David Kootnikoff - Bono: A Biography

DAVID KOOTNIKOFF is a Canadian writer and coauthor of Getting Both Feet Wet: Experiences inside the JET Program, which won the Japan Festival Award for contributing to understanding between cultures, and U2: A Musical Biography (Greenwood, 2009). He is currently working on his doctoral degree in English and Film studies at the University of Alberta, Canada.

DAVID KOOTNIKOFF is a Canadian writer and coauthor of Getting Both Feet Wet: Experiences inside the JET Program, which won the Japan Festival Award for contributing to understanding between cultures, and U2: A Musical Biography (Greenwood, 2009). He is currently working on his doctoral degree in English and Film studies at the University of Alberta, Canada.

David Kootnikoff

Copyright 2012 by ABC-CLIO, LLC

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kootnikoff, David.

Bono : a biography / David Kootnikoff.

p. cm. (Greenwood biographies)

Includes index.

ISBN 978-0-313-35509-7 (hardcopy : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-313-35510-3 (ebook) 1. Bono, 1960 2. Rock musiciansIrelandBiography.

3. U2 (Musical group). I. Title.

ML420.B6856K66 2012

782.42166092dc23 [B] 2011043805

ISBN: 978-0-313-35509-7

EISBN: 978-0-313-35510-3

16 15 14 13 12 1 2 3 4 5

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Greenwood

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This book is printed on acid-free paper

Manufactured in the United States of America

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To be one, to be united is a great thing. But to respect the right to be different is maybe even greater.

Bono

Bono is a reconciler. He was born into conflict, born into a household where each parent represented a different religious denominationProtestant and Catholic. It was during a time and in a place where such distinctions could make or break an individual. Throughout his life hes struggled with opposing forces and managed to transcend this inner conflict to achieve a united vision of purpose. During his early years, he was determined to be a performer, the lead singer of U2, and then the bands principle lyricist. In the second half of his life, he has devoted himself to social issues with the same passion he has for music.

Bono arose from humble beginnings in a middle-class Dublin neighborhood to become the lead singer of one of the most successful rock bands of modern times. He has also become a passionate antipoverty advocate, championing various human rights initiatives such as Amnesty International and third world debt relief. He is also a dedicated son, husband, and father.

Bonos life story is one in which raw spirit overcomes insurmountable odds and is an example for youth from all over the world to gain inspiration from and emulate.

Much of Bonos success is the result of his commitment to changing the world for the better. Bonos optimism has its roots in the Christian faith but it also owes a great debt to the secular salvation offered by rock and roll. Like Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteen before, Bonos journey to the top has depended on the power of his own convictions as much as on U2s combined talents.

Throughout his career, Bono has expressed the exuberance of youth while facing the challenge of maintaining his integrity during the sometimes murky maturation of becoming an adult. Whether its the troubles in Northern Ireland, famine in Africa, or AIDS awareness, Bono has helped to illuminate the concerns of his own generation without giving into apathy or cheap cynicism.

May 10, 1960 Paul Bono Hewson is born at the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, to Bob and Iris Hewson.

1972 Mount Temple School is established in Dublin and one of its first students is Paul Hewson.

1973 Paul Hewson and Derek Guggi Rowen meet Fionan Gavin Friday Hanvey.

September 10, 1974 Pauls mother Iris Hewson dies from a brain hemorrhage.