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An exciting read!
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I loved this book. It's really unusual. You can dip in and out. Or read it in one gulp. What were you doing in the 60s, 70s or 80s? Well the footnotes will tell what was going in the world around you. So all you need is to plug in your own personal memory stick. And there it is, your life in 298 pages. I LOVED this book. But then I wrote it. If you want to know what happened to Oliver in the 90s, 00s and 10s the publisher insists this book sells.
It's the best book I've ever written. It's the only book I've ever written.
I hope you buy it - Oliver Milner
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Fun and light hearted. Easy to read.
Easy to put down thus easy to pick up again.
Well done.
I have 7 books to read, and started this one!
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What a treasure of memories! Not simply Oliver’s (even though thoroughly engaging as these are) but the ones conjured up in the mind of the reader, taken back to retrace one’s own journey through the same years (mine coincidentally also starting with the same year of birth). I am only half way through and have deliberately slowed the pace of reading so as to allow time to reflect on my own life events as Oliver takes us through each of the years.
I love the colourful and lively style of writing and the national and global factual events are well researched. Importantly it’s spiced with wit as is typical of Oliver! I will certainly be buying the next instalment! Thank you Olly!
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When choosing a biography one would normally pick a subject you have heard of. You probably haven't heard of Oliver Milner but that doesn't matter. In 'Memory Stick', Milner documents his fascinating life interwoven with major events at the time. This technique is not only engaging, it is informative and shows the impact politics, sport and pop music have. Milner is also very funny. It is a biography but it is also part of social history and a celebration of life. The format is inventive and different. So well done Mr Milner, whoever you are.
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A good read! I highly recommend it to autobiography and memoir lovers.
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I loved the concept. A time capsule for the future. Being into family history, the premise chimed. But what you get is much universal and interesting in many ways, a personal timeline with a quirky take on what is going on in the world around. Something to dip into and keep coming back to. Throughout that cheeky take on a mad world.
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Not only a compelling autobiography but a real trip down memory lane reminding us of a myriad of events which have impacted our lives ( to a greater or lesser degree) and many that will resonate with readers of all ages. Cleverly written to grasp and retain the readers' attention, but something that can be dipped into and out off or even just used as a point of reference. Love the footnotes! Can't wait for part 2.
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There are a number of excellent books that cover the recent past in entertaining, episodic detail. David Kynaston's and Dominic Sandbrook's series spring to mind. Milner's Memory Stick brings something different, weaving personal experience - both entertaining and moving - into the chronology of a period I know well, being of similar age.
An eclectic array of events, people and experiences kept flooding back as I read the book - from Pogle's Wood to Watergate, from the long hot summer of 1977 to the infamous Leeds team of 73/74 (infamous to a Man Utd supporter anyway). Less familiar but fascinating was Milner's childhood in Nigeria which clearly made a deep impression on him. I also learned (on the first page!) what strobogrammatic means - a new one to me.
The book stops tantalisingly in 1987, leaving plenty of capacity required for Memory Stick 2.
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This is best-seller material. I couldn’t put it down. How many autobiographies are genuine page-turners! Some of the stories are laugh out loud funny. It’s also wistful in places, and sad, as our lives sometimes are. The footnotes device is really clever. I join the other reviewers in wanting to know when’s the next book coming out. I can’t wait. Encore!! Encore!!
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The human memory is a strange thing, consisting not of a tidy narrative but of an unstructured collection of the bits of our past that - for whatever reason - happen to stay with us. The joy of Oliver Milner's autobiography is that it delivers the raw material - a window into the events from which a story could, if you choose, be created, but delivered true to how life really is, sometimes following a story arc, more often not. This is truly a "memory stick" of the personal moments - the sad, the trivial, the funny, the bizarre - set within a timeline of a changing world, an affirmation of life and an invitation to think back on, treasure, and celebrate one's own memory stick. A pleasure.
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Memory Stick is a highly original debut novel by Oliver Milner, cleverly combining a historical journey through the decades with his own fascinating personal history.
That combination ensures that your own memories are triggered throughout, leading to a highly personal and reflective trip down memory lane.
A terrific idea skillfully delivered and with a large dose of humour throughout.
I would highly recommend and I look forward to future works by Oliver Milner.
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The style of Memory Stick immediately makes it a very readable and engaging autobiography; it is full of lovely anecdotes and always self-deprecating in a way that makes you both empathise with and laugh along with the narrator. The ongoing historical, geographical and cultural footnotes add to the progression and to the structure of the memoir. The writer has a deft touch in terms of style and the level of detail is never burdensome or heavy. From Yorkshire to Nigeria, from Action Man to Leeds United, the book transports you around the world and back to a more innocent age initially, before striding confidently into the here and now. Overall, a pleasure to read and thoroughly recommended.
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An entertaining memoir intersperced with history. Lots of fun.
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A veritable jog down memory lane for anyone born in the 1960s (or 1970s) directed by humorous reflections and “where were you when….?” moments. More memory "carrots" than memory "sticks" you’ll find you want to know how Oliver’s journey progresses through life – and reflect back on your own journey as a result of the flashbacks this will inspire. The only thing that is missing is the musical backdrop! Looking forward to the sequel – and the grown up Oliver in a proper job, with proper prospects and no doubt some life affirming observations to map the journey. (Darren Battle, Real Estate Malingerer and Child of the 1960s)
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If you have lived your formative years in the 60s to the 80s, particularly if it was in Yorkshire and other exotic places abroad, this is a “must read” book. Not only is it beautifully written and wonderfully crafted, but this autobiography also reveals that we have all been or will go through the same highs and lows in life, from dashes with danger as we grow up to comedy capers as we stumble into a working career. It reminded me of similar anecdotes in my youth living abroad but none were as outrageous and hilarious as his. The author is a gifted storyteller and his riveting narrative superbly bound together with historical moments will keep you turning the pages in eager anticipation until the end. I could relate to the life of Oliver Milner in more senses than one and it has inspired me to get on with writing my family history as well.
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An original and very quirky take on the ADD (anonymous autobigraphical diary) genre. An enjoyable read, putting light-hearted life anecdotes in the context of 'boots-on-the-ground' late 20th century history - a good reminder (as per the double meaning of the book title) of how quickly our perspective on past events can change without being firmly anchored. This is all especially pertinent at a time when the so-called 'Trusted News Initiative' can see fit to dictate government policy, which subsequently gets turned into propaganda (and enforced by nudge and counter disinformation units who discredit and smear those that constructively critique surch Orwellian nonsense).
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