Malcolm Turnbull’s hefty memoir makes for an undeniably interesting read. However, the story of Turnbull’s life is long, and in parts maybe arduous. This somehow works to serve a broad audience with a range of interests, given the amount of experiences he has had in his life and aims to cover during the book. We get the full spectrum – from his parents complicated marriage in his childhood years, all the way to his shafting from parliament at the end of his political career – and everything in between.

He is an enigmatic political figure and this book did nothing to help me confirm whether I really see Turnbull as belonging entirely to the Liberal Party. He seems to show ongoing commitment to progressive values and ideals, and bemoan the personalities of those who worked with and around him in the party room. Of Tony Abbott: ‘he was crazy’, and Scott Morrison, Turnbull’s eventual successor: ‘a Machiavellian plotter’. These admissions are satisfying to the reader who preferred Turnbull’s leadership to the current formation of the Liberal Party.

The salacious commentary, while fun, is softened by Turnbull’s admission to suffering bouts of depression surrounding his political losses. These admissions are unsurprising, as throughout the autobiography, Turnbull paints himself as a strongly ambitious character, who would undoubtedly be shaken by perceived failure. His struggles with mental health – eventually overcome – offer a refreshing insight into the real Turnbull, the man behind the commanding voice and posture, who achieved so much throughout his life – and made me like him all the more.

Reviewed by Erin Christie