Confessions

Reviews

A clear-eyed and compelling account of a life, told with honesty and much wry humour. A model of its kind. Calmly, bravely written, infused by his Catholic upbringing, and intriguingly haunted by the posh question ... filled with qualities that are the marks of a good life: candour and courage, deployed with generosity and modesty, all of them here in spades. The quiet confessions of a Radio 4 gent ... You can't help hearing the familiar tones of the author speaking the words ... Entertaining ... nicely self-mocking ... I'm glad to have his civilised and ever-optimistic voice in my ear. A searingly honest insight into the life of one of our great journalists. Hugely entertaining too. A wonderful, poignant memoir - fluent, compelling and full of adventure. A book brimming with surprises and insight. I have known Edward Stourton for fifty years, but there have been adventures in his life of which I knew nothing whatever until I read this fascinating memoir. He has led a Life in Full - and has the brainpower to analyse it all with wit and perspective. Fascinating. Much more than a series of swashbuckling journalistic yarns, Confessions also describes the "awokening", as Stourton puts it, of someone born to privilege who has come increasingly to question the assumptions of his caste. He retains a kind of shaken, chastened faith, and a moral passion which he has, on the right occasions, allowed to break through the mask of journalistic impartiality. A stonkingly good read - wise, informative and very funny. One of our most thoughtful and well-travelled journalists, Stourton manages both to educate and entertain with the inside track on a reporting career in the world's hotspots, and also to dig deeper to examine the role of memory in shaping our life stories. Ed Stourton's book is not only a gripping personal saga of the professional life of one of our top broadcasters, it is a valuable social document of an era of rapid media transformation. Brilliantly written, witty, searingly honest, his many fans will be delighted. A must read for every aspiring journalist. Expand reviews