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A Colossal Wreck provides ample evidence for Cockburn's standing as one of the left's most perceptive and entertaining commentators. * Guardian * Alexander Cockburn set a high standard of crusading journalism for fifty years ... With his Wildean wit, love of elegant women, penchant for hunting and fondness for P.G. Wodehouse, Cockburn defied the stereotype of the disgruntled left-wing scribe. * Independent * Whether journeying to Key West, Fla., Humboldt County, Calif., Ireland or Istanbul, Mr. Cockburn is a warrior/freethinker, armed with courage and gifted prose to cut down the hypocrisies of tyrants. He is a Marxist Mencken-a composite of comic-poet Andrei Condrescu, the erudite Christopher Hitchens and the gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. * New York Times * Probably the most gifted polemicist writing in English today. * Times Literary Supplement * An overflowing goodie basket of wit, expert deprecation, intellectual comradeship ... and incisive ramble. -- James Wolcott * Vanity Fair * Alex struck American journalism like lightning. -- Michael Tomasky * Daily Beast * Always surprising, outrageous, brilliant and yet strangely compassionate. He weaves together the public and the private with a sustained comic ingenuity that is matchless. -- Edward Said He had the courage to take on anything and anyone, from the most powerful organisations in the world to his closest friends, and the energy and persistence to follow his own path wherever it took him. * Guardian * Cockburn essentially pioneered the modern persona for which Christopher Hitchens became much better known: the fancily Oxford-educated leftie Brit litte?rateur/journalist who would say all the outrageous things his bland Yank counterparts lacked the wit, courage, erudition, or e?pater-spirit to utter on their own ... Cockburn was far more committed and purposeful in his outrageousness. -- James Fallows * Atlantic * Cockburn's stylish prose is full of erudition, ribald gossip, and pithy insight... [his] gleefully contrarian punditry makes for an entertaining read. * Publishers Weekly *

<p> Whether journeying to Key West, Fla., Humboldt County, Calif., Ireland or<br> Istanbul, Mr. Cockburn is a warrior/freethinker, armed with courage and<br> gifted prose to cut down the hypocrisies of tyrants. He is a Marxist Mencken<br> --a composite of comic-poet Andrei Condrescu, the erudite Christopher<br> Hitchens and the gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. New York Times <br><br> Probably the most gifted polemicist writing in English today. <br> Times Literary Supplement <br><br> Alex struck American journalism like lightning. <br> Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast <br><br> Always surprising, outrageous, brilliant and yet strangely compassionate. He<br> weaves together the public and the private with a sustained comic ingenuity<br> that is matchless. Edward Said<br><br> He had the courage to take on anything and anyone, from the most powerful<br> organisations in the world to his closest friends, and the energy and persistence<br> to follow his own path wherever it took him. Guardian <br><br> Alexander Cockburn set a high standard of crusading journalism for fifty<br> years ... With his Wildean wit, love of elegant women, penchant for hunting<br> and fondness for P. G. Wodehouse, Cockburn defied the stereotype of the<br> disgruntled left-wing scribe. Independent <br><br> Cockburn essentially pioneered the modern persona for which Christopher<br> Hitchens became much better known: the fancily Oxford-educated leftie Brit<br> litterateur/journalist who would say all the outrageous things his bland Yank<br> counterparts lacked the wit, courage, erudition, or epater -spirit to utter on<br> their own ... Cockburn was far more committed and purposeful in his outrageousness. Atlantic <br><br><br><br> From the Hardcover edition.

Whether journeying to Key West, Fla., Humboldt County, Calif., Ireland or Istanbul, Mr. Cockburn is a warrior/freethinker, armed with courage and gifted prose to cut down the hypocrisies of tyrants. He is a Marxist Mencken - a composite of comic-poet Andrei Condrescu, the erudite Christopher Hitchens and the gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. New York Times Probably the most gifted polemicist writing in English today. Times Literary Supplement Alex struck American journalism like lightning. Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast Always surprising, outrageous, brilliant and yet strangely compassionate. He weaves together the public and the private with a sustained comic ingenuity that is matchless. Edward Said He had the courage to take on anything and anyone, from the most powerful organisations in the world to his closest friends, and the energy and persistence to follow his own path wherever it took him. Guardian Alexander Cockburn set a high standard of crusading journalism for fifty years ... With his Wildean wit, love of elegant women, penchant for hunting and fondness for P. G. Wodehouse, Cockburn defied the stereotype of the disgruntled left-wing scribe. Independent Cockburn essentially pioneered the modern persona for which Christopher Hitchens became much better known: the fancily Oxford-educated leftie Brit litterateur/journalist who would say all the outrageous things his bland Yank counterparts lacked the wit, courage, erudition, or epater -spirit to utter on their own ... Cockburn was far more committed and purposeful in his outrageousness. Atlantic From the Hardcover edition.

Author Information

Alexander Cockburn was the co-editor of CounterPunch and the author of a number of titles, including Corruptions of Empire, The Golden Age Is in Us, Washington Babylon and Imperial Crusades. Brought up in Ireland, he moved to America in 1972 writing for the Village Voice, the Nation and many other journals. He died in July 2012.

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