
Obama
From Promise to Power
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $25.19
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Dion Graham
-
By:
-
David Mendell
About this listen
Here is the biography of America's hottest political superstar, Barack Obama, from a journalist who has been covering Obama's career since his successful run for the US Senate.
Barack Obama's meteoric rise is the stuff of legend. Since his headline-grabbing speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004, Obama has come to represent the promise of unity among groups of all types: blacks and whites; Democrats, Republicans, and moderates; the upper, middle, and lower classes. In this groundbreaking biography, veteran journalist and Obama chronicler David Mendell gives an in-depth, comprehensive portrait of a man whose name has become a catchphrase for hope in a politically jaded society desperate for a new star.
Mendell has covered Obama since the beginning of his Senate campaign and, as a result, enjoys far-reaching access to the new senator. His research includes exclusive interviews with Obama's closest aides, mentors, political adversaries, and family. Mendell reveals the surprising, cutthroat campaign tactics sanctioned by Obama - who has steeped his image and reputation in the ideals of clean politics and good government - which enabled him to win his Senate seat by employing some of the most ruthless operatives in the business.
Eye-opening, well-researched, and compulsively listenable, Obama: From Promise to Power is a necessary look at the evolution of a politician from public servant to candidate-savior.
©2007 David Mendell (P)2007 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
Dreams from My Father
- A Story of Race and Inheritance
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
Powerful
- By Gene R. on 10-26-21
By: Barack Obama
-
His Very Best
- Jimmy Carter, a Life
- By: Jonathan Alter
- Narrated by: Michael Boatman
- Length: 31 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Growing up in one of the meanest counties in the Jim Crow South, Carter is the only American president who essentially lived in three centuries: his early life on the farm in the 1920s without electricity or running water might as well have been in the nineteenth; his presidency put him at the center of major events in the twentieth; and his efforts on conflict resolution and global health set him on the cutting edge of the challenges of the 21st.
-
-
Unbiased biography of a complex president
- By P Willis on 10-08-20
By: Jonathan Alter
-
A Promised Land
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 29 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency - a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.
-
-
Color me grateful.
- By Angela on 11-19-20
By: Barack Obama
-
Becoming
- By: Michelle Obama
- Narrated by: Michelle Obama
- Length: 19 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites listeners into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her - from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work to her time spent at the world's most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it - in her own words and on her own terms.
-
-
Didn't know what I was getting into
- By Kenneth Woodward on 12-05-18
By: Michelle Obama
-
The Audacity of Hope
- Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In July 2004, Barack Obama electrified the Democratic National Convention with an address that spoke to Americans across the political spectrum. Now, in The Audacity of Hope, Senator Obama calls 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".
-
-
My Fellow Conservatives, Give This A Listen
- By Dallas D.L. on 02-12-15
By: Barack Obama
-
What Happened
- By: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Narrated by: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Length: 18 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For the first time, Hillary Rodham Clinton reveals what she was thinking and feeling during one of the most controversial and unpredictable presidential elections in history. Now free from the constraints of running, Hillary takes you inside the intense personal experience of becoming the first woman nominated for president by a major party in an election marked by rage, sexism, exhilarating highs and infuriating lows, stranger-than-fiction twists, Russian interference, and an opponent who broke all the rules. This is her most personal memoir yet.
-
-
Typical Hillary
- By Randall Shields on 09-18-17
-
Dreams from My Father
- A Story of Race and Inheritance
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
Powerful
- By Gene R. on 10-26-21
By: Barack Obama
-
His Very Best
- Jimmy Carter, a Life
- By: Jonathan Alter
- Narrated by: Michael Boatman
- Length: 31 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Growing up in one of the meanest counties in the Jim Crow South, Carter is the only American president who essentially lived in three centuries: his early life on the farm in the 1920s without electricity or running water might as well have been in the nineteenth; his presidency put him at the center of major events in the twentieth; and his efforts on conflict resolution and global health set him on the cutting edge of the challenges of the 21st.
-
-
Unbiased biography of a complex president
- By P Willis on 10-08-20
By: Jonathan Alter
-
A Promised Land
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 29 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency - a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.
-
-
Color me grateful.
- By Angela on 11-19-20
By: Barack Obama
-
Becoming
- By: Michelle Obama
- Narrated by: Michelle Obama
- Length: 19 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites listeners into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her - from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work to her time spent at the world's most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it - in her own words and on her own terms.
-
-
Didn't know what I was getting into
- By Kenneth Woodward on 12-05-18
By: Michelle Obama
-
The Audacity of Hope
- Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In July 2004, Barack Obama electrified the Democratic National Convention with an address that spoke to Americans across the political spectrum. Now, in The Audacity of Hope, Senator Obama calls 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".
-
-
My Fellow Conservatives, Give This A Listen
- By Dallas D.L. on 02-12-15
By: Barack Obama
-
What Happened
- By: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Narrated by: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Length: 18 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For the first time, Hillary Rodham Clinton reveals what she was thinking and feeling during one of the most controversial and unpredictable presidential elections in history. Now free from the constraints of running, Hillary takes you inside the intense personal experience of becoming the first woman nominated for president by a major party in an election marked by rage, sexism, exhilarating highs and infuriating lows, stranger-than-fiction twists, Russian interference, and an opponent who broke all the rules. This is her most personal memoir yet.
-
-
Typical Hillary
- By Randall Shields on 09-18-17
-
The Bridge
- The Life and Rise of Barack Obama
- By: David Remnick
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 24 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
No story has been more central to America’s history this century than the rise of Barack Obama, and until now, no journalist or historian has written a book that fully investigates the circumstances and experiences of Obama’s life or explores the ambition behind his rise. From a writer whose gift for illuminating the historical significance of unfolding events is without peer; we have a portrait, at once masterly and fresh, nuanced and unexpected, of a young man in search of himself, and of a rising politician determined to become the first African-American president.
-
-
Good biography even if you know the story
- By Amr on 12-31-11
By: David Remnick
-
Unhinged
- An Insider's Account of the Trump White House
- By: Omarosa Manigault Newman
- Narrated by: Omarosa Manigault Newman
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Few have been a member of Donald Trump’s inner orbit longer than Omarosa Manigault Newman. Their relationship has spanned 15 years - through four television shows, a presidential campaign, and a year by his side in the most chaotic, outrageous White House in history. But that relationship has come to a decisive and definitive end, and Omarosa is finally ready to share her side of the story in this explosive, jaw-dropping account.
-
-
Take if for what it's worth...
- By Clay on 08-14-18
-
Game Change
- Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime
- By: John Heilemann, Mark Halperin
- Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris
- Length: 14 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on hundreds of interviews with the people who lived the story, Game Change is a reportorial tour de force that reads like a fast-paced novel. Character driven and dialogue rich, replete with extravagantly detailed scenes, this is the occasion-ally shocking, often hilarious, ultimately definitive account of the campaign of a lifetime.
-
-
Compelling & frank
- By Michael on 01-15-10
By: John Heilemann, and others
-
The Fighting Soul
- On the Road with Bernie Sanders
- By: Ari Rabin-Havt
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With The Fighting Soul, Ari Rabin-Havt takes us where no profiles or televised interview have been able to go. As a close advisor and deputy campaign manager on Bernie Sanders's most recent—and likely last—presidential campaign, the tireless Rabin-Havt spent more hours between 2017 and 2020 with the Vermont senator than anyone else. Traveling the country for rallies and to support striking workers, the two visited thirty-six states, drove tens of thousands of miles, and ate in countless chain restaurants.
-
-
An intimate look of an amazing man
- By amanda baker on 04-05-23
By: Ari Rabin-Havt
-
Here's the Deal
- A Memoir
- By: Kellyanne Conway
- Narrated by: Kellyanne Conway
- Length: 19 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a highly respected pollster for corporate and Republican clients and a frequent television talk show guest, Kellyanne Conway had already established herself as one of the brightest lights on the national political scene when Donald Trump asked her to run his presidential campaign. She agreed, delivering him to the White House, becoming the first woman in American history to manage a winning presidential campaign. Who she is, how she did it, and who tried to stop her is a fascinating story of personal triumph and political intrigue that has never been told…until now.
-
-
Beautify written and narrated memoir
- By Wayne on 06-18-22
By: Kellyanne Conway
-
Renegade
- The Making of a President
- By: Richard Wolffe
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 15 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Before the White House and Air Force One, before the TV ads and the enormous rallies, there was the real Barack Obama: A man wrestling with the momentous decision to run for the presidency, feeling torn about leaving behind a young family, and figuring out how to win the biggest prize in politics. This book is the previously untold and epic story of how a political newcomer with no money and an alien name grew into the world’s most powerful leader. But it is also a uniquely intimate portrait of the person behind the iconic posters and the Secret Service code name Renegade.
-
-
Insights into the greatest Presidential Campaign
- By Carl Laing on 06-21-09
By: Richard Wolffe
-
West Wingers
- Stories from the Dream Chasers, Change Makers, and Hope Creators Inside the Obama White House
- By: Gautam Raghavan - editor
- Narrated by: Gautam Raghavan, Michael Strautmanis, Brad Jenkins, and others
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In these moving and revealing personal stories, 18 Obama staffers bring us deep inside the presidency, offering intimate accounts of how they made it to the White House, what they witnessed, and what they accomplished there. In each one we see the human face of government, staffers devoting themselves to the issues that have defined their lives.
-
-
Excellent narrative
- By Sean M. Kosofsky on 12-28-18
-
Bobby Kennedy
- A Raging Spirit
- By: Chris Matthews
- Narrated by: Chris Matthews
- Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on extensive research and interviews, Matthews pulls back the curtain on the public and private worlds of Robert Francis Kennedy. He shines a light on all the important moments of his life, from his early years and his start in politics to his crucial role as attorney general in his brother's administration and his tragic run for president. This definitive book brings Bobby Kennedy to life like never before and is destined to become a political classic.
-
-
Bobby how we need you
- By Amazon Customer on 11-02-17
By: Chris Matthews
-
Living History
- By: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Narrated by: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Length: 6 hrs and 59 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
You've probably heard clips from Senator Clinton's interview with Barbara Walters. But now you can listen to her full account of her years in the White House. Hillary Clinton vividly describes her pain over her husband's betrayal with Monica Lewinky saying that former President Bill Clinton lied to her about the relationship until the weekend before he admitted the nature of it to a grand jury.
-
-
Dare To Read - She Will Dare To Compete in 2008
- By Michael on 06-17-03
-
Finding My Voice
- My Journey to the West Wing and the Path Forward
- By: Valerie Jarrett
- Narrated by: Valerie Jarrett
- Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"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.
-
-
Insightful
- By Jean on 05-05-19
By: Valerie Jarrett
-
The Last Republicans
- Inside the Extraordinary Relationship Between George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush
- By: Mark K. Updegrove
- Narrated by: Milton Jeffers
- Length: 14 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this balanced, illuminating audiobook, Updegrove tells the story of the Bushes' relationship from the birth of George W. through their postpresidential years and Jeb Bush's failed candidacy. Drawing on exclusive access and interviews with both presidents and the key people in their lives, Updegrove reveals the Bushes' views on the current state of the nation and the GOP and how the party they both led and helped build is undergoing a radical transformation.
-
-
Father and Son Presidents
- By Jean on 02-14-18
-
The Wilderness
- Deep Inside the Republican Party's Combative, Contentious, Chaotic Quest to Take Back the White House
- By: McKay Coppins
- Narrated by: John Glouchevitch
- Length: 14 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After the 2012 election, the GOP was in the wilderness. Lost and in disarray. And doggedly determined to do whatever it took to get back to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. McKay Coppins has had unparalleled access to Republican presidential candidates, power brokers, lawmakers, and Tea Party leaders. Based on more than 300 interviews, The Wilderness is the book that opens up the party like never before.
-
-
Just the facts! Great stories.
- By Diane on 02-17-16
By: McKay Coppins
What listeners say about Obama
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
- Max
- 02-11-09
Good insight into Obama's rise to prominance
I went through a bit of an Obama-fest with Audible, listening to Dreams from My Father, The Audacity of Hope, and then this book. If you are looking for a book to read on the President I would strongly recommend reading his first book, Dreams from My Father (written in 1994) before this one. This book, Obama (unabridged), spends the first chapters basically reiterating 'Dreams'--and it is much better to listen to Obama reading his book himself rather than this paraphrase job. The great advantage to this book, Obama (unabridged), is that it covers what 'Dreams' and 'Audacity' do not, namely an in-depth coverage of his 2004 Senate race and then his superstar Africa trip 2 years later; the author spends 2+ hours of this audio book recounting Obamas trip. It is both a meditation on Obama's rise to celebrity status and one journalist's own experiences as a news professional 'on the stump'. Both elements are interesting, though the authors tendency to 'put himself in' is at times distracting. That said, this is a great snapshot insight into life of a campaigning politician, and it does discuss how Obama's usually unflappable persona got frayed at times through his meteoric rise to prominence. Worth a listen if you want more of the 'back story' to how Obama got to the White House.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
9 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Nathalie
- 02-18-09
A great way to discover Barack Obama
I've thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook.
It allows us to understand the man, but also part of the electoral process.
Thanks for a great listen.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Shallan M. Little
- 11-10-16
Insightful
The president we needed when we needed him. This book shows the reader why Obama was elected president and reminds the reader to follow their dreams.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
- Jeffrey
- 10-27-07
More an ego boost for the author
I found the book very critical about Barack Obama, but more critical of 'irritating' traits the author found in Obama in their encounters than saying anything meaning of his character. Not a book I would recommend to someone that is a fan or interested in Barack Obama. Although I am not familiar with this author, I find him to be using his interviews with Barack Obama to make a name for himself with this book. Sadly disappointing.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
34 people found this helpful