Cart
Free Shipping in the UK
Proud to be B-Corp

A Fortunate Life Paddy Ashdown

A Fortunate Life By Paddy Ashdown

A Fortunate Life by Paddy Ashdown


£3.60
New RRP £9.99
Condition - Very Good
5 in stock

Summary

Paddy Ashdown' s autobiography was hailed as one of the most readable and exciting political life stories ever written of all.

A Fortunate Life Summary

A Fortunate Life: The Autobiography of Paddy Ashdown by Paddy Ashdown

Paddy Ashdown's autobiography has been hailed as one of the most readable and exciting political life stories ever written - precisely because it was so very much more.
This is the autobiography of an old-fashioned Man of Action, an adventurer, to be compared more readily to Fitzroy Maclean than David Steel. Ashdown's years as MP for Yeovil and leader of the Liberal Democrats pale alongside his time as a Royal Marine Commando, in the Special Boat squadron, as a spy, on military service in Northern Ireland and Indonesia, and then subsequently - perhaps his finest and most heroic role, as the UN's High Representative in war-torn Bosnia. As one reviewer remarked: "This must be the first political memoir to offer advice on the best way to execute a jungle ambush and on how to treat an open wound using red ants."

Paddy Ashdown, Lord Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon, was perhaps the most unlikley leader the Liberal strand of British politics has ever had. A former captain in the Royal Marines, he became the first leader of the Liberal Democrats in 1988 and led them over the next 11 years to their best electoral results at that time for three-quarters of a century. Although he never quite achieved the parliamentary breakthrough he hoped for, still less a realignment of the parties of the left in coalition with Labour, the Lib Dems became a significant and influential third force in British politics. Ashdown's appeal - which explains this books's hardback bestseller status - is that he transcends party political allegiances, and is seen as a genuinely honest and decent man unafraid to take on the hardest challenges.

Jeremy John Durham (Paddy) Ashdown, politician, born 27 February 1941; died 22 December 2018

A Fortunate Life Reviews

'Less a political autobiography than a real-life Dangerous Book for Boys, and all the better for it. This is more than anything else an adventure story. Fascinating and uplifting and genuinely, without irony, heroic, the sort of book you should read to your kids, just to let them know what can be done' -- Rod Liddle Sunday Times 'To anyone inclined to political cynicism, I would urge you to read this book. Ashdown emerges as a man of serious standing, a good man, a principled man, a man who commands your respect entirely' The Times '[An] action-packed, pacey, lyrical and sweetly honest book... This is the autobiography of a good man' -- Matthew Parris Spectator 'Even James Bond would put down Ashdown's A Fortunate Life and reflect that his own life seemed suddenly rather monochrome' Daily Telegraph

About Paddy Ashdown

Jeremy John Durham (Paddy) Ashdown, politician, born 27 February 1941; died 22 December 2018. Paddy Ashdown spent the first seventeen years of his adult life serving his country as an officer in the Royal Marine Commandos, a member of the Special Boat Service and as an employee of the EURO~shadowy side' of the Foreign Office. He then went on to become Liberal Democrat MP for Yeovil and leader of his party, and the international community's High Representative in war-torn Bosnia. He wrote two books for Aurum: A Brilliant Little Operation, which tells the story of the Cockleshell heroes of World War Two, and his autobiography, A Fortunate Life has been hailed as one of the most readable and exciting political life stories ever written.

Additional information

GOR002219769
9781845135225
1845135229
A Fortunate Life: The Autobiography of Paddy Ashdown by Paddy Ashdown
Used - Very Good
Paperback
Aurum Press
2010-04-25
400
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - A Fortunate Life