Seasoned political journalist Karen Middleton takes on the Anthony Albanese story. Albanese: Telling It Straight is a well fleshed out biography of Labor's current opposition leader, Anthony Albanese. First published in 2016, it tells of the personal and the political. Albanese was born in 1963 to Maryanne Ellery and Carlo Albanese. His parents' union was a brief one. They met on a cruise ship where Carlo was a steward, but their differing circumstances (Carlo was from Italy, Maryanne from the Western suburbs of Sydney) meant the relationship could not be pursued. When Maryanne found she was pregnant, her parents helped raise the child. To avoid unwanted questions and attention, Anthony's mother invented a story. She told everyone except a select few that she had married Carlo, but that he had tragically died in a car accident. Young Anthony would not learn the truth until he was aged fourteen, when his mother sat him down to explain. He would not meet his father until he was a middle-aged man. (The detective work involved in finding Carlo makes for a dramatic final act of Middleton's biography, with the surprise help of former Howard government minister Amanda Vanstone.) Growing up poor in a sole parent family, dependent on public housing, helped shape Anthony's progressive outlook. He fought his way up through the ranks of Labor politics, aligned with its hard left faction and eventually was preselected for the seat of Grayndler. His politics are pretty stock standard left wing fare: pro gay marriage (before many others were, it must be said); pro women; pro environment. True, that's an oversimplification, but the book concentrates more on factional infighting than policy development. Happily there's no scandals or skeletons in the Albanese closet. The worst that can be said of Albanese is he knows how to play politics hard and to win. Colleagues say he is direct and honest. When he promises to do something, he does it. There's also a basic decency to his character. He makes sure people feel respected and acknowledged. Anthony Albanese doesn't leap off the page as a great character. He's a dogged political operator, doing the grunt work to get things done. One can't imagine eloquent speeches or fine turns of phrase from him. The portrait this biography paints is of someone stodgy but honest. No fancy bells or whistles, but someone who is at least reliable and true to their word. A consummately researched biography of a tough political character with a heart stopping personal story that is genuinely moving. Albanese: Telling it Straight, by Karen Middleton. Published by Vintage. $24.99 Review by Chris Saliba Comments are closed.
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