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A veteran book reviewer was once asked whether he had read a certain book. No, he replied, “but I reviewed it.” That reviewer was not John Chamberlain. Prolific as he was, he took time to read the books.

Turnabout Years (Jameson Books, 295 pp., $12.95), a collection of Chamberlain’s essays written between 1950 and 1952, attests to that. His writing is not only erudite and comprehensive; it’s always precise. “Here in a nutshell,” writes Priscilla Buckley in her introduction, “is the intellectual story of America in the first half of this century”—a period that witnessed two world wars, a cold war, and the emergence of an ideology that attempted to end history itself. This collection captures only a few brilliant moments in the luminous life of the author, who, after The Freeman, went on to become a daily book reviewer for the New York Times and editor at Forbes and Barron’s. He contributed greatly and generously as a Senior Editor at national REVIEW.

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About the Author

Geoffrey Morris

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A veteran book reviewer was once asked whether he had read a certain book. No, he replied, “but I reviewed it.” That reviewer was not John Chamberlain. Prolific as he was, he took time to read the books.

Turnabout Years (Jameson Books, 295 pp., $12.95), a collection of Chamberlain’s essays written between 1950 and 1952, attests to that. His writing is not only erudite and comprehensive; it’s always precise. “Here in a nutshell,” writes Priscilla Buckley in her introduction, “is the intellectual story of America in the first half of this century”—a period that witnessed two world wars, a cold war, and the emergence of an ideology that attempted to end history itself. This collection captures only a few brilliant moments in the luminous life of the author, who, after The Freeman, went on to become a daily book reviewer for the New York Times and editor at Forbes and Barron’s. He contributed greatly and generously as a Senior Editor at national REVIEW.