Hold Everything Dear: Dispatches on Survival and Resistance

Synopsis

In this urgent collection of essays, John Berger reflects on war, displacement, resistance, and the enduring human search for justice. Writing in the shadow of conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Palestine, he considers how violence reshapes lives while asking what role art, storytelling, and memory can play in confronting oppression. Throughout these deeply humane essays, Berger argues that creative expression is not separate from political life but one of its most vital forms of resistance.

Elegant, compassionate, and fiercely engaged, Hold Everything Dear is both a meditation on the moral responsibilities of our time and a celebration of solidarity across borders. Blending personal reflection, cultural criticism, and political analysis, Berger offers a powerful reminder that imagination, empathy, and hope remain essential tools in the struggle for freedom and human dignity.

About the Author

John Berger (1926–2017) was one of the twentieth century's most influential writers, art critics, and cultural thinkers. The author of Ways of Seeing, the Booker Prize-winning novel G., and numerous works of fiction, criticism, and essays, Berger devoted his career to exploring art, politics, migration, and the lives of ordinary people. His work continues to inspire readers across disciplines and generations.

Publisher
Verso Books

Publication Date
October 7, 2025

Format
Paperback

Pages
208

Subjects
Essays · Politics · Art Criticism · Cultural Studies

ISBN
9781804298251