 no unabridged available!!!!! |
| Review Date: December 24, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Howard Schulman, Providence, RI |
I am so disappointed that no unabridged audiobook version is available. I started listening to the abridged version and every little section I wish I heard the full details. The most amazing thing about the audiobook is that Obama himself reads the book and that even more impressive is that he wrote this book at the end of law school in 1994, before, well, you know the story....I love getting books and lectures in while I commute, but I'm afriad I'm going to have to read this one, though it seems like a good fast read!
Anyway, the audio books go really fast, and despite the fact that the abridged versions are missing content, this deficit is more than made up by the fact that Barack Obama reads them himself! In "Dreams from My Father", it is a whole lot of fun to hear Barack imitating the characters he writes about, either his irreverent colleague Rafiq or his sister or aunt from Kenya, when he goes to visit and where he finally finds out about his past inheritance, what he had been looking for and what inspired the book. |
The Essential Barack Obama...
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| Review Date: June 22, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Olivia Newman, Nashville, TN USA |
Since i have read the books i wanted them on cd for a very dear fiend who cannot see well.
i loved the books and she loved to listen to his voice. |
What an amazing person.
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| Review Date: December 3, 2009 |
| Reviewer: David J. Barbero, St. Louis, MO USA |
Disclaimer: I like Barrack Obama a lot.
When I finished listening to the audiobook of Dreams from My Father, I felt uplifted, just as the author had intended me to feel. Following Obama's progress from childhood to adulthood, discovering the key moments of his youth in Indonesia and adolescence in Hawaii, observing his college years in L.A. and New York, learning about his life as a community organizer in Chicago, and, finally, hearing his account of his father's and grandfather's lives in Kenya, I became enamored with the man, who had won me over previously with rousing campaign speeches, erudite performances during the debates, and, in my opinion, a commendable execution of the duties of President. Several times, after listening to this audiobook in the car, I came home and eagerly shared with my wife some fascinating revelation about Obama's life that I had not know or had not imagined.
While it is important to remember that Obama had far more contact with mother's family - his white mother, who holds a graduate degree, and his white grandparents "Gramps" and "Toot," who had moved to Hawaii from Kansas - who raised him and provided for him on an everyday basis, the most fascinating parts of Obama's story take place away from his white family: his boyhood in Indonesia, where he played games with the Third World children he befriend and explored the wild, exotic landscape; his college years at Occidental and Columbia, where he discussed heady philosophical and political issues with other young African-American intellectuals; and, his early career with the Developing Communities Project in Chicago, where he worked with ordinary, working class folks to build a strong community and to provide for the basic needs of the poor.
The book records two main accomplishments for Obama in his personal life. First, it explains how he came to terms with his identity as a black American, which requires him to seek knowledge from many sources, learn from any fellow African-American who will teach him, and adopt many postures and poses, until the day he attends services at Reverend Wright's Trinity Church, where he recognizes not only the struggle of black people in America but also their enduring, resilient, and often counterintuitive hopefulness (i.e., "the audacity of hope"). This religious experience allows him to feel that he can participate fully in the black cultural heritage in which he had not felt truly welcome. Second, the book explains how he finally gained an understanding of the nature of and circumstances surrounding his absent father's life, which had previously been mysterious to him or even misrepresented to him. To really know his father, he had to travel to Kenya and meet that larger Obama Family that had shaped the man; but, more importantly, he had to speak to his Granny (actually, his step-grandmother) and listen to her recall his grandfather's biography. As is often the case in both fiction and real life, the actions, events, and attitudes of one man's life shapes the lives of men in subsequent generations. In fact, my biggest criticism of Dreams from My Father is that it imagines the influence of a father on his son as stronger than it really is. This error stems from Obama's estrangement from his father, of course. Yet, perhaps if his father had maintained a constant presence in his early life, Obama would not have worked to hone the characteristics that have made him a great person.
4.5 of 5 stars.
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The Essential Barack Obama: Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope
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| Review Date: November 22, 2009 |
| Reviewer: M. Breitwisch, Portland OR USA |
| It is President Obama's voice you hear on this audio book and he has an appealing story-telling style. I loved the way he described the customs and concerns of the relatives who shared their homes with him when he was a child. These were not your typical American homes. Little "Barry" adapted to a variety of often impoverished life styles as he moved from one continent to another. Being the new kid in school, he took some ribbing about his white mother and his unusual name but learned to deal with it. He describes the surroundings and daily lives of each family and he uses all the appropriate accents when he quotes people. Delightful! The book shows President Obama's natural optimism and empathy. It describes his first-hand experiences with life as it is lived in countries that are not the super power of the world. His colorful anecdotes show how the time he spent with his many relatives helped him to understand their common needs and contributed to his easy, gracious way of relating to people. |
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