Unreliable memoirs

'I was born in 1939. The other big event of that year was the outbreak of the Second World War, but for the moment, that did not affect me.' In the first instalment of Clive James's memoirs, we meet the young Clive, dressed in short trousers, and wrestling with the demands of school, various relatives and the occasional snake, in the suburbs of post-war Sydney. 'Vivid, cumulative and full of surprises' Observer 'Do not read this book in public. You will risk severe internal injuries from trying to suppress your laughter. What's worse, you can't put it down once started. Its addictive powers stun all normal, decent resistance within seconds. Not to be missed' Sunday Times 'Enormously funny . . . Buy it' Cosmopolitan