At 738 pages, Boris Johnson's memoir is intimidating, but enduring for its wit, erudition and insight.

“Hasta la Vista, Baby,” Boris Johnson shouted at the President after his final performance at Prime Minister’s Questions. Cheers and groans greeted the quote from Terminator 2. Boris was mostly appreciated for his departure. That's what he tells us in his selfish, yet witty and well-written memoir, “Unleashed.” We got our copy from a Bookazine store, one of seven* that the Mirchandani family owns in Hong Kong.

A notable example of Boris's wit was on display in Beijing in 2008. He said in a speech as Mayor of London accepting the handover of the Olympic flame that ping-pong, perhaps the sport national of China, was invented in England, where it was called for the first time. Whiff-Whaff. » “There, I think you have the essential difference between us (the British) and the rest of the world. The French looked at a dining table and saw an opportunity for lunch. We looked at a dining table and saw an opportunity to play Whiff-Whaff. And I say to the Chinese and I say to the world: Whiff-Whaff is coming home.

A remarkable extract from the book: “When you become foreign minister, you inherit all kinds of extraordinary things. You become the person whose instructions adorn the opening page of every British passport. You are Her Britannic Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and you ask and demand that every civil servant in the world, every unshaven border guard, every Kalashnikov-wielding, skunk-smoking sentry at every crossing or barricade of the planet, authorizes the bearer to pass without authorization or hindrance, in the name of the Crown. You acquire the use of Chevening House, in Kent, the beauty and luxury of which I scarcely dare describe for fear of provoking paroxysms of jealousy. To travel the world you call on No. 32 Squadron of the RAF, which at that time still flew old but serviceable jets, and whose wonderful RAF personnel, uniforms pressed like knives, you would serve sumptuous and ruminative feasts, one hard for the other. . . wherever you are in the world, all with RAF crockery, silver and well-ironed towels. All the while, on each flight, you had the delicious pleasure of chatting with men and women from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and hearing their well-stocked minds. . . . It was like being given the keys to a candy store. It was paradise.

In chapter 30, Johnson discusses China and his experiences there. Of President Xi's visit to London in 2015, he writes: “We kowtowed to Xi so abjectly, in organizing this visit, that we allowed his personal security guard to defeat all the squires, to escape the royal protection squad and rush in uninvited. the Golden State Coach**, the first time this has happened in the vehicle's 260-year history. Her Majesty the Queen, you will be pleased to know, was made of sterner stuff. “Get orff,” she said, or words to that effect, and the moron was ejected. . .'”

Johnson is realistic in his assessment of China. “The Chinese are engaged in industrial espionage and systematic theft. They are oppressing the Uyghur population and Tibet. They are pressing on Hong Kong. We should feel free to point this out to the Chinese – not least because if we mean it without saying it, they will think we are pathetic. But we would be totally wrong, and crazy, to turn our backs on China and start a new Cold War, to cut ourselves off from commerce, from engagement and from the fundamental task of understanding a fifth of humanity, with all the genius of this population. We must learn to love what there is to love about China – and there is much – and face firmly what we fear.

Towards the end of his book, Boris describes his last meeting with Queen Elizabeth II. “'Hello, Prime Minister,' said the Queen, and as we sat across from each other on the blue-green sofas, I immediately understood what Edward (the private secretary of the Queen) meant. She looked pale and more stooped, and she had dark bruises on her hands and wrists, probably from drips or injections. But her mind – as Edward also said – was completely unimpaired by her illness, and every now and then during our conversation she still flashed that big white smile in her sudden morale-boosting beauty. Going to see the Queen for an hour a week and venting was more than a privilege. It was a balm. It was a form of free psychotherapy. It was like being at school and being taken to tea by a beloved grandmother. » As we all know with saddened hearts, two days later our beloved Queen passed away.

“Unleashed” is well worth reading. At 738 pages, it will take some time, but you will be well rewarded. Don't be discouraged by critics who say it's too selfish. Forget the boring stuff about Covid – we don't want to be reminded of those dark days – and Brexit, and let's talk about wit, erudition and insight.

Alexander Boris de Pfeltel Johnson, 60, served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2019 to 2022. He was previously Foreign Secretary and Mayor of London. A blue blood, Johnson was educated at Eton and Oxford. A prolific womanizer, he was married three times, first to Allegra Mostyn-Owen, then to Marina Wheeler and finally to Carrie Symonds. Johnson had numerous affairs: with Spectator columnist Petronella Wyatt when he was editor, later with Guardian journalist Anna Fazackerley. Then there was Helen McIntyre, arts consultant, and finally – really? —Jennifer Acurri. Johnson, almost Churchillian as a writer, published 12 books.

*Bookazine, a family business, is described as “Hong Kong’s best and friendliest bookstore”. It is a chain of seven stores: Prince's Building, The Landmark; IFC Shopping Center; Lyndhurst Terrace; Festive walk; Repulse Bay; Tai Kwan, Central Police Station and Causeway Bay. The Bookazine management team is led by Shonee Mirchandani. Currently, their bestsellers are “Intermezzo” by Sally Rooney, “Hong Kong Shifts: Stories from the Streets of Hong Kong”, “The Golden Road” by William Dalrymple, “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental.” Disease”; “Fortune's Baazar: The Making of Hong Kong”; and of course “Unleashed”.

**As we mourn Queen Elizabeth II, who died two years ago at age 96, it makes us angry.