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Speaking for Myself: The Autobiography
by
Cherie Blair
'I feel so privileged to have travelled so far. So much has happened ... that it feels wrong somehow just to let it pass as if the journey had no meaning.' CHERIE BLAIR
Hardcover
,
432 pages
Published
May 1st 2008
by Little Brown and Company
(first published January 1st 2008)
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Community Reviews
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This was a really informative and interesting read that I thoroughly enjoyed. This was on my list to read before I saw a brief interview with Cherie Blair when the book first came out in the US, and that interview only made me want to read the book even more. Mrs. Blair offers a great “behind the scenes” glimpse of life at #10 Downing Street (technically life at #11 Downing Street, since that is where the Blair family actually lived), not to mention a solid portrait (both personal and profession
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Cherie Blair's main claim to fame is her marriage to Tony Blair who was Britain's Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007. However she is also an interesting individual in her own right: the daughter of a famous actor who has had a prestigious legal career as well as having a front row seat for recent political events. She was widely disliked in the UK, and I have to say that if you don't like Cherie Blair, this is probably not the book that will change your mind. I started reading it with an open mind
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To my delighted surprise, I enjoyed this candid, witty biography.
Cherie Blair was the British “First Lady” for ten years. In Speaking For Myself, she tells her life story from birth until her husband left office in 2007. Cherie’s father was a successful actor, but he abandoned his family when she was young. Having no other alternative, Cherie along with her mother and her sister lived with her father’s parents in Liverpool. Cherie’s mother worked hard and made a lot of sacrifices. Her father had children by other women, but never made much time for Cherie and
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I will admit to getting this because the reviews in the British press were so entertainingly eviscerating. So is it as bad as they say? Yes and no. Blair WAY overshares personal details about her sex life--both with and without Tony--in a way that made me cringe. And the book itself just isn't that well done--it's sort a rote march through her entire history, without much thought to which parts would be more interesting for the reader. It's also striking how little reflection is in the narrative
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I really enjoyed this book. It was read for book club and I was looking forward to reading this one. I didn't know anything about Tony Blair's wife. The book is about her life. She is a very impressive woman in her own right. She was a very supportive wife, which is generally the case behind a great man. Some things surprised me about them, they are so smart intellectually the 2 of them, but in some ways they were both quite dumb. My favorite part of the book was when the prime minister of Italy
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I saw this book in a bookstore in Great Britain this past summer and wanted to read it. I didn't have room in my suitcase for it, but I looked it up when I got home.
Cherie Blair is the wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The first third of the book is about her childhood. She was raised by her mother and grandmother, had a challenging childhood but managed to become a barrister.
I found the behind-the-scene details of life in No. 10 Downing Street very interesting. She discusses t ...more
Cherie Blair is the wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The first third of the book is about her childhood. She was raised by her mother and grandmother, had a challenging childhood but managed to become a barrister.
I found the behind-the-scene details of life in No. 10 Downing Street very interesting. She discusses t ...more
Ah Cherie, I always wondered why the brilliant Tony was married to a sharp-tongued Scouse....as the Liverpudlians call their nasties. Halfway through the memoir, I recant a bit of that wonder as the woman does have some good points, but why did she feel she had to write about her day by day experiences with everyone from plumber to baby Leo filling his diaper? Why does she show a sloppy Tony who likely leaves the toilet seat up? Who cares? She got lucky being catapulted onto the World Scene, an
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I found the first part of the book really interesting...........especially bearing in mind I do not really have the highest regard for this woman or her husband.
However, the second part of the book I could not get over, a woman whom had to pull herself up by her bootlaces, go through law school, become a barrister then a QC at a time which was extremely difficult for her and given her unpriveleged background who got where she did on results and merit (an achievement much to be admired)
Then why ...more
However, the second part of the book I could not get over, a woman whom had to pull herself up by her bootlaces, go through law school, become a barrister then a QC at a time which was extremely difficult for her and given her unpriveleged background who got where she did on results and merit (an achievement much to be admired)
Then why ...more
I enjoyed this book and was especially gripped by her account of her early life. I found that later on, the chapters' chronolocial progression was a bit difficult to follow. I wished that rather than go through everything in time sequence, that she would just talk about an event or a person. I also found some of the legal jargon and Number 10 jargon confusing.
I am puzzled by this paragraph and wonder if the last part of this book was not carefully edited (p.394 of the airport edition):
"Each cult ...more
I am puzzled by this paragraph and wonder if the last part of this book was not carefully edited (p.394 of the airport edition):
"Each cult ...more
Ok, I admit it. I read for some good junk reading. Here is the scoop, this is really two books - one where Cherie grows up and has an interesting childhood as well as her career path and then the second book where she basically uses the book to explain her scandals (she can't believe some of them) and also do some payback on people. So the first part of the book is good and the second, is well, boring or hard to believe that it is the same person.
Also, her husband, Tony Blair, doesn't come off ...more
Also, her husband, Tony Blair, doesn't come off ...more
Cherie Blair is a very straight forward, outspoken woman. I really enjoyed this book (but then I am partial to autobiographies). There were times when I was not sure of the meaning of some of her words and it was hard for me to follow her law career and Tony's political career; however, that comes from my own lack of knowledge of some British English, of the British legal system, and of the British political system. That is no fault of the author's. I was not aware of the differences between 10
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A good read. I recently met her half sister Lauren (Sarah) Booth so was interested in the family background. She seems to be a woman out of place. She made the most out of a finding herself wife of the Prime Minister of Great Britain. It's always good to see the other side, familial side of these stories of political figures. I enjoying reading Queen Noor of Jordan book, too.
Fantastic insights into a Prime Minister's wife's life. Cherie Blair truly has had an interesting life. She made mistakes as we all do but his were captured in the public eye. After reading her book I looked at her in a completely different light. She is a good lawyer, mother, wife, and friend.I highly recommend this book.
I didn't really have an opinion about Cherie Blair but I gathered the press didn't like her much. She interested me from the viewpoint of the unexpected 4th child! 'Speaking for Myself' paints a picture of a well meaning, hard working family-orientated woman marvelling at her good fortune to have a ringside seat on international events for a decade. She pays for this privilege by being the target of sniping from all sides. The book is very self-effacing in some respects - so different from Alist
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I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I'm not exactly sure what it is that fascinated me. The writing is good. But there isn't really a plot, just a recounting of her experiences. And it isn't really a great tell-all sort of book. There aren't any details of private lives or behind the scenes politicking exposed.
I enjoyed the retelling of Cherie's childhood and early career. I am always interested to learn about the life experiences of others.
Mr. Blair's rise to power seemed almost ...more
I enjoyed the retelling of Cherie's childhood and early career. I am always interested to learn about the life experiences of others.
Mr. Blair's rise to power seemed almost ...more
I really enjoyed this book for a number of reasons. A well written autobiography is always fascinating as it details others circumstances and choices. Cherie Blair's life is particularly interesting, not only in the descriptions of her "odd" childhood having a TV star father but seemingly living in poverty with her mother and grandparents, then her brilliant academic career which of course led her to meet and later marry Tony Blair. The book chronicles a strong marriage based on shared interests
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If anything, I'd call this a "recounting". I don't know whether Cherie was looking to protect the privacy of her family, but I never got a good sense of what it was like for all of them on 10 Downing Street. And, frankly, other than the clear battles she had with the press and the press secretary, I'm not sure how much she enjoyed her time as wife of the PM. OK, she continued her career, had to fight for a hairdresser while on travel, make great personal connections with the Clintons and the Bus
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I thought Cherie's childhood reminiscences of a hard life in Liverpool were "lovely." But once Cherie reached adulthood and recounted some of the personal choices she made, while a barrister just out of law school, my interest waned enough to stop reading.
The stories of Cherie's first encounters with Tony Blair were pretty fun; she fell in love with him because he was the only truly "religious" person she had ever known. I have even more respect for Tony Blair now, but less for Cherie after rea ...more
The stories of Cherie's first encounters with Tony Blair were pretty fun; she fell in love with him because he was the only truly "religious" person she had ever known. I have even more respect for Tony Blair now, but less for Cherie after rea ...more
I LOVED this book. I really wasn't sure I'd like it since from press reports I didn't have the best impression (albeit from a long distance) of Cherie Blair. But after reading, I have a lot of respect for her. She's done a lot to be proud of on her own.
The book was very well written -- I even enjoyed the childhood parts of the book, and usually I'm in a hurry to finish those sections and get to whatever reason the person is famous. She gives her viewpoint on all the major events of Tony Blair's ...more
The book was very well written -- I even enjoyed the childhood parts of the book, and usually I'm in a hurry to finish those sections and get to whatever reason the person is famous. She gives her viewpoint on all the major events of Tony Blair's ...more
Like the first part of the book before she became PM' wife.
I liked this book a lot. It was interesting to see inside the British leadership, especially after living there for a semester in college. I love how honest Cherie is--she seems to lay it all out there. I think it might come from not being able to be open & honest while she was the Prime Minister's wife and had to play a role for the public. She is intelligent and witty and very loyal to her husband. She's a lawyer, too--and there is a lot about the British legal system that was confusing to
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I didn't think this book was particularly well written, nor very revelatory in content. Blair's personal story was interesting but she often became mired down in insignificant information when it came to her legal career, and too often skimmed over more important historical events or simply rehashed what is widely known.
There were many editorial/grammatical errors, which I found annoying. Overall, the book offered some interesting tidbits, but for the most part was less than a fascinating read.
There were many editorial/grammatical errors, which I found annoying. Overall, the book offered some interesting tidbits, but for the most part was less than a fascinating read.
I had thought that Cherie Blair's book might have covered very similar teritory to the books by her husband, Peter Mandelson and Alastair Campbell, whose memoirs I read earlier this year, however while there were obvious overlaps it was a significantly different story. A really personal insight into her time at number 10 and earlier. It was perhaps the early years which I found most interesting - always such an high achieving woman. I was impressed not just with the book but with her story.
I heard Cherie Blair read from her book earlier this year, and received this book as my parting gift. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to her, and was thrilled to have the book. I just haven't been able to get into it - my lack of recent English culture and political knowledge could be why. Plus, there are so many other books I am eagerly waiting to devour. So, I'm putting it back on the shelf after reading the first 70 pages, and may pick it up later.
This is an excellent autobiography by a very interesting woman. Cherie Blair is not only the wife of the former Prime Minister of the UK, but is a noted barrister (lawyer) in her own right. Her ability to juggle being a PM's wife, with all the duties expected, and maintain her identity as a highly respected lawyer is nothing short of remarkable. Her family background adds to the obstacles she had to overcome. I highly recommend Ccherie's story.
I was going through a phase of reading political biographies when I found this in a library sale. It covers Cherie's career, meeting Tony Blair and trying to juggle family, career and supporting her husband's career. I quite enjoyed this though as always there were some parts that did drag a bit, especially the early chapters about growing up and getting that first position.
I only read this for a short while, that was enough. I have always disliked this woman and this book only makes me hate her more. Fortunately I got this book on a whim for a few pence at a charity shop, that is where it is going back. Nothing about this woman is good, she is without grace, charm or any redeeming features whatsoever.
Jan 02, 2010
Lisa
added it
Memoir of a strong woman. Interesting to see how different life is at Downing Street than at the White House (e.g., the White House has four chefs; at Downing Street, the Blairs had to cook for themselves). Cherie continued in her career (barrister, then judge) throughout Tony's Prime Ministership.
I liked this book, but I also like politics. I was slow going for me because much of the terminology in our political system and their's is different. It was also had to keep up with different people because they and their names weren't familiar to me. she's one smart gal.
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