Whilst some of you will want to take some trashy fiction to the beach as you get away for some sun this month, I don't doubt that some ConHome readers will want to take the time to catch up on some political reading while they're away.
And one book which fits into the latter category is Nicholas Jones' Campaign 2010: The Making of the Prime Minister.
Unlike some of Jones' previous campaign reviews, it does not just cover the frenetic period in the run-up to polling day itself; rather, as its subtitle, "The Making of the Prime Minister' correctly summarises, the book recounts David Cameron's long journey from staffer at Tory HQ to Downing Street.
Jones pays particular attention to Cameron's years working for Norman Lamont and Michael Howard in the 1990s (when he was covering those politicians' activities for the BBC on a daily basis) and later in the book - after dealing with the 2005 Tory leadership election, Brown replacing Blair, the political attitudes of the Murdoch press and Expenses-gate - he devotes whole chapters to both the TV debates and the role of the leaders' wives in a modern British election campaign. It is an excellent read for anyone who wants a reliable one-stop shop covering an historic few years in British politics.
Jones is as engaging as ever in his telling of the story and the book - unusually for a tome produced so soon after the event - is also furnished with an index, making it an all the more invaluable record for future reference.
The book is published by Biteback and available to buy from Amazon. Nicholas Jones blogs here.
