Barack Obama Sr.

Barack Obama Sr.

Author: Abon’go Malik Obama & Frank Koyoo

Publisher: Xlibris Corporation

Published: 2012-05-30

Total Pages: 394

ISBN-13: 146918463X

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I have tried to tell the story of my father, our father, as best as I can with the distinguished assistance of my co-author, Frank Koyoo. Frank came to me with this idea and revealed that he had begun to do a story about my father Barack Hussein Obama. He wanted to write this book, but he did not feel that he was the right person to do it. He knew that his story’s subjects were alive, and he proceeded to seek out the one who would have the best and most knowledgeable information about the man. He came to me, and although I, at first, was hesitant and uncertain about his intentions and the project in general, I realized that this was a real opportunity to tell our father’s story, an authentic account from an authentic source. We have tried to do our best in telling the story of a man who started out from the heart of the African bushland, traveled to heart of the great American continent, and achieved the highest in intellectual accomplishments, returning to his native Africa, of which he had the highest esteem. His dream was to restore Africa to its historical greatness, to establish and build a new and better place for his people. His goal was for a place where his children and the children of his people lived in a land of plenty in peace, love, and harmony. His passion was education, honesty, and perfection. He had lofty ideals and was generous and kind. He had his shortcomings as is natural for all of us. This is his story; some of it is factual, some of it as close to factual as could be, and others made to most closely fit into the general picture of Luoland, Kenya, and Luo culture. Things did not turn out as he had planned, and life was great at one time and at the lowest at others, but he kept on until he met his death at the young age of forty-six on 26 November 1982. His life was cut short when he was getting back on his feet. There was talk about the circumstances of my father’s death. It was difficult to accept that he had died. There was talk that he had been in the company of friends, the identity of whom is still a mystery, and had received some large sums of cash, the whereabouts of which no one has ever been able to determine, a classic conspiracy theory that may have some truth to it because my father was pulling himself together and was getting back on his feet. Somebody somewhere was bound to be threatened and could have had a hand in his death. Barack Hussein Obama; son of Akumu Nyanjoga (daughter of Njoga). Years have turned over, and memories have dimmed in some places, but all in all, we have done our best and hope that justice has been done and that you, our readers, find this material excellent to read and to your approval. We hope that wherever he is, he can look back and through us feel vindicated. He did his bit, and now he can look at us and heave a sigh of relief, knowing that we are doing well. Rest in peace, Dad; we love you.


Book Synopsis Barack Obama Sr. by : Abon’go Malik Obama & Frank Koyoo

Download or read book Barack Obama Sr. written by Abon’go Malik Obama & Frank Koyoo and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2012-05-30 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: I have tried to tell the story of my father, our father, as best as I can with the distinguished assistance of my co-author, Frank Koyoo. Frank came to me with this idea and revealed that he had begun to do a story about my father Barack Hussein Obama. He wanted to write this book, but he did not feel that he was the right person to do it. He knew that his story’s subjects were alive, and he proceeded to seek out the one who would have the best and most knowledgeable information about the man. He came to me, and although I, at first, was hesitant and uncertain about his intentions and the project in general, I realized that this was a real opportunity to tell our father’s story, an authentic account from an authentic source. We have tried to do our best in telling the story of a man who started out from the heart of the African bushland, traveled to heart of the great American continent, and achieved the highest in intellectual accomplishments, returning to his native Africa, of which he had the highest esteem. His dream was to restore Africa to its historical greatness, to establish and build a new and better place for his people. His goal was for a place where his children and the children of his people lived in a land of plenty in peace, love, and harmony. His passion was education, honesty, and perfection. He had lofty ideals and was generous and kind. He had his shortcomings as is natural for all of us. This is his story; some of it is factual, some of it as close to factual as could be, and others made to most closely fit into the general picture of Luoland, Kenya, and Luo culture. Things did not turn out as he had planned, and life was great at one time and at the lowest at others, but he kept on until he met his death at the young age of forty-six on 26 November 1982. His life was cut short when he was getting back on his feet. There was talk about the circumstances of my father’s death. It was difficult to accept that he had died. There was talk that he had been in the company of friends, the identity of whom is still a mystery, and had received some large sums of cash, the whereabouts of which no one has ever been able to determine, a classic conspiracy theory that may have some truth to it because my father was pulling himself together and was getting back on his feet. Somebody somewhere was bound to be threatened and could have had a hand in his death. Barack Hussein Obama; son of Akumu Nyanjoga (daughter of Njoga). Years have turned over, and memories have dimmed in some places, but all in all, we have done our best and hope that justice has been done and that you, our readers, find this material excellent to read and to your approval. We hope that wherever he is, he can look back and through us feel vindicated. He did his bit, and now he can look at us and heave a sigh of relief, knowing that we are doing well. Rest in peace, Dad; we love you.


The Other Barack

The Other Barack

Author: Sally H Jacobs

Publisher: PublicAffairs

Published: 2011-07-07

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 1610390199

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Barack Obama Sr., father of the American president, was part of Africa's "independence generation" and in 1959 it seemed his star would shine brightly. He came to the U.S. from Kenya and was given a university scholarship. While in the Hawaii, he met Ann Dunham in 1961, and his son Barack was born. He left his young family to gain a master's degree from Harvard. After that, Obama's life became progressively more complicated. He was a brilliant economist, yet never held the coveted government job he felt should have been his. He was a polygamist, an alcoholic, and an ardent African nationalist unafraid to tell truth to power at a time when that could get you killed. Father of eight, nurturer of none, he was an unlikely person to father the first African American president of the United States. Yet he was, like that son, a man moved by the dream of a better world. Now, thanks to dozens of exclusive new interviews, prodigious research, and determined investigation, Sally Jacobs tells his full story.


Book Synopsis The Other Barack by : Sally H Jacobs

Download or read book The Other Barack written by Sally H Jacobs and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2011-07-07 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Barack Obama Sr., father of the American president, was part of Africa's "independence generation" and in 1959 it seemed his star would shine brightly. He came to the U.S. from Kenya and was given a university scholarship. While in the Hawaii, he met Ann Dunham in 1961, and his son Barack was born. He left his young family to gain a master's degree from Harvard. After that, Obama's life became progressively more complicated. He was a brilliant economist, yet never held the coveted government job he felt should have been his. He was a polygamist, an alcoholic, and an ardent African nationalist unafraid to tell truth to power at a time when that could get you killed. Father of eight, nurturer of none, he was an unlikely person to father the first African American president of the United States. Yet he was, like that son, a man moved by the dream of a better world. Now, thanks to dozens of exclusive new interviews, prodigious research, and determined investigation, Sally Jacobs tells his full story.


Obama Senior. A Dream Fulfilled

Obama Senior. A Dream Fulfilled

Author: Donde, Fredrick

Publisher: East African Educational Publishers

Published: 2015-08-06

Total Pages: 162

ISBN-13: 9966560394

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On January 20, 2009, Barack Hussein Obama made history as the first African-American president of the United States of America since its founding in 1776. Around the world, people celebrated his election as if he were one of their own and held exceedingly high expectations of his presidency. When, as senator of Illinois, he visited his father's village in Nyang'oma K'Ogelo in Kenya, he was struck by the ecstatic reception that the people accorded him. He was deeply touched by the abject poverty and fullness of spirit of the people. The level of need and the challenges that he witnessed in the poor neighbourhoods of Chicago in the US, in Indonesia and Kenya may have significantly contributed to his spirited drive to the White House. In this book, the author re-traces the life of Barack Obama Senior and how his character, vision and intellect influenced his son's drive to the most powerful office in the land. In so doing, the author revisits the events in pre- and post-colonial Kenya and how these, too, had a bearing on the life of Obama Senior. The book also relates the history of his people - the Luo - from their original settlements along the Nile in Egypt and the Sudan to their present homelands in East Africa and the Great Lakes region. It details the often tragic and ultimately triumphant struggle of a people in pursuit of a just, peaceful and progressive society.


Book Synopsis Obama Senior. A Dream Fulfilled by : Donde, Fredrick

Download or read book Obama Senior. A Dream Fulfilled written by Donde, Fredrick and published by East African Educational Publishers. This book was released on 2015-08-06 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On January 20, 2009, Barack Hussein Obama made history as the first African-American president of the United States of America since its founding in 1776. Around the world, people celebrated his election as if he were one of their own and held exceedingly high expectations of his presidency. When, as senator of Illinois, he visited his father's village in Nyang'oma K'Ogelo in Kenya, he was struck by the ecstatic reception that the people accorded him. He was deeply touched by the abject poverty and fullness of spirit of the people. The level of need and the challenges that he witnessed in the poor neighbourhoods of Chicago in the US, in Indonesia and Kenya may have significantly contributed to his spirited drive to the White House. In this book, the author re-traces the life of Barack Obama Senior and how his character, vision and intellect influenced his son's drive to the most powerful office in the land. In so doing, the author revisits the events in pre- and post-colonial Kenya and how these, too, had a bearing on the life of Obama Senior. The book also relates the history of his people - the Luo - from their original settlements along the Nile in Egypt and the Sudan to their present homelands in East Africa and the Great Lakes region. It details the often tragic and ultimately triumphant struggle of a people in pursuit of a just, peaceful and progressive society.


Radical-in-Chief

Radical-in-Chief

Author: Stanley Kurtz

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 479

ISBN-13: 1439155097

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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.


Book Synopsis Radical-in-Chief by : Stanley Kurtz

Download or read book Radical-in-Chief written by Stanley Kurtz and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2010 with total page 479 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.


Barack Obama's Family Tree

Barack Obama's Family Tree

Author: Amelie von Zumbusch

Publisher: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc

Published: 2010-01-15

Total Pages: 26

ISBN-13: 1435893905

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Surveys President Obama's family background, including his American grandparents and mother and his Kenyan father and extended family.


Book Synopsis Barack Obama's Family Tree by : Amelie von Zumbusch

Download or read book Barack Obama's Family Tree written by Amelie von Zumbusch and published by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. This book was released on 2010-01-15 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Surveys President Obama's family background, including his American grandparents and mother and his Kenyan father and extended family.


Airlift to America

Airlift to America

Author: Tom Shachtman

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Published: 2009-09-15

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1429960906

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This is the long-hidden saga of how a handful of Americans and East Africans fought the British colonial government, the U.S. State Department, and segregation to transport to, or support at, U.S. and Canadian universities, between 1959 and 1963, nearly 800 young East African men and women who would go on to change their world and ours. The students supported included Barack Obama Sr., future father of a U.S. president, Wangari Maathai, future Nobel Peace Prize laureate, as well as the nation-builders of post-colonial East Africa -- cabinet ministers, ambassadors, university chancellors, clinic and school founders. The airlift was conceived by the unusual partnership of the charismatic, later-assassinated Kenyan Tom Mboya and William X. Scheinman, a young American entrepreneur, with supporting roles played by Jackie Robinson, Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier, and Martin Luther King, Jr. The airlift even had an impact on the 1960 presidential race, as Vice-President Richard Nixon tried to muscle the State Department into funding the project to prevent Senator Jack Kennedy from using his family foundation to do so and reaping the political benefit. The book is based on the files of the airlift's sponsor, the African American Students Foundation, untouched for almost fifty years.


Book Synopsis Airlift to America by : Tom Shachtman

Download or read book Airlift to America written by Tom Shachtman and published by St. Martin's Press. This book was released on 2009-09-15 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the long-hidden saga of how a handful of Americans and East Africans fought the British colonial government, the U.S. State Department, and segregation to transport to, or support at, U.S. and Canadian universities, between 1959 and 1963, nearly 800 young East African men and women who would go on to change their world and ours. The students supported included Barack Obama Sr., future father of a U.S. president, Wangari Maathai, future Nobel Peace Prize laureate, as well as the nation-builders of post-colonial East Africa -- cabinet ministers, ambassadors, university chancellors, clinic and school founders. The airlift was conceived by the unusual partnership of the charismatic, later-assassinated Kenyan Tom Mboya and William X. Scheinman, a young American entrepreneur, with supporting roles played by Jackie Robinson, Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier, and Martin Luther King, Jr. The airlift even had an impact on the 1960 presidential race, as Vice-President Richard Nixon tried to muscle the State Department into funding the project to prevent Senator Jack Kennedy from using his family foundation to do so and reaping the political benefit. The book is based on the files of the airlift's sponsor, the African American Students Foundation, untouched for almost fifty years.


Dreams from My Father

Dreams from My Father

Author: Barack Obama

Publisher: Crown

Published: 2007-01-09

Total Pages: 463

ISBN-13: 0307394123

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#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


Book Synopsis Dreams from My Father by : Barack Obama

Download or read book Dreams from My Father written by Barack Obama and published by Crown. This book was released on 2007-01-09 with total page 463 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: #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


The Other Barack

The Other Barack

Author: Sally H Jacobs

Publisher: PublicAffairs

Published: 2011-07-07

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 1610390199

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Barack Obama Sr., father of the American president, was part of Africa's "independence generation" and in 1959 it seemed his star would shine brightly. He came to the U.S. from Kenya and was given a university scholarship. While in the Hawaii, he met Ann Dunham in 1961, and his son Barack was born. He left his young family to gain a master's degree from Harvard. After that, Obama's life became progressively more complicated. He was a brilliant economist, yet never held the coveted government job he felt should have been his. He was a polygamist, an alcoholic, and an ardent African nationalist unafraid to tell truth to power at a time when that could get you killed. Father of eight, nurturer of none, he was an unlikely person to father the first African American president of the United States. Yet he was, like that son, a man moved by the dream of a better world. Now, thanks to dozens of exclusive new interviews, prodigious research, and determined investigation, Sally Jacobs tells his full story.


Book Synopsis The Other Barack by : Sally H Jacobs

Download or read book The Other Barack written by Sally H Jacobs and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2011-07-07 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Barack Obama Sr., father of the American president, was part of Africa's "independence generation" and in 1959 it seemed his star would shine brightly. He came to the U.S. from Kenya and was given a university scholarship. While in the Hawaii, he met Ann Dunham in 1961, and his son Barack was born. He left his young family to gain a master's degree from Harvard. After that, Obama's life became progressively more complicated. He was a brilliant economist, yet never held the coveted government job he felt should have been his. He was a polygamist, an alcoholic, and an ardent African nationalist unafraid to tell truth to power at a time when that could get you killed. Father of eight, nurturer of none, he was an unlikely person to father the first African American president of the United States. Yet he was, like that son, a man moved by the dream of a better world. Now, thanks to dozens of exclusive new interviews, prodigious research, and determined investigation, Sally Jacobs tells his full story.


A Singular Woman

A Singular Woman

Author: Janny Scott

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2011-05-03

Total Pages: 309

ISBN-13: 110151390X

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From the author of The Beneficiary: Fortune, Misfortune and the Story of My Father comes a major publishing event: an unprecedented look into the life of the woman who most singularly shaped Barack Obama-his mother. Barack Obama has written extensively about his father, but little is known about Stanley Ann Dunham, the fiercely independent woman who raised him, the person he credits for, as he says, "what is best in me." Here is the missing piece of the story. Award-winning reporter Janny Scott interviewed nearly two hundred of Dunham's friends, colleagues, and relatives (including both her children), and combed through boxes of personal and professional papers, letters to friends, and photo albums, to uncover the full breadth of this woman's inspiring and untraditional life, and to show the remarkable extent to which she shaped the man Obama is today. Dunham's story moves from Kansas and Washington state to Hawaii and Indonesia. It begins in a time when interracial marriage was still a felony in much of the United States, and culminates in the present, with her son as our president- something she never got to see. It is a poignant look at how character is passed from parent to child, and offers insight into how Obama's destiny was created early, by his mother's extraordinary faith in his gifts, and by her unconventional mothering. Finally, it is a heartbreaking story of a woman who died at age fifty-two, before her son would go on to his greatest accomplishments and reflections of what she taught him.


Book Synopsis A Singular Woman by : Janny Scott

Download or read book A Singular Woman written by Janny Scott and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2011-05-03 with total page 309 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the author of The Beneficiary: Fortune, Misfortune and the Story of My Father comes a major publishing event: an unprecedented look into the life of the woman who most singularly shaped Barack Obama-his mother. Barack Obama has written extensively about his father, but little is known about Stanley Ann Dunham, the fiercely independent woman who raised him, the person he credits for, as he says, "what is best in me." Here is the missing piece of the story. Award-winning reporter Janny Scott interviewed nearly two hundred of Dunham's friends, colleagues, and relatives (including both her children), and combed through boxes of personal and professional papers, letters to friends, and photo albums, to uncover the full breadth of this woman's inspiring and untraditional life, and to show the remarkable extent to which she shaped the man Obama is today. Dunham's story moves from Kansas and Washington state to Hawaii and Indonesia. It begins in a time when interracial marriage was still a felony in much of the United States, and culminates in the present, with her son as our president- something she never got to see. It is a poignant look at how character is passed from parent to child, and offers insight into how Obama's destiny was created early, by his mother's extraordinary faith in his gifts, and by her unconventional mothering. Finally, it is a heartbreaking story of a woman who died at age fifty-two, before her son would go on to his greatest accomplishments and reflections of what she taught him.


Finding My Voice

Finding My Voice

Author: Valerie Jarrett

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2019-04-02

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 0525558144

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A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Finalist for the NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Literary Work" "Valerie has been one of Barack and my closest confidantes for decades... the world would feel a lot better if there were more people like Valerie blazing the trail for the rest of us."--Michelle Obama "The ultimate Obama insider" (The New York Times) and longest-serving senior advisor in the Obama White House shares her journey as a daughter, mother, lawyer, business leader, public servant, and leader in government at a historic moment in American history. When Valerie Jarrett interviewed a promising young lawyer named Michelle Robinson in July 1991 for a job in Chicago city government, neither knew that it was the first step on a path that would end in the White House. Jarrett soon became Michelle and Barack Obama's trusted personal adviser and family confidante; in the White House, she was known as the one who "got" him and helped him engage his public life. Jarrett joined the White House team on January 20, 2009 and departed with the First Family on January 20, 2017, and she was in the room--in the Oval Office, on Air Force One, and everywhere else--when it all happened. No one has as intimate a view of the Obama Years, nor one that reaches back as many decades, as Jarrett shares in Finding My Voice. Born in Iran (where her father, a doctor, sought a better job than he could find in segregated America), Jarrett grew up in Chicago in the 60s as racial and gender barriers were being challenged. A single mother stagnating in corporate law, she found her voice in Harold Washington's historic administration, where she began a remarkable journey, ultimately becoming one of the most visible and influential African-American women of the twenty-first century. From her work ensuring equality for women and girls, advancing civil rights, reforming our criminal justice system, and improving the lives of working families, to the real stories behind some of the most stirring moments of the Obama presidency, Jarrett shares her forthright, optimistic perspective on the importance of leadership and the responsibilities of citizenship in the twenty-first century, inspiring readers to lift their own voices.


Book Synopsis Finding My Voice by : Valerie Jarrett

Download or read book Finding My Voice written by Valerie Jarrett and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2019-04-02 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Finalist for the NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Literary Work" "Valerie has been one of Barack and my closest confidantes for decades... the world would feel a lot better if there were more people like Valerie blazing the trail for the rest of us."--Michelle Obama "The ultimate Obama insider" (The New York Times) and longest-serving senior advisor in the Obama White House shares her journey as a daughter, mother, lawyer, business leader, public servant, and leader in government at a historic moment in American history. When Valerie Jarrett interviewed a promising young lawyer named Michelle Robinson in July 1991 for a job in Chicago city government, neither knew that it was the first step on a path that would end in the White House. Jarrett soon became Michelle and Barack Obama's trusted personal adviser and family confidante; in the White House, she was known as the one who "got" him and helped him engage his public life. Jarrett joined the White House team on January 20, 2009 and departed with the First Family on January 20, 2017, and she was in the room--in the Oval Office, on Air Force One, and everywhere else--when it all happened. No one has as intimate a view of the Obama Years, nor one that reaches back as many decades, as Jarrett shares in Finding My Voice. Born in Iran (where her father, a doctor, sought a better job than he could find in segregated America), Jarrett grew up in Chicago in the 60s as racial and gender barriers were being challenged. A single mother stagnating in corporate law, she found her voice in Harold Washington's historic administration, where she began a remarkable journey, ultimately becoming one of the most visible and influential African-American women of the twenty-first century. From her work ensuring equality for women and girls, advancing civil rights, reforming our criminal justice system, and improving the lives of working families, to the real stories behind some of the most stirring moments of the Obama presidency, Jarrett shares her forthright, optimistic perspective on the importance of leadership and the responsibilities of citizenship in the twenty-first century, inspiring readers to lift their own voices.