Ratings4
Average rating2.5
#1 New York Times bestselling author and finalist for the National Book Award—one of the most admired and controversial public intellectuals of our time—shares his personal life story. Most who have observed Christopher Hitchens over the years would agree that he possesses a ferocious intellect and is unafraid to tackle the most contentious subjects. Now 60, English-born and American by adoption; all atheist and partly Jewish; bohemian (even listing "drinking" along with "disputation" as "hobbies" in Who's Who), he has held to a consistent thread of principle whether opposing war in Vietnam or supporting intervention in Iraq. As a foreign correspondent in some of the world's nastiest places, a lecturer and teacher and an esteemed literary critic, Hitchens manifests a style that is at once ironic, witty, and tough-minded. A legendary bon vivant with an unquenchable thirst for literature, he has sometimes ridiculed those who claim that the personal is political, though he has often seemed to illustrate that very idea. Readers will find that his own many opposites attract, as do his many sketches of friendship and ex-friendship, from Martin Amis to Noam Chomsky. Condemned to be able to see both sides of any argument, Christopher Hitchens has contradictions that contain their own multitudes.
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I read about 40 percent of this and just couldn't get through it. I can see glimpses of Hitchens' brilliant writing. But I listened to the audiobook and it was Hitchens narrating. He is not a good narrator, although occasionally he actually got into it and did a good job. But much of the time he was dull and mumbled. I check this out of the library so after 3 weeks I just didn't have enough interest to finish.
I reviewed on my blog at http://bookwi.se/hitch-22/