Hitch-22

A Memoir

By: Christopher Hitchens

Narrated by: Christopher Hitchens

Length: 17 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Over the course of his 60 years, Christopher Hitchens has been a citizen of both the United States and the United Kingdom. He has been both a socialist opposed to the war in Vietnam and a supporter of the U.S. war against Islamic extremism in Iraq.

He has been both a foreign correspondent in some of the world's most dangerous places and a legendary bon vivant with an unquenchable thirst for alcohol and literature. He is a fervent atheist, raised as a Christian, by a mother whose Jewish heritage was not revealed to him until her suicide.

In other words, Christopher Hitchens contains multitudes. He sees all sides of an argument. And he believes the personal is political. This is the story of his life, lived large.

©2010 Christopher Hitchens (P)2010 Hachette

Critic reviews

"Hitchens also proves to be more than a capable reader; his wit, erudition, and passionate unbelief could not have been conveyed as compellingly by a surrogate. Highly recommended for all general collections." (Library Journal on God Is Not Great)

"As narrator, he contributes a pleasantly moderated voice and a listener-friendly British accent." (AudioFile Magazine on God Is Not Great)

Hard to understand

What did you love best about Hitch-22?

I loved it that Hitch narrated his own story. On the other hand his narration leaves something to be desired in that sometimes the ends of his sentences were quite inaudible. A professional narrator wouldn't have made that mistake.

Despite some crassness, a wonderful memoir.

Would you listen to Hitch-22 again? Why?

Might listen to this again. Christopher was a learned and articulate individual. Lots of depth to each sentence.

What other book might you compare Hitch-22 to and why?

His brother Peter's "The Rage Against God." Peter's book centers purely on religion, but is also nearly a quarter of the length of "Hitch-22." Introspective insight from these two men were very valuable to me.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Christopher's recounting of a fan of his that, inspired by his work and his own moral motivations, became a soldier in the U.S. military and bravely (yet unknowingly) sacrificed himself for the sake of others. It's an anecdote that transcends the political spectrum, religious beliefs, and worldviews common and nuanced.

Any additional comments?

Note that there is some cursing, and Christopher is not afraid to infer sexual intimacy. It's worth examining if you're able to stomach that, however.

Pure Christopher Hitchens

I love it when an autobiographer performs his own audio book. Hitchens did so in his easy conversational style that often cloaked the sting of his opinions. I'm remiss in waiting until three years after his death to listen to Hitch-22.

I'm a long time admirer of Hitchens despite disagreeing with him on many topics. I admire his intellect, his clarity of presenting his case in speech and writing, his decency as a person,and possibly maybe most of all for his audacity in dealing with controversial topics.

For those of us who have been observers of his work for 25 or 30 years, there is little new in Memoirs other than his early life up until his late teens including his relationship with his mother and father. Hitchens was a profoundly moral man who acted on his beliefs. Those political beliefs were far left of center for all of his life, but not always apparently internally consistent. The book was extraordinarily well written and performed.

For those who do not know about Christopher Hitchens, this book is not the place to start. At least read his Wikipedia bio and watch a few of the many Youtuble videos that are readily available first.

I miss the contributions of Christopher Hitchens to the political dialog in the US and Europe. There is simply no journalist who can replace him. His relatively short 62 years were a well and fully lived life. I absolutely loved Memoirs.

Fantastic in Every Way and Very Hitch

If a book could be like a box of chocolates, then this could very well be a delightful box of Thorton’s. Knowing his serious body of work it is interesting to have insight into how he was raised from a semi working class background to Oxford.

I loved that he read his book. His reading is the perfect vehicle for his memoir. His voice guides the listener through the twists and turns of his life. His style of reading is exactly as I have seen in his numerous interviews and speeches.

The story of his mother and how she influenced his life was so telling, and as they say, behind every great man is a great woman, and that would be Yvonne.

Worth the wait and worth every moment of time spent listening to this book. I would give this more than 5 stars, and would say if you love Christopher Hitchens, you will love this book.

Tongue In Cheek: God is an Englishman.

Well done

I enjoyed hearing Hitchens read his own memoir. I have difficulty hearing, and despite his supposed mumbling, I found it quite easy to understand. This definitely provides insight into what makes Hitchens, well Hitchens - and I applaud him.

Hitched

This book is about as Hitch as you can get. I’m glad it was in his own voice.

Exquisite.

An exquisite book by one of our greatest American intellectuals. His literary references send one scouring the shelves to again and deliciously consume Orwell, Trotsky, Auden, Dawkins.

An autobiography from my intellectual hero

A fascinating autobiography by a fascinating person. The Man, the Myth, the Legend, the only and only Hitch.

To learn so much

Im sad to finish it really, my father was the Brit in my world, but no more.
We really are poorly educated & informed in America! That they found WMD in Iraq, that Greece and Cyprus had fascists after WWII, Salazar, that a million people marched to protect a fascist dictatorship who murdered in the 100s of thousands. That we would have let Milosevic do the same thing we'd been letting Sadam get away with if it wasn't for the interference of a famous feminist writer? (what??) Wow!!

amazing

such a good read. Christopher Hitchens is so good at reading. and the book was very interesting