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Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance |
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Amazon Sales Rank: 16
Publication Date: 2004-08-10
Release Date: 2004-08-10
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
ISBN: 1400082773
Type: Paperback
Number Of Pages: 480
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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.
Average Rating: 
Review: 2008-11-30
Everyone should read this book
During the 2004 Democratic Convention Barack Obama burst onto the US national political scene with a speech that included this line: "I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came before me, and that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible." Reading "Dreams from My Father" gives readers an important glimpse of part of that story.
This autobiography was originally published in 1995, shortly after Obama became the first black editor of the prestigious Harvard Law Review. Because it was written before he entered politics, we are given an unusually candid account of his youth and young manhood, which included drugs, personal doubts, and a search for his identity as a black man in America. It is the unusual candor of his writing that leads me to recommend it "Dreams From My Father" to readers of all colors and political persuasions.
In "The Audacity of Hope," which was published to support Obama's run for President, one gains an appreciation for his unique blend of idealism and pragmatism, but "Dreams From My Father" provides a glimpse into how he became the man who defied the odds to become the first Black President of the United States.
As a white American I gained a new appreciation of the inner struggles of Black Americans, but I also got the impression that because Obama was raised by his white mother and grandparents, he has the ability to see past issues of race. This ability is one that our nation sorely needs to move forward in tackling the problems that face people of all races and backgrounds..
Watching the crowds on election night I was struck by the joy and hope I saw on the faces of young people, both black and white. I think this book is the sort of book one should share with young people because it speaks to the search for identity that drives many young people. One does not get the sense one is reading the autobiography of a future president. Rather it could be any young man's story.
What about those who voted for McCain and who are afraid that Obama is some sort of left-wing radical? Instead of listening to Rush Limbaugh (and others) I would encourage them to read Obama's words for themselves.
Of course the story is incomplete since it was written while Obama was still at Harvard. We learn nothing of his career teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago, not to mention his subsequent political career. No doubt that story will be written, but it will be difficult to re-capture the spirit of openness that makes this book a one of a kind.
Review: 2008-11-29
Masterfully written biography
Written in an intellilgent, clear style, Barak Obama lays out his life in a thoughful way. A most winsome and hopeful biography. Our future will be in the hands of a person who has dealt with adversity with verve, deep contemplation and patience.
He speaks and America listens with hope for the future as his dream unfolds.
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Amazon List Price: $14.95
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