Days from a Different World: A Memoir of Childhood

You're probably reading this because you've heard of John Simpson who has met everyone from Ayallatolah Khomeini to Osama Bin Laden via Mandela and Bill Clinton in the course of a long and fascinating career with the BBC.

Right?
Well, now forget all those great old Simpson tales from the "War and Politics Business"

Sit down, relax and enjoy this description of a early post-war Britain which (IMO) will never exist again in a deeply personal memoir eg. there is little doubt that Simpson's father was bisexual.

For the first time in a Simpson memoir, there is also a hint of Simpson beating himself up:
eg. the bitter words "people like me never do (come back)" when he leaves his last father's generation relative in Hospital for the ultimate time.

Not quite as intimate as footballer Tony Cascarino's autobiography "I want to write a book because I've hurt so many people", but actually not so far off.

Very moving, very powerful and very enjoyable because it is so personal.

Great service (0/1 people found this helpful)

Good, prompt purchase, and delivered as expected.

A Christmas present gratefully received.

Thank you.

A very sensitive and moving account of early childhood (2/2 people found this helpful)

Having read a number of John Simpson's other books which mainly detail his experiences in covering the two recent conflicts in Iraq, I found this book to a wonderful account of his early childhood years. He had a very difficult upbringing living in rented rooms with parents who separated when John was only six years old, and his account of having to choose whether he lived with his father or mother is very moving. He closes the book with an equally sensitive chapter about his late aunt, and how he spends time talking to her when she is near to death. The whole book describes living in Britain in the 40's and 50's in vivid detail, and is as accurate as David Kynaston's excellent "Austerity Britain". I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in that period.

Unmissable (4/4 people found this helpful)

The audiobook versions of John Simpson's books are all unmissable, but Days from a Different World is perhaps the best of the lot. Here, Simpson reveals the story of his upbringing - the turbulent relationship between his parents, what life was like in post-war Britain, and it's all put into context with some typically sharp anaylsis of what was happening in the world during that time as well.

There is something about hearing an author reading their own work that brings it to life even more memorably than seeing the printed page. Simpson's audiobooks are perfect examples of this. No-one could tell the story of his childhood other than him - and no-one could make it as real or as moving. The characters from his family, the sense of time and place, the feel of what it was like to live in a Britain that was exhausted from fighting World War 2 - it's all beautifully and vividly done. Another well-crafted piece of work from one of our most respected and experienced journalists - I urge anyone to give this a listen.

Post war childhood (5/5 people found this helpful)

An interesting memoir of postwar England and childhood. Although Mr Simpson is 7 years older than me, much of what he has written about has strong memories for me. He writes honestly about a family that was interesting and sad; of parents that were totally unsuited to one another and of a child who just wanted love and happiness. As a journalist, he has detailed an interesting part of our postwar history and I hope he goes on to produce a follow-up.

Days from a Different World: A Memoir of Childhood

John Simpson

Editorial Review:

Reader Reviews:

The best of the Simpson Autobiographies (0/0 people found this helpful)

Great service (0/1 people found this helpful)

A very sensitive and moving account of early childhood (2/2 people found this helpful)

Unmissable (4/4 people found this helpful)

Post war childhood (5/5 people found this helpful)

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