holds barred glimpse behind
the scenes of the corridors
of power. Ion Trewin’s CV
includes The Alan Clark
Diaries, so he knows a thing
or two about editing political
memoirs. The broadsheets and
BBC Radio 4 will lap this up.
History, military and
politics
Andy McNab
Seven Troop
Bantam Press,
September, £20,
9780593059500
After 12 years
of highly
successful
fiction and
children’s book releases,
McNab finally returns to the
non-fiction that made him such
a publishing phenomenon.
The real-life exploits of Seven
Troop will take the brand to
further new heights.
Craig Murray
The Road to
Samarkand
Mainstream,
September, £17.99,
9781845963606
In this prequel
to his sleeper
hit Murder in
Samarkand,
Murray describes his earlier
adventures as an ambassador
in Africa. The previous book
was rightly lauded, Murray is a
terrific writer, and sold 17,000
copies. Steve Coogan will play
him in the upcoming film.
Agnes Humbert
Résistance: Memoirs of Occupied
France
Bloomsbury, September, £14.99,
9780747595977
The first English-language
outing for a gripping diary of
wartime Paris and Germany
first published in 1946.
It’s thrilling, moving and,
despite the unfolding horror,
even funny. Bloomsbury’s
package sensibly evokes Suite
Française.
Patricia and
Robert
Malcomson
(eds)
Nella Last’s Peace
Profile,
October, £8.99,
9781846680748
Sequel to the
home-front memoir, Nella
Last’s War, (35,000 copies to
date) this volume picks up
the story in the immediate
aftermath of the fighting.
Profile is understandably
making a big deal of Victoria
Wood’s “Housewife, 49” which
was adapted from the previous
book.
David Starkey
Henry: Virtuous Prince
HarperPress, October, £25,
9780007247714
The biggest name in English
history by our best known
English historian. It can’t fail
can it? Starkey’s last work,
Monarchy, shifted 27,000
copies in hardback. A Channel
4 TV series will provide a
second wind in spring.
Anne Nason
(ed)
For Love and
Courage: The
Letters of
Lieutenant
Colonel E W
Hermon
Preface, September,
£20, 9781848090392
Hermon was killed in Arras
in 1917. Uniquely, as battalion
commander, his letters home
were not subject to the heavy
hand of the censor. It’s this
candour that makes this
collection especially moving.
Wendy Moore
Wedlock: How Georgian Britain’s
Worst Husband Met his Match
Weidenfeld & Nicolson, January, £18.99,
9780297853312
“Georgiana Duchess of
Devonshire meets the misery
memoir” trumpets the AI, and
the remarkable story of the
Countess of Strathmore and
her cruel husband could well
live up to the billing. Moore’s
début was 2005’s critically
acclaimed The Knife Man.
Chris Mullin
A View from the Foothills
Profile, March, £20, 97818466682230
Profile has just announced
this intriguing-sounding
political memoir, which it
describes as “Alan Clark meets
‘Yes Minister’”. An MP and
erstwhile cabinet member,
Mullin has up-close-andpersonal
experience of the
inner machinations of the New
Labour regime. His novel A
Very British Coup shows that he
can really write.
www.thebookseller.com The Bookseller | 15 August 2008 31
CATEGORY PREVIEW: BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIRS
Sport
Sir Bobby Charlton
My England Years: The Autobiography
Headline, September, £20, 9780755316212
This is the second volume,
following the Manchester
United-themed offering last
year, of our most illustrious
player’s life story. These tales
of World Cup glory will do just
as well, although I expect sales
to dip a bit in Scotland.
Marcus
Trescothick
Coming Back
To Me: The
Autobiography
Harper,
September, £18.99,
9780007285808
The stressrelated
illness that forced
Trescothick to retire from
international cricket while at
the peak of his powers will be
the main talking point here.
Expect a major serialisation
and press coverage as the
former England opener lifts
the lid on his glittering career
and the mental demons that
brought it to a premature end.
Mickey Thomas
Kickups, Hiccups, Lockups: The
Autobiography
Century, September, £18.99, 9781846055232
“The Welsh George Best” is
pushing it a bit but when it
comes to football bad boys,
erstwhile jail-bird Mickey
Thomas is certainly the real
deal. His outrageous story is a
gift for sports editors, so there
will be acres of coverage.
Jamie
Carragher
Carra: My
Autobiography
Bantam Press,
September, £18.99,
9780593061022
“Carra” is
no “Stevie
G” either in
talent or reknown but, like his
bestselling Liverpool team
mate, he is a highly respected
one-club man, with an enviable
collection of medals. Even
neutrals should find plenty to
enjoy here.
Tommy Byrne with Mark
Hughes
Crashed and Byrned: The Greatest
Racing Driver You Never Saw
Icon Books, September, £10.99,
9781848310285
Closer to Irvine Welsh than
your standard Formula One
biography, Tommy Byrne’s
colourful life, and language,
makes for the most exciting
petrol-head release this year.
A high-octane guilty pleasure.
Film
Roger Moore
My Word is My
Bond
Michael O’Mara,
October, £18.99,
9781843173182
Amazingly, at
81 years of age,
this is the first
autobiography of the most
charming of all the Bonds.
With Daniel Craig’s 007
returning to cinema screens
in October’s “Quantum of
Solace”, the timing could
not be better for a media
publicity storm. An interview
on “Jonathan Ross” is already
confirmed.
Tony Curtis
American Prince:
My Autobiography
Virgin, October,
£18.99,
9781905264346
No-holds barred
Hollywood
memoir from
the star of “Some Like It Hot”,
“Spartacus” and (my favourite)
“The Sweet Smell of Success”.
The media scrum when he
touched down in London
earlier this year is testament to
Curtis’ enduring fascination.
A repeat performance is
scheduled for October.
Richard Attenborough and
Diana Hawkins
Entirely Up to You, Darling: Scenes
from a Life
Hutchinson, September, £20,
9780091797089
Few lives can boast a CV as
long or as stellar as this one.
Perhaps that explains why
Attenborough needed help
(from long-time colleague
Diana Hawkins) to get it
all down on paper. A major
serialisation is already
confirmed.
Michael Deeley
Blade Runners, Deer Hunters and
Blowing the Bloody Doors Off
Faber & Faber, October, £18.99,
9780571239191
The title may be a bit clunky
but it certainly gets the
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