Edmund Burke, Russell Kirk
Edmund Burke, Russell Kirk
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Edmund Burke
A Genius Reconsidered

Author: Russell Kirk

Narrator: Jeff Riggenbach

Unabridged: 6 hr 7 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/01/2007

Synopsis

In this, the liveliest and most accessible one-volume life of Edmund Burke, Russell Kirk has ingeniously combined the public and the private man into a living whole. He lucidly unfolds Burke's philosophy and offers a fresh assessment of Burke, a statesman enjoying even greater influence today than in his own time.Kirk defines four great struggles in the life of Burke: his work for conciliation with the American colonies; his involvement in cutting down the domestic power of George III; his prosecution of Warren Hastings, the governor general of India; and his resistance to Jacobinism, the French Revolution's "armed doctrine." In each of these great phases of his public life, Burke fought with passionate eloquence and relentless logic for his ideals of justice, ideals that continue to appeal today.

About Russell Kirk

Russell Kirk (1918–1994), historian of ideas, critic, essayist, editor, and novelist, was the author of thirty-two books. Among them are The Roots of American Order, The Politics of Prudence, Enemies of the Permanent Things, and six works of fiction. He received twelve honorary doctorates from American universities and many awards, including the Presidential Citizens Medal.

About Jeff Riggenbach

Jeff Riggenbach (1947-2021) narrated numerous titles for Blackstone Audio and won an AudioFile Earphones Award. An author, contributing editor, and producer, he worked in radio in San Francisco for more than thirty years, earning a Golden Mike Award for journalistic excellence.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Gonzo on February 11, 2021

Perhaps it is a credit to Mr. Kirk that I came to like his hero less and less throughout the reading of this book. Russell Kirk's lifelong intellectual project depended on Burke's putative greatness. His most popular and influential work, The Conservative Mind puts Burke at the center of all things......more

Goodreads review by Joseph on July 30, 2022

I would probably refer to myself as a ‘Burke to Kirk conservative’. Both men were traditional, principled, and prudent. Both were undoubtedly geniuses. And so when the latter writes a full-length biography about the former, the book makes for most gratifying reading!......more

Goodreads review by Alexander on December 31, 2024

A fine overview of the key political struggles of Burke's career. It's time to reread some writings from the father of English conservatism.......more

Goodreads review by Stuart on March 27, 2021

I really enjoyed this biography of Burke. I knew Burke from his "Reflections on the Revolution in France", and I had a fuzzy idea that he was supportive of the colonist and the Irish. The full story is much better. Burke was for freedom, justice, and to whatever degree attainable stability. As Kirk......more

Goodreads review by Ryan on October 17, 2020

Amazing biography......more

Quotes

“Kirk’s scholarship is wide-ranging...and of course he brings to bear his close knowledge of the vast array of modern Burke scholarship. [His]...book is both elegant and eloquent, and it helps to fill a real need.” National Review

“This is the liveliest and most accessible one-volume biography of Edmund Burke.” Midwest Book Review

“The book serves as a good short introduction to Burke’s life and throught.” Library Journal

“A clear and succinct guide to one of the great conservative thinkers of modern times…There is no finer monument to Burke than this book by his most original American disciple.” Roger Scruton, author, The Meaning of Conservatism

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