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Grace: President Obama and Ten Days in the Battle for America Audiobook
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From Barack Obama’s chief speechwriter Cody Keenan, a spellbinding account of the ten most dramatic days of the presidency, when a hate-fueled massacre and looming Supreme Court decisions put the character of our country on the line, and a president’s words could bring the nation together or tear it apart.
A white supremacist shooting and an astonishing act of forgiveness. A national reckoning with race and the Confederate flag. The fate of marriage equality and the Affordable Care Act. GRACE is the propulsive story of ten days in June 2015, when Obama and his chief speechwriter Cody Keenan composed a series of high-stakes speeches to meet a succession of stunning developments.
Through behind-the-scenes moments—from Obama’s suggestion that Keenan pour a drink, listen to some Miles Davis, and “find the silences,” to the president’s late-night writing sessions in the First Family’s residence—Keenan takes us inside the craft of speechwriting at the highest level for the most demanding of bosses, the relentlessly poetic and perfectionist Barack Obama. GRACE also delivers a fascinating portrait of White House insiders like Ben Rhodes, Valerie Jarrett, Jen Psaki, and the speechwriting team responsible for pulling it all off during a furious, historic stretch of the Obama presidency—including a gifted fact-checker who took Keenan’s rhetoric to task before taking his hand in marriage. GRACE is the most intimate writing that exists on the rhetorical tightrope our first Black president had to walk, culminating with an unforgettable high point: Obama stunning everybody by taking a deep breath and leading the country in a chorus of “Amazing Grace.”
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“As a political memoir, it is a masterpiece, rendering the White House’s characters…in deeply human terms, with unforgettable behind-the-scenes accounts.”
— Samantha Power, Pulitzer Prize winner and former US ambassador to the United Nations
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“A rarity in presidential histories these days: an argument for public service.”
— Chicago Tribune -
“Offers a candid slice of life in a West Wing characterized by camaraderie, integrity, and hard work.”
— Library Journal -
“An absorbing book debut with an insider’s view of the pressure…within the White House…A moving portrait of a presidency and its top speechwriter.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review) -
“This is a hero’s journey, told with humility, insight, and of course, grace.”
— Colum McCann, New York Times bestselling author
Awards
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A New York Times bestseller
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An Amazon Editor’s Top Pick in History
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About Cody Keenan
Cody Keenan rose from a campaign intern in Chicago to become chief speechwriter at the White House and Barack Obama’s post-presidential collaborator. He has been named the “Springsteen” of the Obama White House, Obama himself calls him “Hemingway,” and British GQ magazine once named him one of the “35 Coolest Men under 38 (and a Half).” He got his start as an aide to Senator Edward M. Kennedy before earning a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. A sought-after expert on politics, messaging, and current affairs, he is a partner at leading speechwriting firm Fenway Strategies and teaches a popular course on political speechwriting at his alma mater Northwestern University.
About Cody Keenan
Barack Obama was the 44th president of the United States, elected in November 2008 and holding office for two terms. He is the author of two previous New York Times bestselling books, Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope, and the recipient of the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. He graduated from Columbia University and Harvard Law School, where he was the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review. In addition to his work as a community organizer, he practiced as a civil rights attorney before serving three terms in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004. He also taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School from 1992 to 2004. Obama is especially proud of being a husband and father of two daughters.