In Search of Beethoven, a moving, personal account of John Suchet’s lifelong quest to understand Beethoven the man
We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of In Search of Beethoven: A Personal Journey by acknowledged authority on Beethoven and much-loved presenter John Suchet. Our Director Olivia Bays acquired World Rights from agent David Foster of David Foster Management. The book will be published in hardback, audio and eBook on 17th October 2024.
From the bestselling author of Beethoven: The Man Revealed (sold over 23,000 copies), In Search of Beethoven is John Suchet’s latest and most personal book dedicated to the life of this extraordinary composer. Part biography, part memoir, part travelogue, Suchet draws on his own life and career as a foreign correspondent and news anchor to show how Beethoven’s music has accompanied him through the best and worst of times.
In Search of Beethoven will delve into some truly surprising discoveries, including new and ground-breaking information about Beethoven’s health and ancestry revealed in a Cambridge University/Max Planck Institute report of March 2023.
In this singular and compelling book, we see Beethoven brought vividly – and sometimes painfully – to life. Tracing Beethoven’s footsteps, seeking out the buildings and places he lived and worked in, Suchet brings Beethoven’s story to life for fans old and new, and reveals the enduring effects of his lifelong fascination with the acclaimed composer.
Olivia Bays, Director at Elliott & Thompson said:
“We’re delighted to be working with John again on this brilliant book, a particularly special one for it draws on his own life for the first time – chronicling his lifelong quest to better understand the composer whose music has accompanied him through highs and lows. John’s infectious passion for and deep knowledge of both the man and the music is inspiring, and we know readers will respond to his journey in search of Beethoven just as enthusiastically as we have.”
John Suchet, author of In Search of Beethoven, said:
“Amid the welter of books about Beethoven my new book, In Search of Beethoven: A Personal Journey,stands alone. It is a deeply personal account of how my love for this man’s music, and my desire to know everything about him, has become the enduring passion of my life. I detail exciting new research which is forcing us to re-evaluate his heritage — Beethoven may not be Beethoven! — and I have had to face some uncomfortable truths. This is the story of my lifelong relationship with this difficult but inestimable musical genius.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John Suchet OBE is a bestselling author, journalist, radio and TV presenter. He was the voice of morning radio on Classic FM for almost a decade and before that, he was one of the UK’s best-known television journalists and newscasters, regularly presenting ITN’s flagship News at Ten for nearly 20 years. A recognised authority on Beethoven, he is the author of the Sunday Times bestselling Beethoven: The Man Revealed (2020), as well as biographies of Mozart, Strauss, Verdi and Tchaikovsky. To date John has written seven books on Beethoven. In Search of Beethoven will be his eighth.