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Julian Assange
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Julian Assange: The Unauthorised Autobiography Hardcover – 22 September 2011

by Julian Assange (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 121 ratings
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In December 2010, Julian Assange signed a contract with Canongate Books to write a book - part memoir, part manifesto - for publication the following year. At the time, Julian said: 'I hope this book will become one of the unifying documents of our generation. In this highly personal work, I explain our global struggle to force a new relationship between the people and their governments.' In the end, the work was to prove too personal. Despite sitting for more than fifty hours of taped interviews discussing his life and the work of WikiLeaks with the writer he had enlisted to help him, Julian became increasingly troubled by the thought of publishing an autobiography. After reading the first draft of the book at the end of March, Julian declared: 'All memoir is prostitution.' In June 2011, with thirty-eight publishing houses around the world committed to releasing the book, Julian told us he wanted to cancel his contract. We disagree with Julian's assessment of the book. We believe it explains both the man and his work, underlining his commitment to the truth. Julian always claimed the book was well written; we agree, and this also encouraged us to make the book available to readers. And the contract? By the time Julian wanted to cancel the deal he had already used the advance money to settle his legal bills. So the contract still stands. We have decided to honour it - and to publish. This book is the unauthorised first draft. It is passionate, provocative and opinionated - like its author. It fulfils the promise of the original proposal and we are proud to publish it. Canongate Books, September 2011
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  1. Print length
    352 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Canongate Books
  4. Publication date
    22 September 2011
  5. Dimensions
    16.2 x 3.2 x 24 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    0857863843
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0857863843
  8. See all details
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Product description

Review

It is not hard to see why Assange is now fretting that, in this text, beautifully crafted by Andrew O'Hagan, he has given away too much of himself and said too little about his mission. That is exactly what makes the book such an engrossing read ― * Independent *

An intriguing self-portrait ... Assange reveals a lot about himself ... Well worth reading ... Although Mr Assange makes an easy target, he has interesting things to say, however controversial. And the world does sometimes need such annoying, single-minded people to move forward. Mr Assange and his creation, WikiLeaks, have made it a more open and transparent place, and hence a bit more just. ― * Economist *

Beautifully textured . . . There is something special about him: a scrappiness, a chippiness, a kind of brilliance. Whatever his doubts, he is well served by this book. ― * The Times *

It is not hard to see why the WikiLeaker turned so coy. The book, written from interviews with him, reveals an extraordinary character, both inspiring and deeply flawed, who turns on those who fail to see things his way. ― * The Sunday Times *

Immensely readable and intriguing ― * FS Tech *

It helps, especially through its early chapters, to humanise a genius more sinned against than sinning ― * Evening Standard *

Succeeds in providing welcome context to both the cause and the now legendary self-assurance of journalsim's latest bad boy ― * Time Out *

A compelling read -- The Guardian

About the Author

Julian Assange is the editor in chief of WikiLeaks. In 2010 he won Time magazine's 'Reader's Choice Person of the Year' poll and the Sydney Peace Prize, and was named Le Monde's 'Man of the Year'. He has also been awarded the Amnesty International 'UK Media Award' and the Sam Adams Award for 'Integrity in Intelligence'. In February 2011, his organisation, WikiLeaks, was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize after publishing three of the biggest leaks of classified information in history: the Afghan War Diaries, the Iraq War Logs and Cablegate.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Canongate Books; Main edition (22 September 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0857863843
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0857863843
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 16.2 x 3.2 x 24 cm
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 121 ratings

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Julian Assange

Julian Assange

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Lara Bista
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book on Julian Assange
Reviewed in the United States on 26 April 2024
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I became interested in Julian Assange because of the information I was finding in the news. Some books will leave you feeling like you need to know more. Not this one. I felt like it was very comprehensive. Great read and totally recommend it.
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palmans alain
5.0 out of 5 stars 👍
Reviewed in France on 25 April 2021
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👍
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tejas
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice book
Reviewed in India on 18 June 2019
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Nice book
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cristina vizcaino
5.0 out of 5 stars camino a la nueva información
Reviewed in Spain on 6 June 2014
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El libro de Assange me ha enseñado cómo la información no sólo está controlada y censurada por los gobiernos sino también por la prensa misma. Los grandes grupos de información controlan e informan a su antojo porque información es poder. Por eso no quieren reconocer la fuerza de internet, quieren controlarlo de alguna manera, les asustan las redes sociales. Y no apoyaron a Wikileaks, no reconocieron que era un paso adelante. Bueno, pues se equivocan la información se les va a ir escapando de las manos porque podrán quizás ahora con Assange pero va a haber más Assanges y más Wikileaks, de eso estoy segura.
One person found this helpful
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Mags
5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 July 2013
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I very much enjoyed reading this book and have no doubt in my mind that Julian has put his own life in jeopardy in order to expose the lies and corruption that all the world's governments are up to their necks in. This sort of corruption and lying to the people has been going on forever of course but once people started learning to read, they were able to discover bit by bit, the truth. The Internet has allowed the flood gates of knowledge to open and this was one of the things that "they" were scared of and "they" tried to suppress and control what we were allowed to read, think and do. Since organised religions started putting the fear of god (literally) into the uneducated peoples of the world, there have been individuals prepared to release them from their ignorance by shining a light into the darkness. Julian Assange and people like him are shining a light and deserve medals for putting themselves out there to bring us the truth. "They", of course, will not rest until they have arranged for untimely "accidents" for these saviours and anyone who has ever read any investigative journalism into the subject will know that these "accidents" happen all the time when "they" have been exposed for the lying ba**ards that they are! Good luck to Julian and people like him and please carry on keeping us informed of the things that we should know and are being kept from us. Remember that there are lot of us out there following you and believing in you and supporting you. Many of us have lost all faith in the world's leaders and lost hope for a world run by honest and trustworthy people. And we truly appreciate your wonderful efforts. Thanks.
2 people found this helpful
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