Bono has spent four decades telegraphing messages of love, longing, and activism to the masses, fronting one of the most successful acts in the world. But until now, he's channeled his faith and fury only through music. With his new memoir, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story, the rock star and social justice champion (real name: Paul David Hewson) unveils the origins and meaning behind some of U2's most enduring tracks.

Ushering fans from the '70s to the present, the singer sheds light on his fraught upbringing (born in Dublin to a Catholic father and Protestant mother, he grew up amid rising sectarian violence in Ireland); his lasting romance with his wife, Ali (whom he began courting soon after the band formed); and the secrets to keeping his lauded (22 Grammys and counting) group together despite creative differences and personal turmoil.