Quarterly Essay 34. Stop at Nothing: The Life and Adventures of Malcolm Turnbull

Quarterly Essay 34. Stop at Nothing: The Life and Adventures of Malcolm Turnbull

Annabel Crabb
Black Inc., $16.95

Already formed an opinion of the former leader of the federal Opposition?

As someone with an interest in Australian politics, my own impression of Malcolm Turnbull has been of someone who’s intelligent, yet more than a little arrogant.

He certainly is intelligent, frighteningly so perhaps, but Crabb’s essay reveals a much more complex and interesting character.

Based on extensive interviews with Turnbull himself, as well as with an array of people who’ve worked with him over the years (some who have the scars to prove it) we see a person who, as the title states, will “stop at nothing” on his way to achieving a goal, usually his own.

A person who on the one hand can be charming, a generous philanthropist, effervescent and enjoys telling a good story, Turnbull also makes enemies and takes enormous risks, completely confident in his own ability to succeed.

“Crash through or crash”, a term coined for another politician, one Gough Whitlam, seems apt here.

Written before UteGate and the resignation announcement of Peter Costello, Crabb’s essay is a great read: lively and entertaining, funny and informative. Highly recommended.

Karyl Davison

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