Reviews
'Admirable book ... They write clearly, sometimes wittily, and without academic jargon. They are masters of their material. They declare their sympathy for the effort of the Gang of Four to reoganise British politics, but this sympathy makes much of their comment particularly damning. Alongthe way they unearth nuggets of new fact ... one cannot help wondering at the sheer massiveness of their effort ... In this book the details, the documents, the late-night sessions, the ashen faces, the passionate tears, the farcical press conferences are described with a thoroughness worthy of asummit between Reagan and Gorbachev.'Daily Telegraph, "British political science at its best, combining intimate knowledge of the players with a firm grasp of the numbers, all gracefully and thoughtfully presented."--Choice"There is scarcely a serious student of contemporary British politics, on either side of the Atlantic, who will fail to enjoy and profit intellectually from reading this book. Exhaustively researched, intelligently and cogently written and effectively organized, SDP is unquestionably the definitive study to date of the political party that provocatively vowed, upon its launch only a short decade and a half ago, to "break the mould" of postwar British politics."--British Politics Group Newsletter, 'A clear and witty appraisal of the Gang of Four ... admirable book ... Our two professors really go to town in this history of the SDP. They write clearly, sometimes wittily, and without academic jargon. They are masters of their material. They declare their sympathy for the effort of theGang of Four to reorganise British politics, but this sympathy makes much of their comment particularly damning. Along the way they unearth nuggets of new fact ... Despite the skill of the professors one cannot help wondering at the sheer massiveness of their effort ... In this book the details,the late-night sessions, the ashen faces, the passionate tears, the farcical press conference are described with a thoroughness worthy of a summit between Reagan and Gorbachev.'Douglas Hurd, The Daily Telegraph, 'This brilliant history - definitively researched, graced with wit, insight and countless pungent anecdotes - tells of an attempt to break away from bitterly personalised politics which foundered because it was almost from the start bedevilled by bitterly personlised politics.'Gerald Kaufman, Sunday Telegraph, "British political science at its best, combining intimate knowledge of the players with a firm grasp of the numbers, all gracefully and thoughtfully presented."--Choice "There is scarcely a serious student of contemporary British politics, on either side of the Atlantic, who will fail to enjoy and profit intellectually from reading this book. Exhaustively researched, intelligently and cogently written and effectively organized, SDP is unquestionably the definitive study to date of the political party that provocatively vowed, upon its launch only a short decade and a half ago, to "break the mould" of postwar British politics."--British Politics Group Newsletter, 'Brilliant history - definitively researched, graced with wit, insight and countless pungent anecdotes.'Sunday Telegraph, Our two professors ... write clearly, sometimes wittily and without academic jargon. They are masters of their material., 'This brilliant history - definitively researched, graced with wit, insight and countless pungent anecdotes - tells of an attempt to break away from bitterly personal ised politics which foundered because it was almost frm the start bedevilled by bitterly personlised politics.'Gerald Kaufman, Sunday Telegraph, 'Any student of British politics must read this book. Here is the history of the Social Democratic Party ... No scholar of British politics need feel impelled to write such a book again ... it is a cracking good story that Crewe and King have to tell.'Financial Times, It is British political science at its best, combining intimate knowledge of the players with a firm grasp of the numbers, all gracefully and thoughtfully presented., 'Professors Crewe and King have produced a masterpiece of contemporary history. They marshal complex arguments and masses of detail with the art that conceals art. Their narrative sweeps forward with captivating energy and style, and bristles with mordant phrases ... Above all, Crewe andKing analyse the complex interplay between personality, belief and context - the key to any political story - with a marvellous mixture of precision and empathy ... For once, the overworked adjective 'definitive' is an understatement ... I cannot believe that any future historian will displace thisaccount, and I doubt if anyone will be fool enough to try.'David Marquand, Observer, 'Ivor Crewe and Anthony King have written what will be for long the definitive account of the rise and fall of the SDP. They do not just analyse what went wrong but they also offer an absorbing narrative of the party's tortured disintegration with vivid character sketches of the Gang ofFour.'Peter Riddell, The Times, 'The book brings alive the self-absorbed world of the SDP, in its final days like "a small country's government in exile".'Peter Riddell, The Times, "British political science at its best, combining intimate knowledge of the players with a firm grasp of the numbers, all gracefully and thoughtfully presented."-- Choice "There is scarcely a serious student of contemporary British politics, on either side of the Atlantic, who will fail to enjoy and profit intellectually from reading this book. Exhaustively researched, intelligently and cogently written and effectively organized, SDP is unquestionably the definitive study to date of the political party that provocatively vowed, upon its launch only a short decade and a half ago, to "break the mould" of postwar British politics."-- British Politics Group Newsletter, 'Ivor Crewe and Anthony King have written what will be for long the definitive account of the rise and fall of the SDP. They do not just analyse what went wrong but they also offer an absorbing narrative of the party's tortured disintegration with vivid character sketches of the Gang of Four.'Peter Riddell, The Times, This brilliant history - definitively researched, graced with wit, insight and countless pungent anecdotes, 'a clear and witty appraisal of the Gang of Four ... admirable book ... Our two professors really go to town in this history of the SDP. They write clearly, sometimes wittily, and without academic jargon. They are masters of their material. They declare their sympathy for the effort of theGang of Four to reorganise British politics, but this sympathy makes much of their comment particularly damning. Along the way they unearth nuggets of new fact ... Despite the skill of the professors one cannot help wondering at the sheer massiveness of their effort ... In this book the details,the late-night sessions, the ashen faces, the passionate tears, the farcical press conference are described with a thoroughness worthy of a summit between Reagan and Gorbachev.'Douglas Hurd, The Daily Telegraph, "British political science at its best, combining intimate knowledge of the players with a firm grasp of the numbers, all gracefully and thoughtfully presented."--Choice "There is scarcely a serious student of contemporary British politics, on either side of the Atlantic, who will fail to enjoy and profit intellectually from reading this book. Exhaustively researched, intelligently and cogently written and effectively organized,SDPis unquestionably the definitive study to date of the political party that provocatively vowed, upon its launch only a short decade and a half ago, to "break the mould" of postwar British politics."--British Politics Group Newsletter, 'impressive, thorough and thoughtful ... full of fascinating personal incident and political insight ... Their account is rich and detailed combining careful analysis of intricate personal and institutional politics with shrewd sociological observation ... Crewe and King have performed amighty task and their book is a mine of data on the politics of the Eighties ... Given Crewe and King's own role in the SDP's genesis, it was not doubt fitting that the SDP, on its deathbed, donated its archives to the University of Essex, where Crewe and King have exploited them. They have done soto such effect that all who study British politics are in their debt.'R. W. Johnson, London Review of Books
