Margaret Thatcher: From Grantham to the Falklands

Book excerpt: With unequaled authority and dramatic detail, the first volume of Charles Moore's authorized biography of Margaret Thatcher reveals as never before the early life, rise to power, and initial period as prime minister of the woman who transformed Britain and the world in the late twentieth century. Moore illuminates Thatcher's youth--her relationship with her parents and early romantic attachments, including her courtship and marriage to Denis Thatcher--moving forward to the determination and boldness that marked even the very beginning of her political career. His account of her political relationship with Ronald Reagan is riveting. Throughout Moore explores in compelling detail the obstacles and indignities that Thatcher encountered as a woman in what was still overwhelmingly a man's world. A clear-eyed, fair account, conveying Thatcher's remarkable talents and sometimes infuriating qualities, Moore's portrait enlivens the woman who was prime minister for more than a decade (1979-1990), re-creating the circumstances and experiences that shaped one of the most significant world leaders of the postwar era.