The Audacity of Hope - Barack Obama

The Audacity of Hope

By Barack Obama

  • Release Date: 2006-10-17
  • Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Score: 4
4
From 237 Ratings

Description

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Barack Obama’s lucid vision of America’s place in the world and call for a new kind of politics that builds upon our shared understandings as Americans, based on his years in the Senate
 
“In our lowdown, dispiriting era, Obama’s talent for proposing humane, sensible solutions with uplifting, elegant prose does fill one with hope.”—Michael Kazin, The Washington Post
 
In July 2004, four years before his presidency, Barack Obama electrified the Democratic National Convention with an address that spoke to Americans across the political spectrum. One phrase in particular anchored itself in listeners’ minds, a reminder that for all the discord and struggle to be found in our history as a nation, we have always been guided by a dogged optimism in the future, or what Obama called “the audacity of hope.”

The Audacity of Hope is Barack Obama’s call for a different brand of politics—a politics for those weary of bitter partisanship and alienated by the “endless clash of armies” we see in congress and on the campaign trail; a politics rooted in the faith, inclusiveness, and nobility of spirit at the heart of “our improbable experiment in democracy.” He explores those forces—from the fear of losing to the perpetual need to raise money to the power of the media—that can stifle even the best-intentioned politician. He also writes, with surprising intimacy and self-deprecating humor, about settling in as a senator, seeking to balance the demands of public service and family life, and his own deepening religious commitment.

At the heart of this book is Barack Obama’s vision of how we can move beyond our divisions to tackle concrete problems. He examines the growing economic insecurity of American families, the racial and religious tensions within the body politic, and the transnational threats—from terrorism to pandemic—that gather beyond our shores. And he grapples with the role that faith plays in a democracy—where it is vital and where it must never intrude. Underlying his stories is a vigorous search for connection: the foundation for a radically hopeful political consensus.

Only by returning to the principles that gave birth to our Constitution, Obama says, can Americans repair a political process that is broken, and restore to working order a government that has fallen dangerously out of touch with millions of ordinary Americans. Those Americans are out there, he writes—“waiting for Republicans and Democrats to catch up with them.”

Reviews

  • AMAZING

    5
    By billyjeanmoonwalking62
    BEST president we done had so far , i’ll never turn on you BARACK ❤️❗️💪🏾 #Barack
  • A Third Way

    5
    By Richard Bakare
    “Values are faithfully applied to the facts before is, while ideology overrides whatever facts call theory into question.” This line is perhaps my favorite sentence in the book. It perfectly incapsulates the delicate balance that is politics. Intricately trying to navigate a mine field of passions from multiple sides to safely land on the other side. This was a journey historically traveled collaboratively between members of all parties. Today, there seems to be only one of two ways, left or right. Either direction leaving some on the other side left behind if not gravely injured. In this book, President Obama attempts to revisit a third way. That forgotten middle ground between left and right. Built upon the deliberative and reflective debate we should be having with our beliefs and ideologies. In the end whatever truth we come to, grounded in the facts before us. His ability to see compromise and maintain a balanced view is the benefit of a very complex personal journey. One in which he has both seen and experienced personal struggle, as well as with absorbing the full benefit of travel to countries beyond his own and immersion in foreign cultures. This worldliness provides the reflective backdrop that highlights how our own freedoms and luxuries are not so prevalent elsewhere. Reminding us to be grateful, preserve those luxuries, and spread them through example and effort.
  • My thoughts

    5
    By Hadassah H 360 Forever after
    I think that Obama is an amazing man.He also is an amazing president.Thats why I think you should read this book so you can understand Obama better than some people think of him
  • Trash

    1
    By Duck lover 27
    I’m sad that the first black president was a piece of potato salad and I don’t like potato salad
  • Best book ever of former President!!

    5
    By Awesome Alan!!
    When Obama was President Obama in Office between 2008 and 2012, he did his very best to make improvements on our country. Even though some Americans unfortunately weren’t happy with what he was doing. But to me, he was my favorite President. And he’s my favorite American person to look up to for inspiration. I just hope that Joe Biden can do the same thing that Obama did.
  • His optimism is intoxicating

    5
    By Charlie B Tuna
    I’m inspired to be not just a spectator in my CV countries politics
  • Understanding Faith and Works

    5
    By Sidney Scott Jr.
    Reading this book help understand the driving force behind the President and how he translated his faith into action
  • A Must Read

    5
    By starkiller15
    The Audacity of Hope is my favorite book ever written. It is my go to when I'm looking for inspiration or relaxation. The context of this book really parallels the situation America is in today. I hope that Obama's next book is just as good!
  • Boring and overhyped

    1
    By Veritè
    If you're into rhetorics then this book might be suitable for you.
  • The Audacity of Hope

    5
    By Mbouo
    excellent!