Diaries of Note is here

HOLD ME!

My new book—the one that has stolen my focus recently, for which I truly apologise—is published tomorrow, Thursday 9th October, in the UK¹. I’m so very proud of it. Prouder, in fact, than any other book I’ve put my name to, and not just because of its complexity and the sheer number of moving parts, but because, in many ways, it feels like the project I’ve been working towards all along.

It’s called Diaries of Note: 366 Lives, One Day at a Time, and it’s essentially a journey through the leap year by way of 366 real diary entries, each plucked from history and written by a different diarist. It’s a reminder that the act of keeping a diary, however ordinary it might feel at the time, can end up offering extraordinary glimpses into what it means to be alive.

There are moments of grief and joy, frustration and wonder, boredom and brilliance. You’ll find entries by Virginia Woolf, Nelson Mandela, Simone de Beauvoir, Elton John, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Derek Jarman, Audre Lorde, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Brian Eno, Joan Rivers, and many more. Some will make you laugh; some might knock the wind out of you.

It’s a beautifully illustrated hardback, designed to be opened anywhere. You can dip in at random, or follow it day by day, reading each entry on its original date. Either way, I think you’ll find something that lingers.

I’m quietly thrilled to say that people whose work I adore—Michael Palin, Richard E. Grant, Helen Fielding, Nick Hornby, and others—have all said lovely things about it. I’ll shamelessly include their comments below.

If you’d like to pick up a copy, it should be available in all sensible bookshops. Or you can grab a copy online from the stockists listed here.

Thank you, as always, for reading. The letters will return very soon.

Shaun

---

---

“The immediacy of these diary entries captures moments in time like nothing else.”

— Richard E. Grant

---

“This seductive collection shows how wonderfully rewarding diaries can be.”

— Michael Palin

---

“So blissfully funny, entertaining and full of bite-sized insight.”

— Helen Fielding, Author of Bridget Jones’ Diary

---

“Very few books can find room for Sir Alex Ferguson, Edith Wharton, Bill Haley and Susan Sontag, but Diaries Of Note and its 366 diary entries draws on a remarkable cast of characters, all reflecting on key moments of their lives and times. Fans of Shaun Usher’s wonderful Letters Of Note will want to read Diaries Of Note daily, and it’s a wonderful gift for anyone currently living a life.”

— Nick Hornby

---

“Completely fascinating and inspiring. Completely addictive. You’ll say to yourself ‘just one more’ and before you know it you’ve read the whole collection.”

— Stephen Fry

---

“Diaries of Note carries the nostalgic charm of a bygone era, when people committed their thoughts and feelings to the real page, with real ink from a real pen, rather than oversharing on Instagram. This is a volume to treasure, sigh and snigger over.”

— Bidisha Mamata

---

“There is something illicit about reading a diary, even one ultimately intended for publication. It is the writer alone with herself or himself, sometimes saying the unsayable, at other times fixing the fleeting moment or wrestling with an unsolvable conundrum. Shaun Usher’s marvellous collection takes us through the whole glorious spectrum, by turns hilarious, heartbreaking, scurrilous, touching, tragic. A perfect daily companion.”

— Simon Callow

---

“Reading Diaries of Note I am simultaneously reminded of why I never wrote a diary, and how much I regret never having written one. This book is brimming with insights, intrigues and intimacies from the famous and the infamous.”

— Nihal Arthanayake

---

1. All being well, editions will appear in other countries in good time. I’ll keep you all updated.