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Background information
'Ein verheißenes Land', originally: A Promised Land, by Barack Obama is a compelling and deeply personal account of how history is made - by the 44th President of the United States of America, who inspired us to believe in the power of democracy.
Content
In this highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoir, Barack Obama tells the story of his unlikely odyssey from young man in search of his identity to leader of the free world. In astonishingly personal words, he describes his political career as well as the seminal moments of the first term of his historic presidency - a time of dramatic change and turbulence. He takes readers on a fascinating journey from his earliest political awakening to the pivotal victory in the Iowa primary that illustrated the power of grassroots democratic movements to the pivotal night of November 4, 2008, when he was elected the 44th President of the United States of America and became the first African American to hold the highest office of state. His retrospective of his presidency offers a unique reflection on the extent and limits of presidential power while providing extraordinary insights into the dynamics of U.S. politics and international diplomacy. We accompany Obama to the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, as well as to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and many more places. He shares his thoughts on forming his government, wrestling with the global financial crisis, his efforts to assess Vladimir Putin, overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles on the way to passing health care reform. He describes clashing with U.S. generals over American strategy in Afghanistan, reforming Wall Street, responding to the devastating Deepwater Horizon oil rig leak, and authorizing Operation 'Neptune's Spear' leading to the death of Osama bin Laden. That book, 'A Promised Land,' is unusually intimate and introspective - the story of a single man making a bet with history, a community organizer whose ideals are put to the test on the world stage. Obama candidly recounts the balancing act of running for office as a Black American, shouldering the expectations of a generation that takes courage from a message of "hope and change," and what it means to accept the moral challenge of making decisions of great consequence. He speaks candidly about the forces that opposed him at home and abroad, gives an honest account of how life in the White House shaped his wife and daughters, and is not afraid to reveal self-doubt and disappointment. And yet he never loses faith that within the great ongoing American experiment, progress is always possible. In this beautifully written and powerful book, Barack Obama expresses his conviction that democracy is not a gift from heaven, but is founded on empathy and mutual understanding, and must be created together, day by day." (Penguin Publishing, 2021)