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Sad Little Men

Inside the secretive world that shaped the British political establishment

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Sad Little Men

By: Richard Beard
Narrated by: John Sackville
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

The number #1 bestseller about the world that shaped Boris Johnson.

In 1975, as a child, Richard Beard was sent away from his home to sleep in a dormitory. So were David Cameron and Boris Johnson.

In those days a private boys' boarding school education was largely the same experience as it had been for generations: a training for the challenges of Empire. He didn't enjoy it. But the first and most important lesson was to not let that show.

Being separated from the people who love you is traumatic. How did that feel at the time, and what sort of adult does it mould?

This is a story about England, and a portrait of a type of boy, trained to lead, who becomes a certain type of man. As clearly as an X-ray, it reveals the make-up of those who seek power - what makes them tick, and why.
Sad Little Men addresses debates about privilege head-on; clearly and unforgettably, it shows the problem with putting a succession of men from boarding schools into positions of influence, including 10 Downing Street. Is this who we want in charge, especially at a time of crisis?

It is a passionate, tender reckoning - with one individual's past, but also with a national bad habit.

© Richard Beard 2021 (P) Penguin Audio 2021

 Cultural & Regional Education Parenting & Families Relationships School-Age Children Inspiring Thought-Provoking England
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Critic reviews

Read this book
Definitive and brilliantly expressed
Dazzling in its anger and the force of its argument
A sensitive and incisive analysis of the British class system...insanely readable
One of the finest polemics I have ever come across... Sad Little Men has been an eye-opener
A sensitive and incisive analysis of the British class system has no right to be as insanely readable and enjoyable as this book manages to be
Engaging and readable, powerful and cogent. A vivid portrait of the political elite exposed for the vulnerable men/ children they are
If you want to understand the aura of entitlement and untouchability shrouding our governing class, look no further than Beard's witty, unsparingly sharp and deeply moving anatomy of the emotional culture of England's boarding schools
Read this book
Utterly compelling, top proper stuff. I loved it to bits. The energy of it! I really felt for them (all) by the end
All stars
Most relevant
A revealing tale of how the public school system has fostered those who through dint of privilege have risen to the highest offices in the land. In my view, a most disturbing story.

Compulsory listening!

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I loved this audio book. Listened to it 3 times sitting on my balcony in India. I came here to get away from the politics, chaos, lies and the cost of living in the UK.
I once used to feel so proud of saying I lived in the UK. Clean water, free education, the NHS and a police force that did its job.
Now I feel utterly ashamed. What was all the striving in the past for? Definitely not what we have now. We could have always done better but the past 12 years have seen most of us shrivel to unrecognisable shells of ourselves.
As a secondary modern poorly educated woman with a lifetime dedicated to working in the NHS thank you Richard for giving me the insight and some understanding of why this is the case.
I feel cheated hurt and angry.

Helped me make sense

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I did know all this, but it is structured and relayed so well. The moment of ‘abandonment’ at the heart of everything. I remember well meeting an old Etonian at a wedding called ‘Bunny’ who negged me about my ‘lowly’ job, his bluff superiority barely disguised his brokenness. If I’d been older, wiser or tougher I might of put him in his place. Instead I just absorbed the crap. Like a lot of us so well indoctrinated - I was on the back foot because of his position/ privilege.

Unfortunately britain will never free itself from this. We will just adapt to a new order with a less overt face.

I normally never listen to a book not read by the author but this was exceptionally well narrated.

Fascinating

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This is the best book I've listened to in a year of fantastic books. It is a clear eyed, brutally honest and damning assessment of the boarding school system and the havoc it's wreaked on our country. Richard Beard is brave and imaginative in laying out his case through the work of a cast of commentators and his own soul searching. This would be powerful enough but he's a rare talent as a writer too. A crucial listen in understanding where our political "leaders" have taken us. Excellent narration too - in fact a masterclass. Highly recommended.

astonishingly relevant and wonderfully written

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A much better way of learning about public schools than attending one.

I was lucky that my parents sent me to the local state schools for all my education. As I progressed my career to lead a large department at Oxford University I have found myself by an ever increasing proportion of the privately educated. Many are emotionally repressed and lack empathy. I now understand why. Perhaps they were “budgeted senseless” but it didn’t teach them much “about life” to bastardise a line from George the boor from Four Weddings and a Funeral.

Explains a lot

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