Barack Obama has narrated 12 audiobooks on Listento.it by 13 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.8★ across 7,310 ratings. The most-rated is A Promised Land.
A Promised Land
Summary
A riveting, deeply personal account of history in the making - from the president who inspired us to believe in the power of democracy. 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. Obama takes listeners on a compelling journey from his earliest political aspirations to the pivotal Iowa caucus victory that demonstrated the power of grassroots activism to the watershed night of November 4, 2008, when he was elected 44th president of the United States, becoming the first African American to hold the nation’s highest office. Reflecting on the presidency, he offers a unique and thoughtful exploration of both the awesome reach and the limits of presidential power, as well as singular insights into the dynamics of US partisan politics and international diplomacy. Obama brings listeners inside the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, and to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and points beyond. We are privy to his thoughts as he assembles his cabinet, wrestles with a global financial crisis, takes the measure of Vladimir Putin, overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds to secure passage of the Affordable Care Act, clashes with generals about US strategy in Afghanistan, tackles Wall Street reform, responds to the devastating Deepwater Horizon blowout, and authorizes Operation Neptune’s Spear, which leads to the death of Osama bin Laden. A Promised Land is extraordinarily intimate and introspective - the story of one man’s bet with history, the faith of a community organizer tested on the world stage. Obama is candid about the balancing act of running for office as a Black American, bearing the expectations of a generation buoyed by messages of “hope and change”, and meeting the moral challenges of high-stakes decision-making. He is frank about the forces that opposed him at home and abroad, open about how living in the White House affected his wife and daughters, and unafraid to reveal self-doubt and disappointment. Yet he never wavers from his belief that inside the great, ongoing American experiment, progress is always possible. This beautifully written and powerful book captures Barack Obama’s conviction that democracy is not a gift from on high but something founded on empathy and common understanding and built together, day by day.
©2021 Barack Obama (P)2021 Random House Audio
Dreams from My Father
Summary
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.
©1995, 2004 Barack Obama (P)2005 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.
Trillion Dollar Coach
Summary
The team behind How Google Works returns with management lessons from legendary coach and business executive Bill Campbell, whose mentoring of some of our most successful modern entrepreneurs has helped create well over a trillion dollars in market value. Bill Campbell played an instrumental role in the growth of several prominent companies, such as Google, Apple, and Intuit, fostering deep relationships with Silicon Valley visionaries, including Steve Jobs, Larry Page, and Eric Schmidt. In addition, this business genius mentored dozens of other important leaders on both coasts, from entrepreneurs to venture capitalists to educators to football players, leaving behind a legacy of growing companies, successful people, respect, friendship, and love after his death in 2016. Leaders at Google for more than a decade, Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, and Alan Eagle experienced firsthand how the man fondly known as Coach Bill built trusting relationships, fostered personal growth - even in those at the pinnacle of their careers - inspired courage, and identified and resolved simmering tensions that inevitably arise in fast-moving environments. To honor their mentor and inspire and teach future generations, they have codified his wisdom in this essential guide. Based on interviews with more than 80 people who knew and loved Bill Campbell, Trillion Dollar Coach explains the Coach’s principles and illustrates them with stories from the many great people and companies with which he worked. The result is a blueprint for forward-thinking business leaders and managers that will help them create higher performing and faster moving cultures, teams, and companies. Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2019 Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, and Alan Eagle (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers
The Audacity of Hope
Summary
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". He also speaks, 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 audiobook is Senator Obama's vision of how we can move beyond our divisions to tackle concrete problems. Underlying his stories about family, friends, members of the Senate, and even the president is a vigorous search for connection: the foundation for a radically hopeful political consensus. A senator and a lawyer, a professor and a father, a Christian and a skeptic, and above all a student of history and human nature, Senator Obama has written a book of transforming power.
©2006 Barack Obama (P)2006 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.
The Theory of Everything
Summary
In physicist Stephen Hawking's brilliant opus, A Brief History of Time, he presented us with a bold new look at our universe, how it began, and how our old views of physics and tired theories about the creation of the universe were no longer relevant. In other words, Hawking gave us a new look at our world, our universe, and ourselves. Now, Hawking presents an even more comprehensive look at our universe, its creation, and how we see ourselves within it. Imagine sitting in a comfortable room listening to Hawking discuss his latest theories and place them in historical context with science's other great achievements--it would be like hearing Christopher Columbus deliver the news about the new world. Hawking presents a series of seven lectures in which he describes, more clearly than ever, the history of the universe as we know it. He begins with the history of ideas about the universe, from Aristotle's idea that the Earth is round to Hubble's discovery two millennium later that our universe is growing. Using this history as a launching pad, Hawking takes us on a fascinating journey through the telescopic lens of modern physics to gain a new glimpse of the universe--the nature of black holes, the space-time continuum, and new information about the origin of the universe. He uses this scientific basis to come up with a "unified theory of everything" that the author claims will be "the ultimate triumph of human reason."
©2007 Stephen Hawking (P)2009 Phoenix
Yes We Can: The Speeches of Barack Obama: Expanded Edition
Summary
Expanded from the original, Yes We Can! offers highlights from speeches by Barack Obama and includes his entire inaugural address as an added bonus. For this collection, speeches were chosen to showcase President Obama's powerful, inspiring rhetoric of hope and change and to represent his stands on issues such as climate, energy, service, and the Iraq war. Includes: "2004 DNC Keynote Address" "Roast of Representative Rahm Emanuel" "Take Back America" "Call to Renewal" "My Plans for 2008" "The War We Need to Win" "Yes We Can" "A More Perfect Union" "AP Annual Luncheon Address" "Remarks on Service" "Address to the People of Berlin" "New Energy for America" "2008 DNC Address" "Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner" "President-Elect Victory Speech" "Remarks to the Global Climate Summit" "Introduction of Clinton and National Security Team" "Inaugural Address"
Public Domain (P)2013 Phoenix Books
Dude in Distress
Summary
A short story from the NYT best-selling author of the Shacking Up series about a road trip that started with a broken-down car and ended with a questionable motel, an indoor campout, and a set of Kama Sutra sheets. Nevah I thought I was helping a damsel in distress. Turns out my damsel was actually a hot guy with rock solid forearms, blue eyes reminiscent of an oasis in a desert, and some seriously bad luck. Lawson My day started with a bang. The kind that left me stranded at the side of the road in the middle of the desert. At least until a knight in shining armor shows up in a rusted-out convertible and saves the day. Said knight also happens to be a car savvy woman with legs for days, and a penchant for adventure.
©2020 Helena Hunting (P)2021 Audible, Inc.
They Said This Day Would Never Come
Summary
The thrilling, unlikely story of Barack Obama's first presidential campaign, as told by the volunteers and staff who propelled the longshot candidate to the presidency In the year leading up to the Iowa caucuses, few thought a freshman senator named Barack Hussein Obama would be able to win the Democratic nomination - not to mention become the most popular leader in the world. But something was stirring. Hundreds of young people from all over the country began assembling first in Iowa. These "kids" became the foundation of one of the most improbable presidential campaigns of the modern era. Chris Liddell-Westefeld was one of those kids. He and thousands of other staff and volunteers dedicated every minute of their time, intelligence, and resources to help elect Barack Obama, as what started in the midwest spread nationwide. Drawn from more than 200 interviews with alumni including David Axelrod, David Plouffe, Alyssa Mastromonaco, Dan Pfeiffer, Valerie Jarrett, Josh Earnest, Tommy Vietor, Jon Favreau, and President Obama himself, They Said This Day Would Never Come takes listeners deep inside the most inspirational presidential campaign in recent history. This audiobook is voiced by the following contributors: The Author, Chris Liddell-Westefeld, Ally Coll, Alyssa Mastromonaco, Anne Filipic, Annick Febrey, Ava Hinds Lawson, Barack Obama, Bess Evans, Brynne Craig, Carianna Suiter, Chelsea Kammerer, Chris Wyant, Cody Keenan, Dan Pfeiffer, David Axelrod, David Plouffe, Danielle Crutchfield, Dean Fluker, Elizabeth Wilkins, Emily Parcell, Esther Morales, Francis Iacobucci, Graham Wilson, Greg Degen, Howli Ledbetter, Jackie Bray, Jamal Pope, James Schuelke, Janice Rottenberg, Jason Waskey, Jeremy Bird, Joe Cupka, Joe Paulsen, Jon Carson, Jon Favreau, Josh Earnest, Kal Penn, Katherine Onyshko, Kristin Avery, Lauren Champaign, Lauren Kidwell, Maggie Thompson, MaryGrace Galston, Megan Simpson, Meghan Goldenstein, Michael Blake, Michael Halle, Mitch Stewart, Nicole Young, Patricia King, Paul Tewes, Paulette Aniskoff, Pete Rouse, Rachel Haltom-Irwin, Shannon Valley, Stephanie Speirs, Steve Dunwoody, Tom Zimmerman, Tommy Vietor, Tony Rediger, Tripp Wellde, Tyler Lechtenberg, Valerie Jarrett, Victoria McCullough, Yohannes Abraham
©2020 Chris Liddell-Westefeld (P)2020 PublicAffairs
The Dork of Cork
Summary
Frank Bois is 43 years old and 43 inches tall, but his yearnings are as wide and deep as the night sky he contemplates from his rooftop in Cork, Ireland. The Dork of Cork is his story, a fictional autobiography that captures the emotions of the listener from its provocative opening line to its surprising, but touching, ending. With intelligence and vision that rise far above his diminutive size, Frank shares his engaging meditations on beauty: in the stars, in lovely and unattainable women, and even in mathematics.
©1993 Chet Raymo (P)1995 Recorded Books
This Is Your Moment
Summary
This compilation of commencement speeches, a perfect gift for students and parents alike, will generate an optimistic outlook and fuel excitement for the future. Listen closely as each orator mines his or her past for gems of advice. From funny to sentimental, imbued with important social and cultural commentary, these timeless speeches by successful public figures will motivate alumni to move forward with zest as they enter the real world. Speeches include Barack Obama at Notre Dame, Hilary Clinton at NYU, Tony Blair at Yale, Dana Gioia at Stanford, Robert Gates at West Point, Mitt Romney at Regent University, John Kerry at Dartmouth, Barbara Bush at Wellesley, John F. Kennedy at American University, and George C. Marshall at Harvard.
Public Domain (P)2016 Phoenix Books
President Obama: The Collected Speeches (Extended Edition)
Summary
This volume contains just under 50 key speeches presented by 44th US President Barack Obama, as delivered during his two-term presidency (2009-2016) - from the passage of healthcare reform to State of the Union addresses and speeches before the United Nations. Primary topics include economic reform, healthcare, gun violence, civil rights, and foreign policy. Specific speeches - aside from State of the Unions, inaugural addresses, and election-related speeches - include from his first term: Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act Bill Signing, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Nominating Judge Sonia Sotomayor, Address at Cairo University, Address to Congress on Health Care, Speech on Strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Acceptance of Nobel Peace Prize, News Conference on Congressional Gridlock, Speech on Health Care Reform, Remarks on Space Exploration in the 21st Century, Remarks on Wall Street Reform, Speech on the BP Oil Spill, Address on the End of the Combat Mission in Iraq, Remarks at Memorial for Victims of the Tucson, AZ Shooting, Remarks on the Death of Osama Bin Laden, Speech on American Diplomacy in the Middle East and North Africa, Address to the British Parliament, Remarks on the Afghanistan Pullout, Address to Congress on the American Jobs Act, Remarks on the End of the War in Iraq, and Remarks on Sandy Hook Elementary Shootings. Also from his second term: Remarks on Immigration Reform, Statement on the Government Sequester, Address to the People of Israel, Speech on Gun Violence, Remarks on Trayvon Martin, Remarks on Education and the Economy, Address to the Nation on Syria, Speech on Economic Mobility, Address to the Nation on Immigration, Remarks at the 50th Anniversary of the Selma Marches, Remarks in Eulogy for the Honorable Reverend Clementa Pickney, Remarks to the People of Cuba, and Commencement Address at Rutgers University. The speeches are delivered by the president himself, with additional narration from Evan Harris.
©2021 Historical Audiobooks (P)2021 Historical Audiobooks
Great Speeches by the Presidents of the United States, Vol. 3
Summary
A day that will live in infamy.... Nothing to fear but fear itself.... Ask not what your country can do for you.... Ich bin ein Berliner.... Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall. George H. W. Bush: Inauguration Speech (1989), Panama (1989), Kuwait (1990), State of the Union (1991), End of Gulf War (1991), Gulf War (1991) William Jefferson Clinton: First Inauguration (1993), Health Care (1993), Normandy (1994), Oklahoma Bombing (1995), Bosnia (1995), State of the Union (1996), Balanced Budget (1997), Farewell to the Nation (2001) George W. Bush: Inauguration Address (2001), 9/11 (2001), Ground Zero (2001), Joint Session (2001), Iraqi Freedom Operation (2003), Second Inauguration Address (2005) Barack Obama: Inauguration (2009), Health Care (2009), Obamacare (2010), Bin Laden (2011), Reelection Victory Speech (2012), State of the Union Address (2014), Iran (2015) These are actual historic recordings. The sound quality represents the available audio technology of the era and varies by recording.
Public Domain (P)2016 SpeechWorks, a division of SoundWorks, Inc.