In the original dustsheet. Black cloth binding with silver title on the spine.

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Alan Johnson’s childhood was not so much difficult as unusual, particularly for a man who was destined to become Home Secretary. Not in respect of the poverty, which was shared with many of those living in the slums of post-war Britain, but in its transition from two-parent family to single mother and then to no parents at all… This is essentially the story of two incredible women: Alan’s mother, Lily, who battled against poor health, poverty, domestic violence and loneliness to try to ensure a better life for her children; and his sister, Linda, who had to assume an enormous amount of responsibility at a very young age and who fought to keep the family together and out of care when she herself was still only a child.

Played out against the background of a vanishing community living in condemned housing, the story moves from post-war austerity in pre-gentrified Notting Hill, through the race riots, school on the Kings Road, Chelsea in the Swinging 60s, to the rock-and-roll years, making a record in Denmark Street and becoming a husband and father whilst still in his teens. This Boy is one man’s story, but it is also a story of England and the West London slums which are so hard to imagine in the capital today. No matter how harsh the details, Alan Johnson writes with a spirit of generous acceptance, of humour and openness which makes his book anything but a grim catalogue of miseries.

Reviews:

• “the best memoir by a politician you will ever read” (Philip Collins The Times)

• “a poignant memoir…Johnson writes wonderfully” (Mary Kenny Telegraph)

• “deeply moving and unforgettable” (Lynn Barber Sunday Times)

• “a handsome and eloquent tribute” (Peter Wilby Guardian)

• “beautifully, beautifully written… his style is utterly simple, with a wit so understated that every reader will believe that he or she alone got it” (John Rentoul Independent on Sunday)

• “Neither mawkish nor sentimental, it is an evocative, filmic account on an early childhood… would make a fabulous drama that, for all its squalor, lifts the spirits” (Judith Woods Daily Telegraph)

• “a testament to the power of family love and a tribute to two strong women” (Ian Birrell Daily Mail)

• “Wonderful and moving… unreadable with a dry eye” (The Times)

• “the biography of a politician like no other – beautifully observed, humorous, moving, uplifting; told with a dry self-deprecating wit and not a trace of self-pity” (Chris Mullin Observer)

• “No ordinary politician’s memoir … wonderful.” (John Grimond The Spectator)

• “Truly remarkable. A brilliant portrait of what it was like growing up poor in London in the 1950s.” (Julia Langdon The Tablet)

• “I love this book. Here is a classic account of working class life… It deserves to the read and admired” (Paul Bailey The Oldie)

• “gracefully written” (Times Literary Supplement)

• “Alan Johnson may be the best Labour prime minister Britain never had, but his exceptional memoir is mercifully free of politics… all this he recalls in quiet, unpretentious prose” (Intelligent Life)

• “Outstanding… Hailed by readers of all parties and none, it is a popular piece of literature rated by Hilary Mantel, with a rare ability to make old men cry” (Guardian)

• “An amazing and inspiring story” (Claire Tomalin Independent)

• “He recalls his childhood in detail, plainly, movingly, sometimes amusingly, but without a trace of self-pity or bitterness…a handsome and eloquent tribute” (Guardian)

Alan Arthur Johnson (born 17 May 1950) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Education and Skills from 2006 to 2007, Secretary of State for Health from 2007 to 2009, Home Secretary from 2009 to 2010, and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2011. A member of the Labour Party, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle from 1997 to 2017.

Johnson served in the Cabinet during both the Tony Blair government and that of Gordon Brown. He served under Blair as Minister of State for Universities from 2003 to 2004, as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2004 to 2005, and as President of the Board of Trade from 2005 to 2006.

In May 2023, Johnson was announced as the next Chancellor of the University of Hull. He will succeed Virginia Bottomley in July.