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 ]
A book that takes place in one day offers immersion in a character’s life and consciousness, with the added resonance of a creative constraint that mirrors our own lived experience of 24 hours with changing light, ticking numbers, and the book-ends of sleep. My attempt to try this in... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-10-19 08:50:02 UTC ]
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Scholastic has swooped on Welcome to St Hell, a "groundbreaking" YA memoir about being a trans teen, written and illustrated by influencer and filmmaker Lewis Hancox. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-10-18 19:31:24 UTC ]
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Dave Grohl's memoir The Storyteller (S&S) was one of the critics most reviewed this week, picking up mentions in The Bookseller, the Observer, Guardian, Times, Sunday Times and Irish Times. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-10-17 21:25:03 UTC ]
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The longtime anchor’s memoir settles scores and reexamines some regrettable choices. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-10-15 07:39:38 UTC ]
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Amor Towles’s 'The Lincoln Highway,' which became this month’s Read with Jenna pick for the Jenna Bush Hager Book Club, hit #1 overall. Plus Grunge god Dave Grohl, the Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters frontman, has the #2 book in the country this week with his memoir The Storyteller'. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-10-15 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Like the complex Philippine history the book aims to depict, there is no single sentence that can sum up Albert Samaha’s Concepcion, especially when he renders that history through the lens of his own diasporic family, dating back to his ancestors’ first encounter with Europeans. Though... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-10-13 11:00:00 UTC ]
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“Concepcion,” by Albert Samaha, combines the epic sweep of global history with an intimate family narrative. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-10-12 09:00:07 UTC ]
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In “Those We Throw Away Are Diamonds,” Mondiant Dogon, a survivor of the Rwandan genocide, recounts a saga of horror, frustration and hope. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-10-12 09:00:07 UTC ]
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Scout signs a buzzed-about novel by a Swedish journalist, Norton nabs a memoir by South African Olympic gold medalist Caster Semenya, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-10-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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PRH imprint #Merky Books has landed the "powerful and deeply moving" memoir by Olympic champion and elite runner Caster Semenya. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-10-06 10:43:15 UTC ]
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‘When we woke up, the whole ocean was full of broken ice.’ An excerpt from Notes from an Island, with artwork by Tuulikki Pietilä and memoir by Tove Jansson, translated by Thomas Teal. The post Notes from an Island appeared first on Granta. Continue reading at Granta
[ Granta | 2021-10-04 05:36:51 UTC ]
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The actor’s new memoir “Taste” explains how a bout with cancer took his passion for ragù and risotto, but also Cuban-Chinese stews and minke whale, to new heights. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-10-02 09:00:17 UTC ]
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The actor’s new memoir “Taste” explains how a bout with cancer took his passion for ragù and risotto, but also Cuban-Chinese stews and minke whale, to new heights. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-10-02 09:00:16 UTC ]
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Review of "There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the 21st Century" by Fiona Hill Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-10-01 14:45:07 UTC ]
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Dave Grohl has visited London to promote his memoir, The Storyteller, (Simon & Schuster) ahead of its publication on 5th October. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-10-01 02:55:46 UTC ]
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The response to the criticism of Kate Clanchy’s memoir was a moral failure on the part of white publishing—and an artistic failure too Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-30 18:27:25 UTC ]
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In the memoir “Here, Right Matters,” Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman defends his decision to report President Trump’s call with Ukraine. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2021-09-29 18:40:35 UTC ]
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In our series “Can Writing Be Taught?” we partner with Catapult to ask their course instructors all our burning questions about the process of teaching writing. This month we’re featuring Made in China author Anna Qu, who will be leading a year-long Online Memoir Generator for writers of color... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-09-28 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Hodder & Stoughton has landed a memoir by Keith Brymer Jones, star judge of Channel Four’s “The Great Pottery Throwdown”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-23 20:55:02 UTC ]
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Sphere has pre-empted In Two Minds: Stories of Murder, Justice and Recovery from a Forensic Psychiatrist by Dr Sohom Das. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-22 23:05:16 UTC ]
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