Abbott memoir leaked as publishing giant comes under fire

9 December, 2014. 10:58

ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | [email protected]

BOOK PUBLISHER PENGUIN Group has been forced to apologise after the upcoming memoir from PM Tony Abbott was leaked to the media.

Penguin believes that the material was released by a disgruntled former employee.

Pictures of what appear to be all or most of the wildly anticipated Tony Abbott memoir, How To Win Fights and Intimidate People, due for release December 21, proliferated on the Internet yesterday, seemingly penetrating the unprecedented shroud of secrecy put into place by the book’s publisher.

Hundreds of low-quality photos resembling the book’s pages could be accessed at various websites or downloaded through peer-to-peer file-sharing networks, although some sites seemed to malfunction as the day progressed. While it is unlikely that most fans’ eyes could handle reading all 2784 of the pages on a computer, the purported security breach prompted questions about the publisher’s handling of the memoir and concerns that the ending could be spoiled.

The leak also revealed that the book was ghost-written by Morris Gleitzman, who today hinted two characters will die, and readers have been trying for months to figure out who.

In a statement released by Penguin this morning, the company apologises unreservedly to the Prime Minister’s Office and to the Australian public.

“We are both embarrassed and saddened by the actions of one former employee,” says the statement.

“Penguin apologises for any harm caused by the leak and we are investigating the matter internally.”

The prime minister has refused to elaborate on the leak, saying only that the contents of the book are not representative of his time in office.

“It is a personal account of my life,” says Mr Abbott.

“It has nothing to do with politics,”

“The memoir focuses more on my rise to becoming the man I am today.”