The Fringes of Power: 10 Downing Street Diaries, 1939-1955

Some good information contained in this book, but not much. If you want to know who is he second cousin of this count, or the sister of that Duke, this is the book for you. Very slim on details. I kept waiting for the revelations of hows and whys of the decisions that were made during and after WW2. Instead there was nothing but generalities and references. Here is an example. Do you remember the movie A Bridge Too Far ? Well, this operation was a disaster pushed on the Allies by Churchill and more importantly Monty. Well, the diary entry in the book for the days after the battle, Colville states matter of factly that the "5th Airborne Brigade has been wiped out". Thats it! I would expect that private secretary to the PM would have more details on pre and post discussions. Read at your own risk.