A self-serving therapeutic memoir that disappoints

Would you try another book written by Craig Oliver or narrated by Craig Oliver?

The narration was fine.

What could Craig Oliver have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Taken time to reflect and leave his bubble before putting his thoughts down on paper.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narration was fine.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Unleashing Demons?

Nothing really.

Any additional comments?

I was a head says remain, heart says leave voter so I hope that this comes across as a balanced review. I found that the book focused on peddling the same rhetoric ad nauseam, the reason that leave won was clearly due to a failed campaign by Cameron et al with Craig playing a big part in this failure. The writing feels like a medicinal piece to try and convince himself that there was nothing more they could have done when deep down even Craig must realise that with the resources and support they received a better campaign would have sailed to victory at a canter.

The book also re-affirms how thick the bubble that 'they' live in really is. There are several instances which demonstrate this; the most poignant being an explanation of the campaigns response to the allegations that David Cameron received a gift of £200,000 from his mother in order to avoid inheritance tax. Craig acts utterly bemused that they offered a dubious excuse and it wasn't readily gobbled up by the media/public. This contempt and lack of respect for the public is exactly why a more schismatic form of politics is taking hold, I hope that changes are made soon before it is too late.

8 people found this helpful

A partisan attempt to refight the battles

Would you try another book written by Craig Oliver or narrated by Craig Oliver?

I don't think I would choose another book by this author. The narration was rushed and breathy, but the main issue was that this was a clearly partisan attempt to re-spin an already lost debate. I appreciate that Mr Oliver is a spin doctor by profession, and I have read a lot of political autobiographies that attempt the same thing - but this a particularly egregious and transparent example.

What could Craig Oliver have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Be more objective. His treatment of the facts was far too heavily skewed by his own position on the issues.

What three words best describe Craig Oliver’s performance?

Amateurish, rushed, breathy

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I got to the end of it!

Any additional comments?

Its a shame that the country has been denied a more balanced and less partisan view of the referendum campaign. I appreciate that it was a race to publish, but it would be interesting to see if he would have written it differently after 5 years has elapsed.

12 people found this helpful

A fascinating insight ...

A fascinating insight into the biggest UK political event for a generation. Craig is an excellent narrator and brings the events leading up to Brexit to life.

The pace of the book is spot on. The description of waves of confidence/doubt, in Number 10 gives you a sense of the high stakes in play here.

Cannot recommend this book highly enough.

3 people found this helpful

Loved it!

An amazing account from behind the scenes of daily political life. What an outstanding servant to the PM!

3 people found this helpful

entertaining

but bias is overwhelming. Writers main points are DC a great man, discredit Michael Gove as a weak quisling and BBC isn't fair. There are 2 sides to every story so will search out the opposing story. Read well.

2 people found this helpful

A genuine eye-opener

A newspaper reviewer highlights the fact that in the book author's opinion, only he (Craig Oliver) and the Prime Minister at the time (David Cameron). "got it right".
That's the wrong mindset in which to listen to this book.This is an wholly idiosyncratic but sincere insider account of a turbulent period in British politics. Knowing the outcome of the Referendum, I listened to and marvelled at the manipulations of other politicians who were more intent on furthering their individual careers than being loyal to the man who led the Conservative Party back into power.
The interaction between the BBC and Downing Street, and between the latter and print journalists is equally absorbing.
This book is too "raw" and hastily-written to be well structured prose, but what a disturbing insight it provides into the machinations of those who seek to govern us. The author's delivery is too garbled at times, but this is a fascinating book that I would highly recommend listening to, but beware it will destroy any remaining trust one has in democratic politics.

2 people found this helpful

Take with a pinch of salt

Very interesting to hear an opinion from the inside, but my goodness he doesn’t half love David Cameron. It does feel like a bit of a gushing ode to the former PM at times...which can be a bit cringeworthy. But nonetheless an interesting insight into Downing Street at the time.

1 person found this helpful

Great story about a very poor campaign

I enjoyed this book. It's astonishing how little responsibility Craig takes for what happened. What should have been an easy win turned into a disaster and a lot of it was Oliver's fault. It's hard not to agree with Cummings's description of Craig Oliver as 'clueless'. But it's a great yarn all the same, although I think Craig made a mistake narrating it himself. I prefer when professional actors do it unless the author is a bona fide celebrity whose voice you know well.

1 person found this helpful

A problematic book

What disappointed you about Unleashing Demons?

There are a few books about Brexit out there and I have read or listened to most. This is without doubt the weakest of the bunch. The author seems to write with hindsight and it is clear in many sections that we are being spun a retrospective narrative. The actual description of the vote and the aftermath lacks depth, drama or any effective writing skill.

Would you ever listen to anything by Craig Oliver again?

No, although I am sure that I will read some of his work as a speech writer. The long format just does not suit his style.

Would you be willing to try another one of Craig Oliver’s performances?

Very flat, and should have used the skills of an actor to bring the text to some form of life.

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Yes, it is an interesting account, but at an undergraduate level the book would get a solid 2.2

Any additional comments?

Read ALL OUT WAR by Tim Shipman - a much better and more balanced account of the same events.

3 people found this helpful

Self gratifying

An excuse is an excuse is an excuse, all I hear in this book Is self pitying excuses with someone who wants to blame everyone else for his mistakes and thinks that the shine only shines out of his gods backside David Cameron.

2 people found this helpful