Despite this, the self-assured tone of Mr Brown's speech to Parliament is understandable.

ECONOMIST: Not so rosy | The

As always with Blodget, the post has a wonderful self-deprecating tone and a smattering of numbers to illustrate the inner workings of a business.

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Mr Cameron struck a self-consciously upbeat tone during much of the speech as he invoked what he called "the British spirit".

BBC: Fight through global economic storm, urges Cameron

Barsh and Cranston ultimately aim to inspire and drive more women to the top echelons of leadership, yet they no doubt will lose some readers along the way with the soft language and tone of self help that infuse the book.

FORBES: Lead Like A Woman

His over confident tone of voice, evident sense of self superiority, and the gleaming cheap smile he had seen only once, made the man intolerable.

NPR: 'Arson' by Nick Lysohir

For those not put off by its remorselessly chirpy tone, this book contains some valuable self-help advice, not least in a discussion about luck, which, apart from the dumb kind, the authors believe is something that can be influenced.

ECONOMIST: Starting out

By keeping a narrow focus on what he believed was doable, even though naysayers told him it would never pass, and by asking abolitionists to tone down their demands, he demonstrated enlightened self-interest.

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The tone seems stuck at a lazy bonhomie, amusement for a rising, self-satisfied commercial class.

NEWYORKER: Haarlem Shuffle

Importantly also for London, Wiggins' triumph provided a sporting counterpoint as memorable as Danny Boyle's opening ceremony, which had celebrated homegrown diversity, creativity and self-confidence with an intelligence, irreverence and humanity that set a distinctly British tone in contrast to the shock-and-awe spectacular of Beijing four years ago.

CNN: Wiggins' victory brings the Games back to the people