Hitch-22: A Memoir (Unabridged) [Audio Download]

I chose this book as my holiday read. And what a good choice it was too. Hitchens is a man who usually polarizes people into one of two camps - you either love him or hate him. I try not to engage in such ideological flag waving, suffice to say, I would consider myself to be one of those who he seems to have left on 'the left' ....so to speak. His memoir takes us through his early years, with chapters devoted to his father and mother ( who i hadn't realised met with such a grizzly end). He treats us to his stint at Oxford, his experiences of the sixties, there are chapters devoted to other great loves in his life such as James Fenton, Martin Amis, Salman Rushdie and needless to say Edward Said.
Hitch elucidates upon how he first had misgivings about his ultra-socialist leanings, and he provides us with insight as to his dismay at the tendency of some 'comrades' to ignore the rather brutal underpinnings of the spread of the socialist revolution, and how the obvious warts were seen as beauty spots by 'the party faithful'. He has a chapter on his burgeoning love affair with all things American, which is a little rose tinted it has to be said. He seems to refuse point blank to consider that any behaviour of the USA might, in part, explain the attacks of 9/11, which for a man who easy fillets others for such naivety, is quite surprising. His chapter on Edward Said angered me a little, as the late great professor is no longer with us to defend himself to the charges Hitch lays at his door. But it is his memoir, so his rules. His attempt to defend his seeming volte face to the right, reads like the worlds longest excuse. He portrays it as if he was able to find that which Hans Blix wasn't and he refers to being a conscious part of history making as quite an 'intoxicating feeling'. Perhaps it is this which helps explain his apparent abandonment of his earlier principles. It seems to me that Hitch views himself in the same mold as George Orwell (who gets many a mention), as a chronicler of great and interesting times and an iconclast to long held fallacies in our world. The difference being that in Orwell's time, western civilization really was facing an existential crisis. It is this missing component in Hitch's world which explains his apparent desire to ratchet up the hyperbole of the 'threat of Islam' and odious regimes to the east of us, the need for 'civilized' nations to go about spreading civilized notions of 'democracy' and 'freedom'....all at the business of a gun of course.
Toward the end Hitch treats us to a detailed account of his awakening to his Jewish ancestry and how he never viewed zionism as a solution to 'the jewish question'. We see how he traced the footsteps of his jewish ancestors in Eastern Europe, which is tragic to read.
He has an unattractive tendency to ad hominen against those he dislikes, such as Clinton et al, the book would have been so much better if he had reined that in. All in all, I would recommend this book to his fans and opponents alike (of which I count myself as both). He had led a life the quarter of which would make most of us proud to recount, and no matter what his old friend Martin Amis might say, he has a great command of the language, all resulting in this wonderful book. To the man himself I forward him my best wishes and hope that he beats the big C, because like him or loathe him, Im sure we all hope theres a few glasses left in the old boy yet !

My copy arrived on that same day that the news of his latest battle with malevolent authority was revealed, he will face it, I know, with the same courage he has always exhibited, at the risk of sounding quasi-religious it goes without saying that I wish him well, for purely selfish reasons, his writing warms my heart and brings some order to my cluttered mind.
The book itself is neither really a complete memoir or a political tome, it is however beautifully composed, as you'd expect from the finest living polemic wordsmith in the English speaking world, by his standard it's almost light-hearted in places, there are many wonderful passages of kindness, friendship and affection. His comes across as fiercely loyal to his old friends, not to say very proud of them. Evidently, he still retains that naughtiness beloved of men behind closed doors amongst chums, you can almost hear him tell the bawdiest yarn, for the sole purpose of making you pistol your drink through your nostrils. It is, as if he were over a very fine summers day, recalling the moments in his life, that he thinks we might want him to recall, on his terms though, he has, in a life that has attracted as much scorn as veneration, somehow, managed to keep his personal life beyond prying eyes.
Very wisely, he steers clear of any revelation regarding his marriage(s) or says much about his children, this is such a welcome change from books of this nature, some people will of course jump on this as weakness, or what clever folks like to term a lacuna, but I think not. One of the many grand aspects of any Hitchens book or indeed essay, is the likelihood of his readers picking up on other authors that he quotes so readily, that perhaps one has not read much, if at all, in a few beautiful lines in context, he sells the concept of other books well worth reading. Mr Hitchens, like all great writers, Mr Hitchens is clearly a great reader too.

Before reading this I knew Hitchens was a controversial figure - but I wasn't familiar with why (to be honest i thought he must have been a wealthy brattish tory - i'm glad i was wrong (although wealthy tories also write good books)).

As a 39-year-old comprehensive school-educated middle-manager, this very readable book took me on a fabulous trip of what happened to someone who was in the right place at the right time (i think i read recently that people born in 1949 had the best of all worlds). Hitchens has experienced at first hand some of the more fundamental developments in human history of the last 40 years. He writes about his experiences with genuine warmth, insight and honesty without pretentiousness. It's the most enjoyable book I've read in a while - and having just finished it I feel more connected to some of the big issues being played out in the world and I'm motivated to read more deeply & widely.