Illustration 1 - "High Expectations - (becoming prime minister)":
Page 1.) "On 2nd May 1997, I walked in to Downing Street as prime minister for the first time, I had never held office, not even as the most junior of junior ministers. It was my first and only job in government."
Page 6.) "This was not a win. It was a landslide."
Page 72.) "I was the moderniser, in personality, in language, in time, feel and temperament. Split it any way you like, the damn thing was obvious in the end."
Page 105.) "We were ignorant of what lay ahead after we passed the winning post but we had built up an irreversible momentum towards it."
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Illustration 2 - "Northern Ireland - (Good Friday Agreement/Peace Process)":
Page 158.) "For British governments of whatever persuasion, the drain on resources and military manpower which Northern Ireland required made any prospect of peace extremely attractive."
Page 159.) "Our victory of 1st May 1997 had released a new energy everywhere. Challenges that now mined a tired and psychologically demoralised government now inspired an energetic and confident team to have a go."
Page 159 (2).) "I often reflect that such audacity could only be given wing in the first flush of enthusiasm that greets a profound moment of change."
Page 167.) "One myth about me is that I prefer the broad brush to the detail. In truth it's impossible as prime minister to be across the detail of everything, and in addition, too much detail creates an immediate problem."
Page 180.) "We experienced a modus vivendi, the roller-coaster of emotions in which hope and despair coexisted on an almost daily basis."
Page 194.) "Leaders matter. Any peace process calls for political risks, even a sense of political adventure and certainly political courage, sometimes even personal courage. The quality of leadership matters."
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Illustration 3 - "The War on Terror - (911 onwards)":
Page 352.) "This mass terrorism is the new evil in our world. The people who perpetrate it have no regard whatever for the sanctity or value of human life, and we the democracies of world must come together to defeat it and eradicate it".
Page 357.) "This was not just a matter of idealism, it was also about understanding why Afghanistan had become a failed state, why it had become a breeding ground for terror, why it had descended into this horrible, cruel mix of anarchy and despotism. Like it or not, from then on, we were in business of nation-building."
Page 374.) "I did it for the correct motives, but still regard it as 'the stain' on an otherwise impressive record. And of course those who aren't supporters regard it as final proof of villainy."
Page 439.) "I accept fully that those who are opposed to this course of action share my detestation of Saddam. Who could not?"
Page 445.) "The horrible feeling that this was going to be very, very tough returned to me. As ever I imagined the families, the knock on the door, the grieving widow, the fatherless children, the sheer tragedy of it all."
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