didn't find 'The course of my Life' an easy book to read at all.

Great insight into the mind of a gentleman (3/3 people found this helpful)

From start to finish I was engrossed by the charm of a man whom has been ridiculed by most of the Britsh press and Thatcher's chronies. Admits his frailties, but has kept to what he has thought right, not always what you find in some people in the House. A truly, truly great read.

The Course of My Life: Edward Heath's Autobiography

Edward Heath

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