BOOK REVIEW: A Long Way Home by Dan Jarvis

Soldier, politician and, above all, family man - Dan Jarvis's life has been an emotional rollercoaster ride.
Long Way Home autobiography by Dan JarvisLong Way Home autobiography by Dan Jarvis
Long Way Home autobiography by Dan Jarvis

BUY NOW: Long Way Home: Love, Life, Death, and Everything in Between by Dan Jarvis is now available in hardback, paperback or to download – CLICK HERE.

He’s battled, loved, lost and won again, in personal and public life, to prove all things are possible with true northern grit and determination.

Labour's Barnsley Central MP and the current Mayor of South Yorkshire – formerly Sheffield City Region Mayor – has announced he plans to continue as MP but will not be contesting the next mayoral election in May 2022

But, as he is quick to point out, his book is not about politics.

Long Way Home: Love, Life, Death, and Everything in Between, is about service and family.

He tells of his time in the British Army, in the elite Parachute Regiment, and how he dealt with the diagnosis and untimely, tragic death of his first wife, Caroline.

His autobiography is well described on the back cover by Alan Johnson, who says 'a belter about love, loss, courage and determination, told with his customary modesty which fails to disguise the amazing man behind the story'.

Dan Jarvis with Caroline at home just before leaving for AfghanistanDan Jarvis with Caroline at home just before leaving for Afghanistan
Dan Jarvis with Caroline at home just before leaving for Afghanistan

As a politician, Dan Jarvis is not done yet.

The 49-year-old former opposition frontbencher has often been tipped as a future Labour leader.

And though soldiering provides the backdrop to some of the book, what it is about really is the sub header...love, life, death, and everything in between.

It is about making decisions when under extreme pressure, about keeping calm, keeping going and keeping a smile on your face, at least most of the time.

Dan Jarvis Barnsley Central MP and first South Yorkshire MayorDan Jarvis Barnsley Central MP and first South Yorkshire Mayor
Dan Jarvis Barnsley Central MP and first South Yorkshire Mayor

Specifically, it is about the two biggest challenges he faced and the way he coped - taking on the Taliban in Afghanistan, and losing to cancer, at a tragically young age, his wife and mother of two of his children.

From the mortal danger and nerve-tangling fear of night-fighting in Helmand province to the aching heartache of bereavement, this is a unique and compelling memoir by a man of courage and character.

For a long time he did not feel ready or able to talk about it, but now more than a decade on he reveals all, after finding new happiness in a second marriage to wife Rachel, mother of his third child.

Winner of Best Memoir at the Parliamentary Book Awards 2020, the book is gripping and inspiring.

Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group

ISBN: 9781408710715

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