DECEMBER 2022 - AudioFile
U2 frontman and activist Bono sings like an Irish tenor but performs his memoir with a resonant baritone that sounds clear and effortless. With his working-class Irish accent almost undetectable, he gives his narration an intensity that sounds appealing and genuinely connected to the drama, irreverence, and profundity of his story. Published and unpublished clips of U2 songs interrupt or flow behind his narration, along with musical excerpts from others' music and occasional sound effects that dart back and forth between one’s earbuds. For many listeners, the familiar U2 songs, original music, and Bono’s heartfelt reflections on his life and the human condition will soften his reputation as an acerbic, overly serious celebrity. Exceptional sound engineering can be heard through earphones or earpieces. T.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
★ 10/24/2022
Bono, lead vocalist and primary lyricist for the rock band U2, reflects on his creative and personal evolution in this powerful and candid debut memoir. Born Paul David Hewson and raised in 1970s Dublin by a Catholic father and a Protestant mother, Bono always viewed music as his “prayers.” With remarkable frankness, he details what makes a great song (“The greatest songwriting is never conclusive, but the search for conclusion”); domestic life with his wife, Ali, and their four children; how the band almost fell apart during the 1990 recording of Achtung Baby (“We ran out of love for being in the band”); why he always wears glasses (migraines that were eventually diagnosed as glaucoma); and his experience of the conflict between unionists and nationalists in Northern Ireland that lasted from 1968 to 1998. Along the way, Bono also shares plenty of memories of famous friends—Prince, he notes, is a “genius” who made him realize the importance of U2 owning their master tapes. Self-aware (Bono admits that sometimes he feels like he’s “a sham of a rock star”) and poignantly reflective (“I’m discovering surrender doesn’t always have to follow defeat”), this is a must-read. Agent: Jonny Geller, Curtis Brown. (Nov.)
From the Publisher
A VOGUE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
“Honest and direct . . . [Surrender] is defined largely by humility. This is an introspective story written by a man whose spirit is never far removed from the sadness and grief of his childhood; the hunger, literal and figurative, of a teen wannabe rocker; and the gratitude of one who worked his butt off and made it to the top . . . This is the rare rock star memoir written by a rock star who, you get the impression, could have been a writer . . . Bono has a gift for making even the unattainable seem relatable . . . He’s humble, even self-effacing. He might be fun to have a beer with. He is very much of this Earth, even if on occasion he might seem to float above the water.” —The L.A. Times
“Compelling . . . Surrender is more introspective than salacious or score-settling, and proof that the tunesmith who wrote it also speaks fluent prose.” —The Washington Post
“Surrender soars whenever the spotlight comes on. Bono is never more powerful, on the page or the stage, than when he strives for the transcendence that only music can offer . . . [Bono] is open and honest, with language that can be witty and distinctive, addressing his competitive relationship with his father or growing up against the backdrop of Ireland’s political violence.” —The New York Times
“Lovely and thoughtfully written . . . An earthy, self-deprecating, often funny appraisal of the sometimes contradictory paths Bono has traveled.” —Vulture
“This is Bono at his best: thoughtful, reflective, revealing a wisdom that his rock-star persona covers up . . . At the root of it all you don't doubt his decency or integrity.” ―The Times (UK)
“A rattling good yarn . . . characteristically expansive, but it whizzes by . . . Bono has storytelling verve and a genuine desire for self-examination and is enthusiastic about praising others, often at his own expense . . . [A] generous, energetic book.” ―The Guardian (UK)
“Bono's memoir bares his soul . . . Has any rock superstar written a more revealing biography? He deftly balances the comical and profound and packs anecdotes with cameos by the rich and famous, from Frank Sinatra to Pope John Paul II.” ―Daily Telegraph (UK)
“Beautifully evoked, a mixture of Joycean exuberance and Chandleresque irony . . . most revealing are the intimate personal experiences that shaped him and his chaotic creative process. Punctuating it all is the music. Each chapter uses a U2 song to pull us down memory lane.” ―The Sunday Times (UK)
“Bono's honesty will win over his harshest critics . . . the U2 frontman's memoir is a triumph . . . Honest, witty, informative and beautifully written. Surrender will surely join the ranks of the great rock memoirs.” ―Irish Independent (UK)
“Sometimes confessional, many times humorous, and always clever and entertaining, Bono has delivered a fascinating autobiography of a major force in popular music and world affairs for all readers.” —Library Journal [starred review]
“Bono's first book will generate enormous interest . . . That the singer-songwriter writes well for the page should not come as a surprise, but his drawings might. Fans of Bono and U2 will adore this rich and expansive memoir, while music lovers of all persuasions will find much to enjoy here, too.” —Booklist [starred review]
“A powerful and candid debut memoir . . . With remarkable frankness, he details what makes a great song; domestic life with his wife, Ali, and their four children; how the band almost fell apart during the 1990 recording of Achtung Baby; why he always wears glasses; and his experience of the conflict between unionists and nationalists in Northern Ireland . . . Self-aware and poignantly reflective, this is a must-read.” —Publishers Weekly [starred review]
Library Journal
★ 11/01/2022
Bono (born Paul Hewson in 1960), lead vocalist and lyricist of the band U2 and philanthropist, tells his story in a lively, conversational style. He begins with his childhood in suburban Dublin and includes details about the sudden death of his revered mother and the formation of U2 with three local teenagers. The singer charts the band's musical development from its punk-inspired debut Boy (1980), to its million-selling statement about America, Joshua Tree (1987), to the electronica of Zooropa (1993), and their more recent efforts. In the last section, Bono deals with his increasing involvement in such social issues as forgiving debt for the lowest-income countries and his staunch fight against AIDS, poverty, and racism. Throughout, he touches on his faith, family, and encounters with such notable musicians as Luciano Pavarotti, Frank Sinatra, and Johnny Cash; politicians Mikhail Gorbachev, Angela Merkel, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush; and businessmen Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, and Bill Gates. VERDICT Sometimes confessional, many times humorous, and always clever and entertaining, Bono has delivered a fascinating autobiography of a major force in popular music and world affairs for all readers.—Dr. Dave Szatmary
DECEMBER 2022 - AudioFile
U2 frontman and activist Bono sings like an Irish tenor but performs his memoir with a resonant baritone that sounds clear and effortless. With his working-class Irish accent almost undetectable, he gives his narration an intensity that sounds appealing and genuinely connected to the drama, irreverence, and profundity of his story. Published and unpublished clips of U2 songs interrupt or flow behind his narration, along with musical excerpts from others' music and occasional sound effects that dart back and forth between one’s earbuds. For many listeners, the familiar U2 songs, original music, and Bono’s heartfelt reflections on his life and the human condition will soften his reputation as an acerbic, overly serious celebrity. Exceptional sound engineering can be heard through earphones or earpieces. T.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2022-08-01
The U2 frontman considers his life through the lenses of faith, family, activism, and, occasionally, music.
It’s not that Bono avoids discussing his world-famous band. He writes wittily about meeting future band mates (and wife) in school in Dublin and how he first encountered guitarist The Edge watching him play music from Yes’ album Close to the Edge. “Progressive rock remains one of the few things that divide us,” he writes. Bono is candid about the band’s missteps, both musical (the 1997 album, Pop) and ethical (force-feeding its 2014 album, Songs of Innocence, to every Apple iTunes customer). At nearly every turn, the author spends less time on band details than he does wrestling with the ethical implications of his successes and failures. Dedicating each of the book’s 40 chapters to a U2 song gives him a useful framing device for such ruminations: “Bad” deals with the loss of a friend to heroin, “Iris (Hold Me Close)” with the death of his mother when he was 14, “One” about the band’s own struggles. Considering Bono’s onstage penchant for sanctimony, his tone is usually more self-deprecating, especially when discussing his efforts to address AIDS in Africa and find the “top-line melodies” that would persuade politicians to release funding. He concedes being imperfect at the job; after a weak negotiation with then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, he recalls being berated by George Soros, who tells him he “sold out for a plate of lentils.” There’s little in the way of band gossip, and the author has a lyricist’s knack for leaving matters open to interpretation, which at times feels more evasive and frustrating than revealing. But he also evades the standard-issue rock-star confessional mode, and his story reveals a lifelong effort of stumbling toward integrity, “to overcome myself, to get beyond who I have been, to renew myself. I’m not sure I can make it.”
Chatty and self-regarding but pleasantly free of outright narcissism. A no-brainer for U2’s legions of fans.