Talking Heads places Alan Bennett in the highest tier of English dramatic writers

His finest achievement - indeed masterpiece wouldn't be too strong a word

Bennett's genius is his ability to satirize humanely. [His] prose is like stained glass: if you stare at it, you see things you missed

It's hardly a revelation to say that Alan Bennett has proved himself a master of the modern dramatic monologue... One of the finest dramatic achievements of the past few decades.

The memoirs of Lily's dad, choc-a-block with appalling anecdotes

A sensationally enjoyable piece of work

He creates an unforgettable portrait

Engrossing...entertaining and deeply affecting, a remembrance of a time when theatre in Britain actually mattered

Heilpern is sharp, gossipy and good fun, and he honours the best of Osborne without disguising the worst

A rip-roaring account of early struggles, huge triumphs, fraught marriages, friends and lovers abused, money wasted and, finally, health and talent evaporated

Both revelatory and disturbing. It paints a portrait of an English writer who is as complex and tormented as Evelyn Waugh

Fascinating...exhaustive perusal of the playwright's formative years

Clapton bares his soul. Fascinating. It's an absorbing read, like you've been granted access to a mind finally coming to terms with itself.

Difficult to put down

Clapton provides an orderly account of life in which all other considerations are secondary to the frequently selfish needs of The Artist'

Gold-plated tales of sex, drink, drugs and fame and moments of musical incandescence.

A warm portrait

A harrowing and searingly honest book about the unreal rock star life.

Clapton lays bare his life story in this witty but also painfully honest autobiography. Compelling and accomplished.

A painfully honest insider's account of an age all too often portrayed as one long party

A glorious rock history.

This book does what many rock historians couldn't: It debunks the legend...puts a lie to the glamour of what it means to be a rock star.

Strong stuff. Clapton reveals its author's journey to self-acceptance and manhood. Anyone who cares about the man and his music will want to take the trip with him.

Clapton is honest...even searing and often witty, with a hard-won survivor's humor...an honorable badge of a book.

Riveting

An even, unblinking sensibility defines the author's voice.

An unsparing self-portrait.

Both the youthful excesses and the current calm state are narrated with an engaging tone that nudges Clapton's story ahead of other rock'n'roll memoirs.

Clapton is a confessional, an addiction memoir, and a glorious rock history rolled into one, with a smidgeon of guilt and, ultimately redemption thrown in for good measure.

Clapton fills in many gray areas, recounting his highs and lows with a thoughtfulness often lacking rock memoirs.Methodically he whittles away at the larger-than-life rock god until a vulnerable, messed-up mortal emerges...Clapton is an absorbing tale of artistry, decadence and redemption.It's also an important reminder of the guitarist's imprint on rock music, as a sideman, solo artist and bandleader.Not bad for a blues snob from Surrey.

Clapton: The Autobiography does what many rock historians couldn't: It debunks the legend, de-mythologizes one of the most mythologized electric guitarists ever, puts a lie to the glamour of what is means to be a rock star...It's a cautionary tale that spills over into tragedy several times as love, lives and talents are all wasted.

Like the bluesmen who inspired him, Clapton has his share of scars...his compelling memoir is... a soulful performance.

Charming and surprisingly candid.

Absolutely brilliant