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Barack Obama: The Story Audiobook
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(3.99) - 340 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
From the author of First In His Class, the definitive biography of Bill Clinton, and When Pride Still Mattered, the bestselling biography of Vince Lombardi, and They Marched Into Sunlight, the classic saga of the Vietnam era—a stunning new multigenerational biography of Barack Obama.
In a groundbreaking work based on hundreds of interviews, including with President Obama, and a trove of letters, journals, and other documents, one of our pre-eminent journalists presents a richly textured account of Barack Obama and the forces that shaped him.
This book begins in Kansas and Kenya, decades before Obama was born, and ends as he prepares for a political life. The reader gains a deeper insight into the first black president of the United States, revealing as never before the arc of his history, character, contradictions, and ambition. As with First In His Class, Maraniss's seminal book will redefine a president.
This seamless narrative moves through generations and around the world, evoking time and place so vividly that readers feel they are there. Maraniss explodes the myths as he explores the difficult and colorful lives of the president’s forebears and then follows young Barack from Hawaii to Indonesia to Los Angeles to New York to Chicago as he struggles with self-identity and searches for home.
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"I don't give a top rating to many books, movies, or other things. I think that is because as I get older I am increasingly protective of my time, and I am less forgiving of low quality work that wastes that diminishing quantity of time. I hope I'm not just becoming a curmudgeon. I am giving a five-star rating (or at least a 4-1/2), however, to David Maraniss' biography of Barack Obama because it is compelling reading from start to finish, is rigorously researched, and succeeds enormously at what it sets out to do, which is to tell the story of Obama's life up until his entrance into Harvard Law School. It provides context for Obama's story and provides insights into character without over analyzing or making judgements. It is remarkably balanced. This book deserves its high rating, in short, because it is one of the best books of its type I have read."
— Theresa (5 out of 5 stars)
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“Barack Obama is not, in fact, an argument for or against the reelection of the president. It is an argument for the necessity of the book itself—the book as a medium. This biography possesses a richness and scope that cannot be captured in short-form journalism, magazine excerpts, or a mere review. Maraniss has written a global, multigenerational saga that culminates in the emergence of a young man who is knowable, recognizable, and real. Every biographer knows how difficult it is to render an actual human being with the depth of a fictional character…Maraniss approaches the task with deep research, crisp, clean writing, and judicious reflection that never seems intrusive. He not only succeeds, he makes it look easy.”
— Washington Post -
“There’s far more to this revealing and deeply reported coming-of-age story, a term usually applied to novels…[It] reads like a novel filled with stories too unlikely for fiction…which makes it the best kind of political biography.”
— USA Today -
“Impeccably researched…Stunning in its detail…Maraniss…gets out of the way and lets his first-rate reporting tell the story…It is like watching a magician at work.”
— Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal -
“Remarkable…Maraniss captures Obama’s search for purpose and the kindling of his ambition with an intimacy unlike that of other biographers—including Obama…[The book] offers the rawest account of his early life and a deeper understanding of his origins. Three and a half years and countless publications after Obama’s Inauguration, that is a remarkable feat.”
— Time -
“Barack Obama is a work of monumental ambition…Maraniss’ exhaustive research and lucid writing expands exponentially our knowledge of the president’s history.”
— Chicago Tribune -
“Barack Obama is biography at its best. A prodigiously researched and exquisitely written multigenerational account…With subtlety and sophistication, Maraniss captures and conveys Obama’s sensibilities and sensitivities.”
— San Francisco Chronicle -
“This is a revelatory book…which will certainly shape our understanding of President Obama’s strengths, weaknesses, and inscrutabilities. Every few pages Maraniss offers a factual nugget that changes or enlarges the prevailing lore…We never fully know public figures, least of all one whose identity so much involves cool, deliberate reserve. But after this book we know one public figure much better.”
— New York Times Book Review
Awards
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A New York Times bestseller
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A 2012 Booklist Editors’ Choice for Biography
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One of the 2012 New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books for Nonfiction
Barack Obama Listener Reviews
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" I decided to read this book after hearing the author speak at the National Book Festival. In alternating chapters, Maraniss tells about President Obama's maternal and paternal ancestors, going back three generations. He also reveals how the lives andvarious cultures of these relatives affected and influenced Barack Obama's life. It was extremely well researched and certainly caused me to ponder the possible influences my ancestors may have played in my life. The book was long (500+ pages)and, at times, tedious, but well worth reading. "
— Ellen, 2/18/2014 -
" I'm trying to read a biography of each president going backwards starting with President Obama. I think I should have picked a different book because this never reached any of his political life or decisions. I'm amazed by Obama and will most likely read something else about him as well. Going into it just know that this will be largely about his family history and he won't even enter the story until about 100 pages in or so. The book takes you through his early life and into his college years. It seemed to really slow down and drag once it hit this point. Still undecided if my Clinton book will be the work of this author or something different. "
— Mmiller400m, 2/10/2014 -
" Last half -- about Obama from high school through post-college years -- was fascinating. But the first 200-300 pages were a real slog. "
— Mark, 2/5/2014 -
" Fascinating read. I only wish the author had spent a little less time on some details, and had gone a little further in Obama's life. It ended before he left for law school, and I was curious to read more. But overall, very interesting, very well researched biography. "
— Jessie, 1/25/2014 -
" Has David Maraniss ever met a detail he didn't include in a book? The book is thoroughly researched, but it seems to me that it's an important part of the writer's (and editor's) job to decide what's important to include and not include. Names of classmates of the President's grandparents who never play any further part in the story don't add flavor or interest or information and could easily have been deleted, making the book much more readable. That being said, there's a lot of interesting, new information here that adds a lot to our understanding of the President. "
— Jack, 1/15/2014 -
" Interesting to read in the light of Dreams from My Father being a memoir, this a historical account. "
— Judy, 1/14/2014 -
" His really has been an improbable life, although this book doesn't offer much new information. "
— Nick, 1/10/2014 -
" Listened to this on a cross-country drive. Excellent, revealing, mostly riveting memoir about Barack Obama, beginning with his grandparents on either side and ending when he leaves Chicago to go to law school. "
— Nancy, 11/26/2013 -
" Like A Singular Woman, this book was very detailed. I didn't enjoy it quite as much, though there were some new details. Don't misunderstand, however, I liked it a lot. "
— Cynthia, 11/15/2013 -
" This is a well researched look into Obama's formative years. If you have not read Dreams From My Father, I would suggest reading that before this book. "
— Stephen, 10/5/2013 -
" A huge book that covers it all! No one could possibly think Obama is a communist or a socialist if they read this book! Like King David that was brought in from the fields to be the chosen King of Israel this man had divine help to get where he is today. "
— Carolyn, 8/7/2013 -
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Zafar Ahmad, 7/25/2013
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" Excellent. More a story of his family background which is interesting stuff. All those people we thought were muslims turned out to be Seventh Day Adventists. "
— Jean, 5/27/2013 -
" Very slow read and somewhat boring. "
— Joseph, 4/16/2013 -
" Good writer. Intriguing subject. One of our most interesting presidents ever. "
— Marti, 2/6/2013 -
" Some interesting insights into the President's beginnings. But ... too many details that would be more interesting about Thomas Jefferson. Thinking history needs more time. "
— Mark, 12/4/2012 -
" Well researched and interesting- I cannot put this book down!! "
— Janet, 6/24/2012
About David Maraniss
David Maraniss is an associate editor at the Washington Post and a distinguished visiting professor at Vanderbilt University. He has won two Pulitzer Prizes for journalism and was a finalist three other times. Among his bestselling books are biographies of Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Roberto Clemente, Jim Thorpe, and Vince Lombardi. He has also written a trilogy about the 1960s: Rome 1960; Once in a Great City, winner of the RFK Book Award; and They Marched into Sunlight, winner of the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History.