Books by Barack Obama
Barack Obama was an award-winning author before he was a Nobel Peace Prize-winning president. The first volume of his presidential memoirs, A Promised Land, came out in 2020; the second volume is (apparently) nearing completion in 2024. His wife, former first lady Michelle Obama has also written bestselling books.
Barack Obama’s first foray into book writing was Dreams from My Father, a much-acclaimed memoir about his early life growing up in the United States and his pilgrimage to Kenya, the country where his father had been born and to which he returned when Barack was a young child.
Before becoming President he wrote The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream, which was published in 2006. This was something of a political manifesto, setting out his vision for how to deliver on the promise of democracy and how to try and overcome the obstacles and obstructions that partisanship, special interests and money can often throw in its way. Finally, a collection of his speeches was published in 2017 as We Are the Change We Seek. These cover speeches from his early political career and throughout his eight years as President.
While there’s no substitute for listening to Obama tell us about himself, if you’d like to read books about him, there are two books by Five Books interviewees worth pointing to: firstly Barack Obama: The Story, a highly readable book by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and biographer David Maraniss, which is not just the story of Obama, but also of his extraordinary family. For a more academic assessment of his presidency, Princeton historian Julian Zelizer has edited an excellent volume entitled The Presidency of Barack Obama: A First Historical Assessment.
“Obama tells the story of Auma, his half-sister, who is educated, hard-working and has succeeded abroad, who owns property and a car, and recounts the way the entire family basically leeches off her. It’s not good for either side. She resents it because all her projects are undermined, but the family is also resentful of her because they don’t like being beholden. If aid is one of the problems in Africa, the extended family is also both a blessing and a blight. Obama didn’t even spend that long in Kenya, but he captures that conundrum immediately.” Read more...
Michela Wrong, Journalist
“I’m sure he gets a lot of help with editors and contributors, but the book is in his own voice. He’s a really smart person, was the president of the Harvard Law Review—probably the most prestigious role for a student in the American legal academy—and very, very, literate, whether you agree with his politics or not. It’s refreshing. And I found Obama’s, particularly, to be a great read, really enjoyable.” Read more...
Five of the Best U.S. Political Biographies
William Cooper, Journalist
Interviews where books by Barack Obama were recommended
Five of the Best U.S. Political Biographies, recommended by William Cooper
Biographers create character studies of fascinating people, through which we might insight into the historical context and the systems these individuals functioned within. Here, journalist and attorney William Cooper recommends five U.S. political biographies and memoirs that allow readers special access to the rooms where American decision-making takes place.
The Best Audiobooks: the 2022 Audie Awards, recommended by Michele Cobb
The movie industry has the Oscars to celebrate its achievements, but if you love audiobooks, you’ll be more interested in the Audies. Here Michele Cobb, Executive Director of the Audio Publishers Association, talks us through the 2022 shortlist for ‘audiobook of the year,’ as well as one of her favourite books from the fiction category.
The Best Presidential Memoirs as Audiobooks, recommended by Robin Whitten
When you listen to presidential memoirs as audiobooks, you can often hear an American president telling you their own story. Veteran audiobook reviewer Robin Whitten, editor of Audiofile magazine, recommends the best audiobooks about US presidents, and explains the crucial role of professional narrators in bringing big books to life.
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1
Twilight of Democracy
by Anne Applebaum -
2
The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty
by Daron Acemoglu & James Robinson -
3
The Great Demographic Illusion: Majority, Minority, and the Expanding American Mainstream
by Richard Alba -
4
Self-Portrait in Black and White: Family, Fatherhood and Rethinking Race
by Thomas Chatterton Williams -
5
A Promised Land
by Barack Obama
The Best Politics Books of 2020, recommended by Yascha Mounk
The Best Politics Books of 2020, recommended by Yascha Mounk
Despite the challenge of authoritarian populism and a new divisiveness in political debate in many countries around the world there are reasons for optimism, argues political scientist Yascha Mounk, author of The People vs. Democracy. He talks us through his selection of the best politics books of 2020.
The best books on Africa, recommended by Michela Wrong
Long-time foreign correspondent Michela Wrong, the author of books on Zaire, Eritrea, Kenya and Rwanda, tells us where to turn for engaging foreign perspectives on Africa. She recommends five of her favourite books on Africa, by anthropologists, journalists and one US president.
The best books on US and UK English, recommended by Robert McCrum
McCrum looks at three stages of evolution in the English language. The first British, the second American and then the third – the globish stage – the one in which English is used as international default position
