The combative broadcaster’s memoir mixes engaging snapshots of his early career with some score-settling and a robust defence of his interviewing styleJohn Humphrys is the first to admit he doesn’t deal well with authority. He inherited it from his father, who refused to use the service entrance at the grand houses where he worked as a French polisher and, as a child, once watched his aunt get a humiliating dressing-down from the vicar for missing church. Humphrys had his own brush with condescending authority figures when he was in hospital with a cyst on his spine at 13, and an “arrogant posh bastard consultant” told his retinue of trainees it was because he didn’t wash regularly. “I don’t like being defined or told what to do, whoever is in charge,” he notes, a stance that has proved useful for grilling politicians (he has interviewed eight prime ministers), though it has also landed him in hot water.His memoir mixes engaging snapshots of his early career and analysis of the evolution of broadcasting with diatribes and petty score-settling. The early chapters tell of his passage from teen lackey on the Penarth Times in Wales, where his main task was standing outside the local church taking the names of those attending weddings and funerals, to being the first journalist on the scene at the Aberfan disaster, near Merthyr Tydfil, in which 116 children and 28 adults died after a colliery tip collapsed. Later he became a BBC foreign correspondent, reporting on the 1971 war... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2019-10-10 06:30:10 UTC ]
The memoir is expected to be a best seller, but after the queen’s death, some royal experts and industry executives say the project has become risky for Harry. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-10-27 14:12:53 UTC ]
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Endometriosis is classified by Mayo Clinic as a “common” condition, “treatable by a medical professional.” And yet, when Emma Bolden began experiencing aggressive symptoms of the illness in elementary school, she was treated for decades by doctors who neither believed her account of her... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-10-27 11:05:00 UTC ]
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The title and publication date of The Duke of Sussex's book, Spare, has been revealed. Continue reading at The Huffington Post
[ The Huffington Post | 2022-10-27 10:59:48 UTC ]
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The memoir by Prince Harry, announced by publisher Random House in July, finally has a title and a publication date: 'Spare' will be released on January 10, 2023. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
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I have long been fascinated by books about the early years of the AIDS crisis. Paul Monette’s Borrowed Time: An AIDS Memoir from 1988 remains a cherished work; last year’s Let the Record Show by Sarah Schulman and It Was Vulgar and It Was Beautiful by Jack Lowery provided crucial insights into... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-10-26 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Lobotomies, dolls, and cannibals, oh my! Scary book recommendations from your wimpy friends at Lit Hub. | Lit Hub Halloween Darryl Pinckney on working for the New York Review of Books as a young black writer: “Bob and Barbara are dinosaurs and we’re these mammals running around afraid of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-26 10:30:04 UTC ]
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AC/DC lead singer Brian Johnson talks about a time in his life when he 'wouldn't have minded' a fiery death in a new memoir, "The Lives of Brian." Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-25 19:05:57 UTC ]
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From kissing Gwyneth Paltrow to beating up Justin Trudeau: Matthew Perry's memoir, "Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing," hits shelves Nov. 1. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-25 14:00:03 UTC ]
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An open letter protesting the acquisition of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s forthcoming memoir by Penguin Random House, first reported in 2021, has begun circulating in publishing circles. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Sofia Samatar's "The White Mosque," a singular memoir about a journey through Asia on the trail of a Mennonite sect, tracks a personal search as well. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-24 13:00:39 UTC ]
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The art of pornography: Steven Heller recalls being arrested, as a minor, for his art direction on the underground sex paper Screw. | Lit Hub Memoir “Every woman who enjoys horror films has at some point felt the need to explain herself.” Elizabeth Horkley revisits Kier-La Janisse’s House of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-21 10:30:03 UTC ]
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The following is an excerpt from Joy Harjo’s The Art of Memoir and appeared in Lit Hub’s The Craft of Writing newsletter—sign up here. * At unexpected points in life, everyone gets waylaid by the colossal force of recollection. One minute you’re a grown-ass woman, then a whiff of cumin conjures... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-21 08:53:59 UTC ]
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The former children’s laureate shares her sometimes enraging story of rejection, determination and resilienceAt the beginning of Malorie Blackman’s engrossing and often shocking memoir, the former children’s laureate asks: “Why am I an author?” What she goes on to tell us certainly shows how she... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-10-19 06:30:17 UTC ]
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In his memoir 'Beyond the Wand,' Tom Felton shares behind-the-scenes tales from the 'Harry Potter' franchise and chronicles his struggle with alcohol. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-18 20:19:47 UTC ]
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Unsurprisingly, George Saunders is kind of a chaotic reader. | Lit Hub Ross Gay sings the praises of adult braces, feeling needed, and kissing a very small dog one million times. | Lit Hub Memoir “It is this uneasiness that helped me nurture such a wild and fucked-up imagination—an imagination... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-10-18 10:30:42 UTC ]
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The book, to be written with her husband Richard Ratcliffe, will detail her six years in prison and the campaign for her releaseNazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who spent six years in jail in Iran, is to write a memoir with her husband Richard Ratcliffe.The book, which is currently untitled, will tell... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-10-18 09:45:58 UTC ]
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The Hudson Valley-based Golden Notebook Bookstore will launch its publishing press next year with author Abigail Thomas's memoir 'Still Life at 80: The Next Interesting Thing.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-18 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Compiled from interviews he gave to a close friend, “The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man” sheds light on the self-doubt of the seemingly imperturbable Hollywood star. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-10-16 18:47:52 UTC ]
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"The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man" draws on reams of interview transcripts rediscovered after Paul Newman's death. Here's how it came together. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-10-16 13:00:47 UTC ]
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Compiled from interviews he gave to a close friend, “The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man” sheds light on the self-doubt of the seemingly imperturbable Hollywood star. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-10-16 09:00:11 UTC ]
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