Cirrus@Austlit

'Graham Freudenberg has led an amazing life and A Figure of Speech is his life, in his own words. From a young boy growing up in Brisbane to his time as a speech writer from Calwell to Carr, this book will look at those legendary people; friends and foes he has influenced. From his campaigns working on speeches for Gough Whitlam and more recently, for Bob Carr, A Figure of Speech is a landmark book tracing the political and social history of post-war Australia through the words of our most prolific political wordsmith.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Graham Freudenberg's inside account of Gough Whitlam's political rise and fall is one of the great classics of Australian political writing. From his position as Gough's speechwriter and confidant, just out of the spotlight of history, Freudenberg was an eyewitness to Gough's spectacular rise and fall, which he documents with compelling drama. But A Certain Grandeur's most significant achievement is to capture so vividly the character of the man - dictatorial, petulant, erudite, revolutionary.

'This new edition has been updated to include the Labor Party's regeneration following the Dismissal, and to lay to rest myths about Gough and his government's achievements that have prevailed in the three decades since, including those surrounding what has become one of the most controversial legacies: East Timor.' (From the publisher's website, 2009 rev.ed.)