You're Invited to Presentation by 2025 Niblack Visiting Artist Bestselling Author Sonia Purnell

Purnell's first work — the unauthorized biography of Boris Johnson called Just Boris: A Tale of Blond Ambition — was long-listed for the Orwell Prize in 2011. As the first to challenge his track record and integrity, it changed the national debate and remains the definitive biography. Sonia has become the go-to commentator at home and abroad on his rise to power and his record in office.

Her second book, First Lady in the U.K. and Clementine in the U.S. (a finalist for the Plutarch prize) revealed for the first time the vital role Winston Churchill's wife, Clementine, played in his career. The book has subsequently shaped Clementine’s portrayal on screen, including in the Netflix series The Crown when she was played by Harriet Walter, who has described Sonia’s writing as a “whirlwind of fresh air” that opens “a door…into a flood of sunlight.”

Sonia’s third work, A Woman of No Importance, is the inspirational true-life tale of a female spy in WWII, Virginia Hall, a young American socialite with a wooden leg, who helped fan the flames of French Resistance. It became an instant New York Times Bestseller when published in 2019, remained on the list for many weeks, and won the prestigious Plutarch Prize for Best Biography in 2020. 

Her latest book, Kingmaker: Pamela Harriman’s Astonishing Life of Power, Seduction & Intrigue (Kingmaker: Pamela Churchill Harriman’s Astonishing Life of Seduction, Intrigue & Power in the U.K.), came out in September 2024 to huge critical and reader acclaim. It has been hailed as a Book of the Year by 15 media outlets, from The Guardian to The Economist via The New Yorker.

Kingmaker is an electrifying re-examination of one of the 20th century’s greatest unsung power players and an eye-popping tale of sex, money, politics, and fabulous clothes. Previously written off as a courtesan and social climber, Pamela Harriman’s true legacy has been overshadowed by her infamous erotic adventures. Much of what she did behind the scenes to change the world has remained invisible and secret. That is, until now.

Established by Austi Brown ’73 in honor of her mother, Helen Cudahy Niblack, Class of 1942, the Niblack Arts Lecture Series brings a variety of literary, performing, and fine artists, artisans, and designers to Foxcroft to share their work and experience while engaging students in the creative process.