Barack Before Obama

Barack Before Obama
Author: David Katz
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 307
Release: 2020-12-01
Genre: Photography
ISBN: 0063086743

A People Pick of the Week One of USA Today’s 5 Books Not to Miss One of Forbes’ 5 Books to Read in December A personal, intimate photographic celebration of President Barack Obama, featuring over 200 rare and never-before seen images from the years prior to his presidency, from photographer, friend, and former aide David Katz In 2004, David Katz worked alongside then Senate-hopeful Barack Obama as a photographer and personal aide. He spent approximately six days a week alongside the future president as Obama campaigned across downstate Illinois, and the two developed a close, professional, and personal relationship. What began as a long-shot Senate run culminated with the election of America’s first African American president in 2008, which Katz also photographed. During this time, David was never without his camera, capturing quotidian scenes from the life of a man who would soon become known the world over: a dad playing with his small daughters; a young unknown politician walking the streets of New York by himself with no one noticing; a devoted husband lovingly making faces at his wife in an elevator. In 2004, after seeing the unique and touching photographs David had amassed, Annie Leibovitz gave him some advice: “Don’t release these photos of Obama for at least fifteen years. They need time to age.” Now, fifteen years later, Barack Before Obama is the treasury of these photographs. Pulled from an archive of more than ninety thousand images, every photograph in this volume is like nothing that has been seen before: the ease in which David captures the spirit and essence of one of our most beloved first families is unparalleled, and it is in this affectionate familiarity that his photographs sing. Warm, engaging captions tell the stories behind the photos—the surprise meeting with Nelson Mandela, the back room conversation before the rally, the emotion after sending one of the Obamas’ daughters off to school—bringing readers closer than ever to the spirit and motivation behind the extraordinary man who became our forty-fourth president. Barack Before Obama is a unique collection of images illustrating the making of an American icon. A moving document of an historic moment, it’s the perfect gift for all those who want to remember it.

A Promised Land

A Promised Land
Author: Barack Obama
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2024-08-13
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9781405974042

THE #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER | NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES, THE ECONOMIST, THE GUARDIAN The riveting, deeply personal account of history in the making-a record-breaking, critically-acclaimed no.1 bestseller, now out in paperback'Gorgeously written, humorous, compelling, life affirming' Justin Webb, Mail on[Bokinfo].

Dreams from My Father

Dreams from My Father
Author: Barack Obama
Publisher: Crown
Total Pages: 463
Release: 2007-01-09
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0307394123

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • ONE OF ESSENCE’S 50 MOST IMPACTFUL BLACK BOOKS OF THE PAST 50 YEARS In this iconic memoir of his early days, Barack Obama “guides us straight to the intersection of the most serious questions of identity, class, and race” (The Washington Post Book World). “Quite extraordinary.”—Toni Morrison In this lyrical, unsentimental, and compelling memoir, the son of a black African father and a white American mother searches for a workable meaning to his life as a black American. It begins in New York, where Barack Obama learns that his father—a figure he knows more as a myth than as a man—has been killed in a car accident. This sudden death inspires an emotional odyssey—first to a small town in Kansas, from which he retraces the migration of his mother’s family to Hawaii, and then to Kenya, where he meets the African side of his family, confronts the bitter truth of his father’s life, and at last reconciles his divided inheritance. Praise for Dreams from My Father “Beautifully crafted . . . moving and candid . . . This book belongs on the shelf beside works like James McBride’s The Color of Water and Gregory Howard Williams’s Life on the Color Line as a tale of living astride America’s racial categories.”—Scott Turow “Provocative . . . Persuasively describes the phenomenon of belonging to two different worlds, and thus belonging to neither.”—The New York Times Book Review “Obama’s writing is incisive yet forgiving. This is a book worth savoring.”—Alex Kotlowitz, author of There Are No Children Here “One of the most powerful books of self-discovery I’ve ever read, all the more so for its illuminating insights into the problems not only of race, class, and color, but of culture and ethnicity. It is also beautifully written, skillfully layered, and paced like a good novel.”—Charlayne Hunter-Gault, author of In My Place “Dreams from My Father is an exquisite, sensitive study of this wonderful young author’s journey into adulthood, his search for community and his place in it, his quest for an understanding of his roots, and his discovery of the poetry of human life. Perceptive and wise, this book will tell you something about yourself whether you are black or white.”—Marian Wright Edelman

Rising Star

Rising Star
Author: David Garrow
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 2214
Release: 2017-05-09
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0062641859

New York Times Bestseller Rising Star is the definitive account of Barack Obama's formative years that made him the man who became the forty-fourth president of the United States—from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Bearing the Cross Barack Obama's speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention instantly catapulted him into the national spotlight and led to his election four years later as America's first African-American president. In this penetrating biography, David J. Garrow delivers an epic work about the life of Barack Obama, creating a rich tapestry of a life little understood, until now. Rising Star: The Making of Barack Obama captivatingly describes Barack Obama's tumultuous upbringing as a young black man attending an almost-all-white, elite private school in Honolulu while being raised almost exclusively by his white grandparents. After recounting Obama's college years in California and New York, Garrow charts Obama's time as a Chicago community organizer, working in some of the city's roughest neighborhoods; his years at the top of his Harvard Law School class; and his return to Chicago, where Obama honed his skills as a hard-knuckled politician, first in the state legislature and then as a candidate for the United States Senate. Detailing a scintillating, behind-the-scenes account of Obama's 2004 speech, a moment that labeled him the Democratic Party's "rising star," Garrow also chronicles Obama's four years in the Senate, weighing his stands on various issues against positions he had taken years earlier, and recounts his thrilling run for the White House in 2008. In Rising Star, David J. Garrow has created a vivid portrait that reveals not only the people and forces that shaped the future president but also the ways in which he used those influences to serve his larger aspirations. This is a gripping read about a young man born into uncommon family circumstances, whose faith in his own talents came face-to-face with fantastic ambitions and a desire to do good in the world. Most important, Rising Star is an extraordinary work of biography—tremendous in its research and storytelling, and brilliant in its analysis of the all-too-human struggles of one of the most fascinating politicians of our time.

Obama

Obama
Author: Mark Greenberg
Publisher: Union Square + ORM
Total Pages: 404
Release: 2021-07-20
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1454937831

A vibrant celebration of President Obama in words and photographs, now updated with new material on the years since he left office. Through stunning images by White House photographers and others, as well as notable essays and quotes from a broad spectrum of people, this updated edition of Obama looks back at the president’s journey—from his remarkable victory to his significant milestones and final days in office to his life after the White House. Obama features rare and previously unseen photographs, along with iconic images and newspaper front pages. It also includes dramatic pictures—including the famous shot from the Situation Room as the president and his staff watched the live unfolding of the Osama bin Laden raid, and day-to-day images of Obama in his roles as world leader, policymaker, commander in chief, and father. There are lighthearted photos from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, late-night television appearances, and moments with the entire Obama family. Sixteen additional pages follow President Obama in recent years campaigning for Democratic candidates, engaging in philanthropic work, and traveling the world. The expanded volume also updates the status of many of Obama’s groundbreaking achievements, such as the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), the Iran nuclear deal, the Paris climate accord, EPA protections, transgender rights, DACA, and much more.

The Amateur

The Amateur
Author: Edward Klein
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 246
Release: 2013-06-03
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1621571653

It’s amateur hour at the White House. So says New York Times bestselling author Edward Klein in his new political exposé The Amateur. Tapping into the public’s growing sentiment that President Obama is in over his head, The Amateur argues that Obama’s toxic combination of incompetence and arrogance have run our nation and his presidency off the rails. “Obama was both completely inexperienced and ideologically far to the left of Americans when he entered the White House,” says Klein. “And he was so arrogant that he didn’t even know what he didn’t know.” Klein, who is known for getting the inside scoop on everyone from the Kennedys to the Clintons, reveals never-before-published details about the Obama administration’s political inner workings and about Barack and Michelle’s personal lives, including: The inordinate influence Michelle wields over Barack and her feud with a high-profile celebrity The real reason Rahm Emmanuel left the White House (it wasn’t for family reasons) Why Valerie Jarrett’s role is closer to that of Rasputin than impartial senior advisor Obama’s problems with American Jews How Obama has purposefully forgotten and ignored those that put him in power, including the Kennedys, and the Jewish and African American communities in Chicago From Obama’s conceited and detached demeanor, to his detrimental reliance on Michelle Obama and Valerie Jarrett’s advice, to the Obamas' extravagant and out-of-touch lifestyle, The Amateur reveals a president whose blatant ignorance and incompetence is sabotaging himself, his presidency, and America.

The Presidency of Barack Obama

The Presidency of Barack Obama
Author: Julian E. Zelizer
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2018-03-13
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1400889553

An original and engaging account of the Obama years from a group of leading political historians Barack Obama's election as the first African American president seemed to usher in a new era, and he took office in 2009 with great expectations. But by his second term, Republicans controlled Congress, and, after the 2016 presidential election, Obama's legacy and the health of the Democratic Party itself appeared in doubt. In The Presidency of Barack Obama, Julian Zelizer gathers leading American historians to put President Obama and his administration into political and historical context. These writers offer strikingly original assessments of the big issues that shaped the Obama years, including the conservative backlash, race, the financial crisis, health care, crime, drugs, counterterrorism, Iraq and Afghanistan, the environment, immigration, education, gay rights, and urban policy. Together, these essays suggest that Obama's central paradox is that, despite effective policymaking, he failed to receive credit for his many achievements and wasn't a party builder. Provocatively, they ask why Obama didn't unite Democrats and progressive activists to fight the conservative counter-tide as it grew stronger. Engaging and deeply informed, The Presidency of Barack Obama is a must-read for anyone who wants to better understand Obama and the uncertain aftermath of his presidency. Contributors include Sarah Coleman, Jacob Dlamini, Gary Gerstle, Risa Goluboff, Meg Jacobs, Peniel Joseph, Michael Kazin, Matthew Lassiter, Kathryn Olmsted, Eric Rauchway, Richard Schragger, Paul Starr, Timothy Stewart-Winter, Thomas Sugrue, Jeremi Suri, Julian Zelizer, and Jonathan Zimmerman.

The Word Collector

The Word Collector
Author: Peter H. Reynolds
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Total Pages: 40
Release: 2018-01-30
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 133825717X

From the beloved bestselling creator of The Dot and our own Happy Dreamer comes an inspiring story about the transformative and profound power of words. Some people collect stamps.Some people collect coins.Some people collect art.And Jerome?Jerome collected words . . . In this extraordinary new tale from Peter H. Reynolds, Jerome discovers the magic of the words all around him -- short and sweet words, two-syllable treats, and multisyllable words that sound like little songs. Words that connect, transform, and empower. From the creator of The Dot and Happy Dreamer comes a celebration of finding your own words -- and the impact you can have when you share them with the world.

Barack Obama and the Future of American Politics

Barack Obama and the Future of American Politics
Author: Paul Street
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 322
Release: 2015-12-22
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1317263391

Many Americans believe Barak Obama represents a hopeful future for America. But does he also reflect the American politics of the past? This book offers the broadest and best-informed understanding on the meaning of the "Obama phenomenon" to date. Paul Street was on the ground throughout the Iowa campaign, and his stories of the rising Obama phenomenon are poignant. Yet the author's background in American political history allows him to explore the deeper meanings of Obama's remarkable political career. He looks at Obama in relation to contemporary issues of class, race, war, and empire. He considers Obama in the context of our nation's political history, with comparisons to FDR, JFK, Bill Clinton, and other leaders. Street finds that the Obama persona, crafted by campaign consultants and filtered through dominant media trends, masks the "change" candidate's adherence to long-prevailing power structures and party doctrines. He shows how American political culture has produced misperceptions by the electorate of Obama's positions and values. Obama is no magical exception to the narrow-spectrum electoral system and ideological culture that have done so much to define and limit the American political tradition. Yet the author suggests key ways in which Obama potentially advances democratic transformation. Street makes recommendations on how citizens can productively respond to and act upon Obama's influence and the broader historical and social forces that have produced his celebrity and relevance. He also lays out a real agenda for change for the new presidential administration, one that addresses the recent failures of democratic politics.

Radical-in-Chief

Radical-in-Chief
Author: Stanley Kurtz
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 479
Release: 2010
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1439155097

Journalist Stanley Kurtz examines the politics of Barack Obama, focusing on his alleged socialist convictions, and suggesting that Obama's visions for the United States and long-term strategy are influenced by connections to radical groups and the Socialist Scholars Conferences.