Prezza: My Story: Pulling No Punches

by John Prescott

Book by John Prescott

Genres: Politics, Autobiography, Nonfiction

416 pages, Hardcover

First published May 29, 2008

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really fabulous read. I thoroughly recommend it. I'd give it six stars if I could!

During the years of Conservative government John Prescott was always there in opposition blustering and expounding labour theories and policies. There was something of the buffoon about him. Or so I was led to think. When Labour came into government I began to see a different John Prescott, but for some reason the media didn't let the real man shine through; they preferred to show to poke fun, often cruelly. I looked forward to the day when he would publish an autobiography.

I bought this book late last year and devoured it greedily. It is written so well and so personally by John. I feel that I know both him and Pauline, almost personally in fact. The book confirmed my previous thoughts: that the image portrayed by the media belied a man of great integrity, decency and with a sense of fun too. Was he the power behind the throne? Well I'm not sure about that (I'm no politico) but what is clear from the book is that without JP it is unlikely that Blair or Brown would have become prime minister.

An ardent trades unionist, a supporter of the rights of the worker but certainly no red Ken. The detailed chronicle of his rise through the ranks of the NUS and his life at sea was really fascinating. Against all the odds (and there were plenty of them thrown in his way) he came out on top, but he didn't gloat.

I didn't realise he was so closely involved in Kyoto. Indeed as becomes apparent in the book, he was the major driver and deserves much credit for tenacity and negotiation to achieve agreement, drawing on his long career in the union movement.

This review probably reads as written by a psychophant. I promise I'm not! But I was brought up by parents who thought he was awful, a nasty piece of work and the buffoon I've already referred to. I saw something more there, but politicians are so difficult to get to know properly when they are aspiring to, and then in, high public office.

I feel I know the real man now. And I like him very much. Enough that of all the books I've read lately, he's the guy I'd most like to tell personally how much I enjoyed reading his book. This book is definitely staying on my bookshelves for reading again in the future.

[Rupert Matthews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written just after John Prescott left office, this book takes a broad view of his life and career. Unlike many political memoirs, which just concentrate on time in office, this book has quite a lot of back story. I enjoyed this as it told us much about where Prescott came from and why he held the views he did. There is also a fair bit about his family life, again not just about what he did in ministerial office.
Like many memoirs it concentrates on the triumphs and skates over the disasters - but that is only to be expected.
I found the book to be well written and light in tone. The story bounces along at a fair old pace, never getting too bogged down in detail nor focussing too much on any one aspect. In other words, a jolly good read. I suppose it helps if you remember the events he is talking about, but if not then don't worry as the text does a pretty good job of explaining things as it goes along.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read, especially with a general election coming up. I learnt a lot about how politics works. I enjoyed the reference to Russ Abbot (the last autobiography I read was The Krankies and they too mentioned Russ Abbot). I enjoyed reading about Prezza’s sparing with opponents such as Nicholas Soames. There was probably more information about the National Union of Seamen than I wanted. This is the only political memoir I’ve ever read so I can’t judge it as an example of the genre.

[Fiona Bromelow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I borrowed this book from the library. The last time it was taken out was in 2017. I can see why. It's neither really history (and when it is people probably will only remember Blair and Brown rather than those around them) or current affairs (it ends in 2008 when Ed Balls and David Milliband were the future) but I enjoyed it. Having grown up with a father who was involved in politics and a Grandfather who lived in Hull it brought back memories. It was quite an easy read and I'm glad I borrowed it