“A Certain Idea of France: The Life of De Gaulle” Boris Johnson

Few would begrudge Boris his break: he has lived a lifetime in the past year, having got divorced and remarried, had another child, almost died of covid-19 and struggled with the worst crisis since the second world war.

But Bagehot would nevertheless suggest adding a fourth book to his pile—Julian Jackson’s “A Certain Idea of France: The Life of De Gaulle”. 

De Gaulle regarded national pride as the only cure for national suicide. Mr Johnson has the same life-preserving instincts. He likes to think that he speaks for Middle England. He identifies Britain with “greatness” as naturally as the general identified France with “grandeur”. 

https://www.economist.com/britain/2020/08/15/what-boris-could-learn-from-de-gaulle