''My Booky Wook'' is a

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...

, written by

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

comedian and actor

Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian and actor known for his flamboyant, loquacious style and manner. Brand has received three British Comedy Awards: Best Newcomer (2006), Best Live Stand-Up (2008), and the award for ...

, published in 2007 by

Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint (trade name), imprint of Hachette (publisher), Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs ...

. It was released in North America and Australia in 2009 by HarperCollins Publishers.

Summary

This warts-and-all account of Brand's life follows, in vivid detail, the star's life from his troubled childhood in Grays End Close, Grays,

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, to his first taste for fame in stage school up to his turbulent drug addiction and his triumphant rise to fame from '' Re:Brand'' to ''

Big Brother's Big Mouth This is a complete list of shows about and relating to ''Big Brother UK'' and ''Celebrity Big Brother''. The civilian edition ran from 2000 to 2018 and the celebrity edition ran from 2001 to 2018. ''Big Brother'' ''Big Brother'' was a daily sho ...

'' to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

Chapters

''My Booky Wook'' is divided into four sections. Its title is in the style of the fictional

Nadsat Nadsat is a fictional register or argot used by the teenage gang members in Anthony Burgess's dystopian novel ''A Clockwork Orange''. Burgess was a linguist and he used this background to depict his characters as speaking a form of Russian-influ ...

language from ''

A Clockwork Orange ''A Clockwork Orange'' may refer to: * ''A Clockwork Orange'' (novel), a 1962 novel by Anthony Burgess ** ''A Clockwork Orange'' (film), a 1971 film directed by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel *** ''A Clockwork Orange'' (soundtrack), the film ...

'': Brand explained the reference during his appearance on '' Have I Got News For You'' in December 2007.

Critical reception

The book garnered mostly positive reviews. '' The Sun'' called it "candid, funny and moving." ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'' claimed it was "better written and more entertaining than any number of the celebrity autobiographies that clog the shelves of bookshops." However, some reviews were less complimentary: ''

Private Eye ''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satire, satirical and current affairs (news format), current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely r ...

'' magazine called it "dismal and masturbatory." The book won the Biography of the year at the 2008

British Book Awards The British Book Awards or Nibbies are literary awards for the best UK writers and their works, administered by ''The Bookseller''. The awards have had several previous names, owners and sponsors since being launched in 1990, including the National ...

and the Outstanding Literary Achievement at the 2009

Spike Guys' Choice Awards The Guys Choice (formerly known as Spike Guys Choice Awards) is an awards show produced by the Viacom cable channel Spike from 2007 to 2016. The winners were originally chosen based on voting by fans and viewers of the channel until 2015, when the ...

Origins of book title

The book's title was first mentioned on 24 September 2006, during an episode of Brand's former radio show, '' The Russell Brand Show''.

Film adaptation

Brand planned to star as himself in a film adaptation of the book, originally scheduled to be filmed by British director

Michael Winterbottom Michael Winterbottom (born 29 March 1961) is an English film director. He began his career working in British television before moving into features. Three of his films—''Welcome to Sarajevo'', '' Wonderland'' and '' 24 Hour Party People''� ...

at the end of 2008 or early in 2009. The project has since been shelved by Brand, who did not want American audiences to learn of his "chequered past" without reading the book first.

Sales

The book has sold more than 600,000 copies since it was released.

References

External links

''My Booky Wook'' press release

Book review
by the ''Sunday Times''. {{Authority control 2007 non-fiction books Books by Russell Brand British memoirs Hodder & Stoughton books Show business memoirs