Description

The searing inside story of our broken politics from the former Cabinet minister and co-host of The Rest Is Politics.

‘The most exceptional political memoir I’ve ever read’
ALAN JOHNSON

‘An instant classic’
MARINA HYDE

‘At last a politician who can write’
SEBASTIAN FAULKS

Over the course of a decade, Rory Stewart went from being a political outsider to standing for prime minister – before being sacked from a Conservative Party that he had come to barely recognise.

Uncompromising, honest and darkly humorous, this is his story of the challenges, absurdities and realities of political life. Instantly praised as a new classic, it is an astonishing portrait of our turbulent times.

‘Genuinely eye-opening…always riveting, often horrifying’
iNEWS

‘Beautifully written’
GUARDIAN

‘Hugely entertaining’
EVENING STANDARD

BRITISH BOOK AWARDS NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024

* A BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR THE FT, GUARDIAN, SUNDAY TIMES, TELEGRAPH, TIMES, OBSERVER, i NEWSPAPER, NEW STATESMAN, PROSPECT, CHURCH TIMES AND SCOTSMAN *

Politics on the Edge was a #1 Sunday Times bestseller from 09.09.23-16.09.23, 09.12.23-16.12.23, 30.12.23-06.01.24 and 11.06.24-25.06.24.

Publisher Review

There's no denying that Rory Stewart stands almost alone among British politicians: he's one of a handful who can actually turn a phrase. That talent is put to good use here - no other account of how Cameron Toryism curdled into May and Johnson is likely to be as evocative or amusing as this one * The Times, *The Times Political Book of the Year* * If you want to better understand the catastrophe that has been our government since 2010, or you just want to bask in Stewart's beautifully formulated prose, read this book * New Statesman, *Books of the Year* * A brilliant insider's account of the Cameron-May-Johnson years * FT, Books of the Year 2023 * It is the sheer sharpness, originality and truth-telling grace of Stewart's prose, along with the vital importance of his subject, that makes his new book a truly exceptional political autobiography, both a pleasure to read, and a vital wake-up call * Scotsman, *Books of the Year* * Full of sharp observations and often funny... a portrait of a country where power is wielded by empty careerists, working in a broken system * Financial Times, *Books of the Year* *