About time I read "The Audacity of Hope"!

After it was published, at least I voted to elect Barack Obama as president. Both elections, of course. Also, on Inauguration Day, I stood on the street to watch him pass by.

Those of us who live in the D.C. area do such things when we wish to honor a new president. In fact, when I checked this book out of the library, the front desk librarian told me that he attended one of the Obama inaugurations as well.

Of Course, I'm Loving this Book

So far, I'm fascinated by what ghostwriters-and-editors have done to his voice, by now so familiar to me from countless speeches. Yes, I can still find his voice in "Audacity," finding it mainly by squinting with my ears and my heart.

Triumphant observation: What couldn't any publishing staff successfully obfuscate about Obama's voice? The wit.

Every once in a while it peeks through. Here's a quote that I'm loving, from Page 31. About President Reagan, so often sanctified in conservative Republican circles, Barack Obama wrote:

"All of which may explain why, as disturbed as I might have been by Ronald Reagan's election in 1980, as unconvinced as I might have been by his John Wayne, Father Knows Best pose, his policy by anecdote, and his gratuitous assaults on the poor, I understood his appeal."

The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream, Barack Obama
The book, divided into nine chapters, outlines Obama's political and spiritual beliefs, as well as his opinions on different aspects of American culture. The Audacity of Hope is Barack Obama's call for a new kind of politics.
"In the end, that's what this election is about. Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or a politics of hope? John Kerry calls on us to hope. John Edwards calls on us to hope. I'm not talking about blind optimism here — the almost willful ignorance that thinks unemployment will go away if we just don't talk about it, or the health care crisis will solve itself if we just ignore it. No, I'm talking about something more substantial. It's the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing freedom songs; the hope of immigrants setting out for distant shores; the hope of a young naval lieutenant bravely patrolling the Mekong Delta; the hope of a millworker's son who dares to defy the odds; the hope of a skinny kid with a funny name who believes that America has a place for him, too. Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope!"

عنوانهای کتاب در ترجمه به فارسی: جسارت امید؛ گستاخی امید: تاملاتی در باره احیاء رویای آمریکایی؛ بی‌پروایی و امید: فرازهایی از اندیشه در بازخوانی و رویای امریکایی؛ نویسنده: باراک اوباما؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز بیست و دوم ماه دسامبر سال 2010 میلادی

عنوان: جسارت امید؛ نویسنده: باراک اوباما؛ مترجم: ابوالحسن تهامی؛ تهران، نشر نگاه، 1387؛ در 480 ص؛ شابک: 9789643515355؛ موضوع: ایالات متحده - سیاست و حکومت - از نویسندگان ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده ی 21 م

عنوان: جسارت امید: تاملاتی در باب بازیابی رویای امریکایی؛ نویسنده: باراک اوباما؛ مترجم: آرش عزیزی؛ تهرن، نشر چشمه، 1388؛ در 327 ص؛ شابک: 9789643625054؛

عنوان: گستاخی امید: تاملاتی در باره احیاء رویای آمریکایی؛ نویسنده: باراک اوباما؛ مترجم: حبیب‌ الله فقیهی‌ نژاد؛ تهران، آبارون، 1389؛ در 466 ص شابک: 9789648803488؛

عنوان: بی‌پروایی و امید: فرازهایی از اندیشه در بازخوانی و رویای امریکایی؛ نویسنده: باراک اوباما؛ بازگردان: جمشید فخر؛ افزوده و ویراستاری: شیوا کاویانی؛ تهران : نشر حریر، ‏‫1393؛ در 488 ص؛ شابک: 9789642870400؛

کتاب در نه فصل نوشته شده است. عناوین فصل‌ها: فصل نخست: «جمهوری‌خواهان و دموکرات‌ها»؛ فصل دوم: «ارزش‌ها»؛ فصل سوم: قانون اساسی ما»؛ فصل چهارم: «سیاست»؛ فصل پنجم: «فرصت»؛ فصل ششم: «ایمان»؛ فصل هفتم: «نژاد»؛ فصل هشتم: «دنیای بیرون از مرزهای ما»؛ فصل نهم: «خانواده»؛

باراک اوباما، کتاب «جسارت امید» را، پیش از کاندیدا شدن برای ریاست جمهوری آمریکا، نوشتند. این کتاب دیدگاه‌های این سیاست‌مدار آمریکایی درباره‌ ی مسائل مختلف را، به خوانشگران کتاب ارائه می‌دهد. ایشان در پس‌گفتار کتابشان، درباره‌ ی حضور خود در کنگره، در سال 2005 میلادی سخن می‌گویند، که پلکانی برای تبدیل شدن ایشان، به یک سیاست‌مدار نام‌دار است. ایشان از این مسئله صحبت کرده است، که با وجود کرسی کنگره، خانواده‌ اش را در «شیکاگو» نگاه داشته بودند، و به یاری همسرشان بانو «میشل»، تلاش می‌کردند، ثبات و آرامش را، در خانواده‌ شان حفظ کنند، «جسارت امید: اندیشه‌ هایی پیرامون بازپس‌گیری رؤیای آمریکایی»؛ دومین کتاب نوشته‌ شده توسط «باراک اوباما»، رئیس‌ جمهور پیشین ایالات متحدهٔ آمریکاست. در پاییز سال 2006 میلادی، پس از اعلام حمایت «اپرا وینفری»، از «باراک اوباما»، «جسارت امید» در صدر فهرست پر فروش‌ترین کتاب‌های «نیویورک تایمز»، و «آمازون دات‌کام» قرار گرفت. در این کتاب «اوباما» درباره ی بسیاری از موضوعاتی که بعدها جزئی از کارزار انتخاباتی ایشان در سال 2008 میلادی شدند، به‌ تفصیل سخن می‌گویند. «اوباما» اندکی کمتر از سه ماه پس از انتشار کتابشان، در روز دهم ماه فوریهٔ ی سال 2007 میلادی، خبر از اعلام آمادگی، برای حضور در کارزار تبلیغاتی ریاست‌ جمهوری ایالات متحده دادند، که در پایان با پیروزی ایشان به پایان رسید، نقل نمونه متن: «فکرهای من از این مرحله به مادرم برگشت که سرطان در سرتاسر بدنش ریشه دوانده، و روزهای پایانی زندگیش را نزدیک کرده بود، در خلال این بیماری برای من اعتراف کرده بود که حاضر نیست مرگ را بپذیرد، و ناگهانی این بیماری، او را شگفت‌زده کرده بود، گویی آن دنیای مادی، که وی بسیار دوستش می‌داشت، به وی پشت کرده بود، به وی خیانت کرده بود. و گرچه او دلیرانه با بیماریش مبارزه کرد، و رنج‌های شیمی‌ درمانی را با خوش‌رویی و شوخ‌ طبعی تحمل کرد، بیش از یک‌بار سایه‌ ی ترس را بر چهره‌ اش دیدم. چیزی بیش از ترس یا درد یا ترس از ناشناخته‌ ها، به تصور من، تنهایی محض مرگ بود که مادرم را می‌ترساند. این احساس که در آن سفر پایانی، در آن آخرین حادثه، کسی نخواهد بود که در تجربیاتش سهیم شود، کسی که به همراه او از قدرت بدن به شگفتی فرو رود، که تا چه حد می‌تواند بر خودش رنج تحمیل کند، کسی که همراه او بر پوچی زندگی بخندد، که چگونه ناگهان همه چیز در کارخانه‌ ی بدن متوقف می‌شود...؛ وقتی از کلیسا بیرون رفتم، آن فکرها را با خود می‌بردم، بعد از پایان سخنرانی، و بازگشت به شیکاگو هم، آن فکرها هنوز با من بودند. در خانه پشت میز شام، دو دخترم: «مالیا» و «ساشا»، را نگاه می‌کردم، که می‌خندیدند و شوخی می‌کردند، و خوراک لوبیایی را که مادرشان پخته بود نمی‌خوردند، تا آنکه مادرشان دنبالشان کرد، و آن‌ها به طبقه‌ی بالا و داخل حمام گریختند، و مادرشان به دنبال آن‌ها رفت. تنها که ماندم، در آشپرخانه به شستن ظرف‌ها پرداختم، و در نظر آوردم که تماشای رشد کودکان‌مان چه دلپذیر است، و چه سخت و وحشتناک است، آن لحظه که نیرویی قصد جداکردن فرزندمان را برای همیشه داشته باشد.»؛ پایان نقل. ا. شربیانی

The Audacity of Hope is het tweede boek van Barack Obama, het verscheen in 2006 toen hij de Amerikaanse staat Illinois vertegenwoordigde als senator. In zijn debuut, Dreams from my father, vertelt hij zijn levensverhaal: hoe hij als jonge zwarte man opgroeide en zijn weg zocht in de Verenigde Staten van Amerika. The Audacity of Hope gaat over politiek.

De politicus Barack Obama vertelt in prachtig Engels over de start van zijn politieke carrière, over het leven als senator, over compromissen zoeken met collega's, over zijn avonturen op het campagnepad, over de druk op zijn huwelijk met Michelle. De verschillende hoofdstukken cirkelen rond thema's als geloof, waarden, de grondwet, ras, politieke carrière, familie. Telkens gebruikt hij persoonlijke verhalen om zijn politieke standpunten te argumenteren of te illustreren. Zoals de eerste keer dat hij het Witte Huis in Washington zag, en hoe dichtbij je toen (in 1984) nog kon komen.

Obama toont zich in dit boek als een man die zich inleeft in de argumenten van de tegenpartij - “ik begrijp het gevoel van deze mensen” - als een man van de rede die doorheen tegenstellingen op zoek gaat naar een gemeenschappelijke basis om op te bouwen.

Hij heeft het over de buitenlandse politiek van de Verenigde Staten en bekritiseert de invasie in Irak onder (zijn voorganger - wist hij toen nog niet!) president George W. Bush. Hij spreekt over het probleem van economische vluchtelingen aan de grens met Mexico, maar ook over hoe Amerikanen hun grondwet moeten interpreteren en hoe belangrijk het is om tienerzwangerschappen te voorkomen. Het hele boek is doordrongen van het optimisme en de nadruk op hoop die zo kenmerkend zou worden voor zijn latere presidentschap.

Ik heb eerst Dreams from my Father herlezen, en aansluitend dit boek, klaar voor het verschijnen van A Promised Land, deel 1 van Obama's presidentiële memoires.

Volledig leesverslag: https://wimoosterlinck.wordpress.com/...

What kind of bozo writes his memoirs before having achieved anything of merit (Read my review of Harry Potter). He is simply a classic socialist/marxist redistribution of wealth liberal. "From each, according to their ability, to each, according to their need." Would you give your 'A' to the most struggling student in the class? What good would it do anyways? The same goes for money! I really thought people weren't making these moronic arguments anymore, I guess I was wrong.

A well written book about reclaiming the American dream and what we stand for. Very enlightening

The Audacity of Hope is not a biography, it is a discussion of politics in the United States. It is not a denunciation of the current political system, but a description of it and how and why it developed the way it has.

Obama walks through a number of topics, the two-party system, values, the constitution, politics, opportunity, faith, and race, and writes about how each is related to the political process. He discusses the actual issues that are involved, how various groups within the United States view the various sides of the issues, and he discusses on how these issues are addressed during political campaigns.

The theoretical part is instructive. Among other things, Obama taught constitutional law in one of the top law schools in the country. That is not a qualification in itself, but he notes that it exposes him to intelligent people who will challenge details of his understanding, and force him to clarify the corners of what he believes. The chapter on constitutional law is probably one of the better descriptions of the views and implications of the strict constructionist view of law, and why Obama opposes it (Strict construction implies that the law should be taken as written. The opposition arguement "judicial review" is the law (especially founding fathers) tells us how to think, not what to think, the writers of the constitution actually disagreed on many things, so the concept of "founders intent" in "what to think" is meaningless. Since the founders left behind considerable commentary (paralleled by the congressional record in the case of laws), the commentary can be used in understanding "how to think" and give an understanding of how the law should be applied to the situation at hand.) )

The more practical components stem from his experiences on state and federal level campaigns (Illinois and U.S. Congress) and his experience at the community level as an organizer with a number of churches on the south side of Chicago. It is highly practical, how politics work at street level. It is probably one of the more comprehensive explanations of why special interests are so important to political campaigns, especially as the area covered by the campaign gets larger.

His main point about special interests is they provide two things, money and political workers on the ground. A normal candidate cannot provide these things by him/herself because a mere candidate base of support starts as local, where the candidate has been working in the past. So all political candidates work with people who can provide large sums of funds, and motivate people who would be willing to speak on behalf of the candidate in various parts of the country, and to their neighbors through phone banks and canvassing. For the Democrats, the main groups that provide this manpower are labor unions, environmental groups, and prochoice groups. For Republicans, the key special interest groups are the religious right, local chambers of commerce, the NRA and anti-tax organizations. And the messages are "spun" by media in this context.

So it is instructive on how this understanding of the political process played out in the campaign. Not just how the sides were taken (the Republican advocacy of Strict construction, the Republican use of Gov. Palin to keep the key special interest groups involved in the campaign, the McCain/Palin emphasis on not raising taxes.) but how Obama structured his campaign. The emphasis on small donations rather then large donations. The refusal to take money from lobbyists or allow lobbyists to take positions in the campaign. The heavy recruiting of volunteers not associated with unions, environmental or prochoice groups. So if a lobbyist comes to advocate a position, that lobbyist cannot say that the group he represents provided the decisive contribution to the Obama campaign, in either money or workers. The lobbyist must advocate the issue on its face.

Audacity of Hope is a primer on the U.S. political system, both as theory, and how it actually works and why. It also provides a framework to look at the American political system at work. And, it provides thoughts on how the more self-destructive tendencies can be mitigated. The next question is how this works in practice.

Is it possible to think clearly if you can't speak and write clearly? It must be, because Bush and Palin can't be stupid and have made it as far as they have. Oh, but what a pleasure it will be to have a President whose writing can compare with some of the Federalist Papers by Madison or the speeches of Lincoln.

There are a few clichés in the book, and a few typos and grammatical or style errors that led me to think the editor, not the author, was asleep at the switch. There are several passages of stunningly beautiful writing. There are many dry witticisms and even some belly laughs to be had, such as when Obama trashes his Senate race opponent Alan Keyes for about a page and a half. Mostly, though, there's the lucid style of a clear, deep thinker, a law school lecturer, a lawyer who loves the Constitution.

I found the whole book comforting, but not the sort of comfort that leads to complacence. On the contrary, like his speeches, it was a call to action, but a less rhetorical and more closely reasoned one.

I liked it even more than Dreams from my Father, which surprised me. I'll be looking forward to whatever this man writes.

I found the first couple of chapters of this book a bit murky, due to my ignorance of American political life and methods, but after that I found it fascinating. I loved the way that Obama can communicate at all levels. This book could so easily have been a dry and dusty analysis of his political life and experiences, but instead it was an intensely human and open discussion of the issues that matter to him. I liked him before I read the book, and I liked him even more afterwards.

I was particularly interested in what he had to say about the plight of blue collar workers in the US - whose jobs appear to be squeezed from all angles, and what he had to say about the standards of living for everyone. As has been noted elsewhere, life does not seem to be getting easier, except for the very wealthy.

The one chapter I found strange was the one on faith. It would be inconceivable for a British politician to write an autobiography and include any sort of discussion about his or her religious beliefs. This chapter voiced clearly both the importance of religion in American politics, and Obama's desire to share his personal beliefs.

The chapter about his family also quite surprised me, but it suggested an openness to domestic problems (serious, big, difficult problems for a lot of families), that are seldom voiced amongst politicians, and I warmed to him as a result.

I learnt a lot about Obama through reading this book. Of course being written in 2006 it misses out great chunks of his career, but I still found it a very good read. What a warm, thoughtful and generous man.

The first thing I will say to anyone thinking of "reading" this book is to pick up an audio copy. It's read by the author, so you truly get the meaning of every word in the sense the author intends.
That said - I really enjoyed it. Not being someone huge on history, there were some moments where I was out of the loop in regard to what Obama was referencing (and these were the moments when actually reading the copy may have proved more beneficial than hearing it read aloud) - but these morsels of history embedded in the bigger picture made me appreciate that Obama has truly considered what the presidency is about and is looking to the forefathers for their guidance. It gives me hope that, if he were president, he wouldn't want to clean the historical slate and recreate and America as he sees fit - he truly respects the progress that's been made throughout our history.
My favorite chapters are those on faith and family. They gave great insight into the fact that Barack Obama is a real person. He deals with the same things that families in my neighborhood deal with - juggling working to provide for a family with being there to see his family, and a balancing a desire to help his constituency, but still be there for his family.
I also enjoyed the references Obama makes to his meetings with George W. Bush. These are one prime example of how listening to the audio version gave me something I wouldn't have had reading the book myself - Obama does a great impersonation. It's also neat to read about things that happen behind closed doors, things we don't know about just by picking up the newspaper or listening into press conferences.
I think people who pick up this book hoping to find Obama's solutions for the world will not be satisfied, as he doesn't claim to know how to fix everything - which is actually refreshing.
I think this is a great book for anyone, regardless of political affiliation.

Reading this a few years back (and now finally bringing my review to Goodreads)...I remember thinking...I like the way he thinks.

I like the way he responds to others.

I like the way he feels.

He has a good sense of the world.

I appreciated that he was introspective. Thoughtful. Even vulnerable. Candid.

Mostly...

I appreciated that Hope was the go-to word.

It obviously was part of his book title - and part of his first campaign as President.

But mostly...

I appreciated that he knew what he wanted and he went for it.

He was authentic. Direct. Approachable.

No matter what your political beliefs, I do think this was a very inspiring book.

He had ideas for our country, and we wanted to believe in them.

Hope -- something needed right now more than ever in the United States (and the World?). Reading this now, after 8 years of an Obama presidency and the results of the 2016 election, I can't help but wonder where we went wrong. Mostly I enjoyed hearing Obama (he narrates the audiobook) talk about his ideas and thoughts as well as his life and his family, especially in comparison with my recent read of "Becoming" by Michelle. And, yes, I do still have hope.

3 stars = good

I expect that readers will both admire and respect Obama more after reading this book, which I suppose is the reason it was written.

Perhaps I should declare up front that I did not vote for Obama, and I read this book in part to see how the political landscape has changed since 2006, in part as an ongoing personal project to listen to more Black voices, and in part to see how much my own views may have changed over the past (nearly) 20 years.

This book was published in 2006 shortly after Obama had been elected as senator, and it’s interesting to hear him bemoaning how polarized politics had become at that point, especially given how much worse it has become since that time.

I have to say that his reflections on our political processes seem quite reasonable and fair-minded. I found myself agreeing with many, if not most of his points along the way. But I also recall during his administration how he excelled at giving speeches that sounded so fair and high-minded that even I would nod in approval. But then he would generally ignore the input of “the opposition” and go ahead and propose leftist policies or sign onto Democratic bills that were passed without any Republican input or bipartisan compromise.

But then again if I were politician, I can imagine myself saying very similar things as I pondered the issues, carefully considering the options and arguments from each side, understanding that each side made reasonable points, but then still voting for the side that better aligned with the viewpoint that made the most sense to me.

Overall, I found the Obama who wrote this book quite likable and reasonable and often inspiring. And I can totally understand his appeal, especially to those frustrated by the apparent inability of Washington to actually make any headway at ameliorating the nation’s persistent problems. He sincerely wants what’s best for our country. He understands that others have a different opinion and respects that. It doesn’t mean they’re evil or enemies. They just have different points of view. Surely we can still work together in good faith to make things better, right?

I don’t know whether I would have been as impressed with Obama’s explanations/exhortations/ruminations/claims/proposals back in 2006. But compared with the knuckleheads running for president this year he seems like a refreshing voice of reason and common sense.

So it leaves me to wonder, have the parties changed that much over the past 20 years, or is the change in me?