Non-Fiction Book Reviews

Book Review: More From Our Own Correspondent

By Sandy Amazeen Jan 24, 2009, 16:05 GMT

Since 1955, From Our Own Correspondent has been one of BBC Radio 4\'s flagship programs. Every week correspondents from around the world report on stories behind the headlines. After the huge success of From Our Own Correspondent, this new companion volume brings more exhilarating dispatches to armchair travelers everywhere.Here, some of Britain\'s most celebrated reporters describe much more than would normally come into a news story; their stories offer a ...more

Editor Tony Grant culled thousands broadcasts from top BBC journalists who contributed to the popular From Our Own Correspondent series for this collection of ninety-four dispatches from around the globe. From hot zones, flying on the world’s largest civilian aircraft, adventures on the most dangerous road in the world to Buddhist monks attempting to improve conditions in Burma, BBC journalists were on scene providing listeners with a ringside seat to the action.

Some stories like Kevin Connolly’s “The Last Hitchhiker” where he looks into possible reasons for the demise of hitchhiking throughout Europe are hilarious exposes. Others such as “Lessons in Love” by Chris Hogg are surprising social commentaries. Always entertaining, sometimes enlightening and educational, these short essays look behind the big headlines into the people, places and cultures that are an underreported part of the stories. Tuck this into your briefcase or carry-on and you won’t mind waiting in lines or offices as the stories transport you around the world.