Jimmy Carter, 39th president, Nobel Peace Prize winner, international humanitarian, fisherman, reflects on his full and happy life with pride, humor, and a few second thoughts.

At 90, Jimmy Carter reflects on his public and private life with a frankness that is disarming. He adds detail and emotion about his youth in rural Georgia that he described in his magnificent An Hour Before Daylight. He discusses racism and the isolation of the Carters. He describes the brutality of the hazing regimen at Annapolis, how he nearly lost his life twice serving on submarines, and his amazing interview with Admiral Rickover. He describes the profound influence his mother had on him and how he admired his father even though he didn't emulate him. He admits that he decided to quit the navy and later enter politics without consulting his wife, Rosalynn, and how appalled he is in retrospect.

In A Full Life, Carter tells what he is proud of and what he might do differently. He discusses his regret at losing his reelection but how he and Rosalynn pushed on and made a new life and second and third rewarding careers. He is frank about the presidents who have succeeded him, world leaders, and his passions for the causes he cares most about, particularly the condition of women and the deprived people of the developing world.

This is a wise and moving look back from this remarkable man. Jimmy Carter has lived one of our great American lives - from rural obscurity to world fame, universal respect, and contentment. A Full Life is an extraordinary listen.

Listening Length

7 hours and 45 minutes
Author

Jimmy Carter
Narrator

Jimmy Carter
Audible release date

July 7, 2015
Language

English
Publisher

Simon & Schuster Audio
ASIN

B00XWSMZ50
Version

Unabridged
Program Type

Audiobook
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Product details

Listening Length	7 hours and 45 minutes
Author	Jimmy Carter
Narrator	Jimmy Carter
Whispersync for Voice	Ready
Audible.com Release Date	July 07, 2015
Publisher	Simon & Schuster Audio
Program Type	Audiobook
Version	Unabridged
Language	English
ASIN	B00XWSMZ50
Best Sellers Rank	#11,839 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals) #37 in Political Science History & Theory #49 in Biographies of Presidents & Heads of State (Audible Books & Originals) #75 in Biographies of Politicians

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Coders

good read

Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2023

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President Carter has a easy writing style, and it was interesting to read his thoughts on a large variety of subjects.

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Pamela A.

Eye opening

Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2023

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I really liked this book, learned a lot about Carter I didn't know. Put a new light on his presidency. Excellent read!

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chistina

Interesting read

Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2023

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Learned a lot about him I never knew before.We need a person of honesty and integrity like this man in the White House again.We may not agree with his politics or religion but we can agree he's an upright and respected person who works for the common good.

5 people found this helpful

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Daniel Putman

Self-portrait of a long life

Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2019

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If you are searching for a detailed look at Jimmy Carter’s presidency, this is not the book. The three chapters covering his time in the White house take up 85 pages, about a third of the book. Carter divides all his chapters into subdivisions with subtitles. In the presidential years major events are covered with a subtitle followed by a few paragraphs and are often mixed in with events which most readers would not consider significant. For example, he has only just over two pages on “The Hostage Crisis, and Final Year.” This is followed by “Quick-Witted CIA,” a paragraph about an agent posing as a German who got out of Iran by telling customs guards that his middle initial H was not spelled out because his middle name was Hitler and he got special dispensation. This is followed by one page on “Human Rights and Latin America.” Chronological order is not important in the presidential chapters. Interesting anecdotes are mixed in with major events often on disconnected issues. All this is mildly interesting and all is from (as would be expected) Carter’s perspective. But it is nothing close to an in-depth look at the years for which Carter is most well-known. (Carter has other books that cover some of this in more detail.) But an in-depth look at those years was not the purpose of the book.

The purpose of Carter’s book, which is admirably fulfilled, is to give a self-portrait of his life. I found the sections before and after his presidency far more interesting. Carter can narrate events involving himself in a non-self-conscious way that makes engaging reading. There never has been a presidential autobiography quite like this where the emphasis is on what the person did in the years when he was not president. It is an enlightening book about the person as a whole. And, while I wish Carter’s organization of the book had been better and I do not agree with his religious views, the book is worth reading as a testament to a good human being who happened to be president.

28 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Excellent Book!!

Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2023

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Wonderful book that contains a lot of wisdom from experience.

2 people found this helpful

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John Kaiser

... man who is considered to be part of ‘the greatest generation’ -- a term coined in the book by ...

Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2018

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As a man who is considered to be part of ‘the greatest generation’ -- a term coined in the book by Tom Brokaw, President Carter gives the reader a tour of living through one of the most important eras of American History. Undoubtedly, the events in which men and women endured have yet to be paralleled today. Although, one could argue that we should learn as a nation from our mistakes of the past. This book highlights the journey of a man who grew up on a farm in Plains (Georgia) to the White House to serve as the 39th President of the United States.

Jimmy Carter is much greater than the highest office he achieved to sit in and preside over. He is part of a generation which had to tackle the boundary between the mechanical age and the digital age. Born before the advent of the computer. Advocating to hold office before the advent of the internet – yet alone social media, Jimmy Carter journeyed through his life and offered his service (in the form of public service to various local, state, and governmental) positions. To be considered for such positions, he performed now distant ‘door to door’ – ‘knock and talk’ to get to know his constituents (needs and demand). Grass roots was modeled after candidates like Jimmy Carter.

His pursuit to the highest office in the country included years of service in the United States Navy. These formative years included challenges (intellectual and physical) that have been lost to advancements in technology today which we take for granted. From the self-education for survival on his farm to the self-education for advancement in the U.S. Navy, Jimmy Carter is an example of a quintessential pursuer of the ‘American Dream.’ While in the process, his actions are emblematic of the person each of us aim to model ourselves after.

In closing, this book should be a required read for each student in high school. I would highly recommend giving the book a chance with your eyes and heart.

8 people found this helpful

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Virginia Thompson

interesting book ofPresident Carter’s life

Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2023

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I love President Carter’s thoughts on the years he was in the White House.His accomplishments during his presidency and after.

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Luke Williams

A Truly Decent Man

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 10, 2016

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Jimmy Carter was one of the greatest Presidents that America has ever had. He believed in taking greater moral responsibilities in both domestic and foreign affairs, even though the media would frequently see past this and give him a hard time for bucking the Establishment, as well as disloyal members of his own party such as Ted Kennedy standing against him. Internationally, Carter was able to normalise relations with China, take strong standpoints on Russian repression, and reduce proliferation of nuclear weapons; domestically, he achieved such policies as compensating Native Americans in land disputes, and protecting Alaskan natural sites from oil exploitation. Right-wing Presidencies since Carter have sadly repealed some of his progressive policies, such as Ronald Reagan criminalising thousands of drug users instead of helping them with their addictions, and George W. Bush overturning intelligence agency legislation in order to condone personal privacy invasions. Carter and his wife now run the Carter Centre which has achieved great things such as peace negotiations, monitoring to ensure free and fair elections, building homes for underdeveloped communities, and helping to reduce the spread of tropical diseases.
This book gives a succinct autobiographical overview of Carter’s life, and although it is not as detailed as some erudite biographies, this makes it more accessible for casual readers. My main criticisms would be that Carter spends too much time extolling the virtues of his religion – which sometimes led him into poor decision-making – and his negativity concerning the Obama administration is unfounded.
Of course Carter made mistakes – his failure to confront the Shah of Iran would ultimately be his Presidential downfall – but if more political leaders had his moral integrity, the world would be a better place.

5 people found this helpful

Rafe Mair

Age cannot wither ...

Reviewed in Canada on August 23, 2015

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Jimmy Carter's presidency improves with the time. He certainly did not have that great political necessity, good luck. Since his presidency he has been one of the more remarkable people on the planet. The good he has done is extraordinary. I had the good fortune to interview President Carter many years ago on his book on flyfishing, a hobby we shared. I was told by my producer that the deal wise that I not ask Mr. Carter any questions about politics. I replied "I never make deals like that – if you think I'm going to miss this opportunity you got another think coming!" We talked about fishing and his excellent little book and I close with a question about the release of the hostages on the day Ronald Reagan was sworn into office and asked his reaction at this point. President Carter gave me a thorough, gracious, articulate answer without showing the slightest indication of annoyance. His current book shows a few signs of age around the edges, not surprising considering he was 90 when he wrote, it but for all that is a hell of a good read. In fact it makes an excellent fairly quick biography of a man who will stand very high indeed when full assessment of his time is made.

One person found this helpful

Jean-Guy Rens

One feels a little better while reading this book

Reviewed in Canada on September 1, 2015

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Jimmy Carter gives us his view on the facts of his life, since childhood in the segregated South to his days at the head of the Carter Center and it is facinating to be given such a privilege. Everything is his life is extraordinary -- since his days in a submarine to his presidency and his humanitarian action which earned him a Nobel Prize. Everything he did is explained with clarity as being "ordinary" and "simple". Jimmy Carter illustrated this book with naive paintings that are surprisingly effective: his portraits look like real people, his landscapes look like nature. With lucidity, he apparaises his craft: "I realized many years ago that I do not have any special talent as an artist or craftsman, but with a lot of study and practice I have become fairly proficient." Jimmy Carter writes like he paints, with proficiency. This is not great literature, but one discovers behind the written word an author as a "gentleman". What is presented as common sense is, actually, dignity, fairness, kindness. It is such a rare feeling, that it is worth reading every page. Another detail: one feels a little better while reading it!

2 people found this helpful

Kasahun

Amazing achievement

Reviewed in Canada on September 14, 2015

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The book absolutely inspires me to strengthen and maintain my faith in God. Specially Romans 8:28 which says "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." & Ephesians 2:10 that states " For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do"
To arrive from a small farmers village to the highest and greatest office in the world, the White House, as a President truly is God's amazing work and Mr. President is I believe God's Handiwork.

Michael Kelly

I don't read a lot of autobiografies so I probably have a poor sense of the book

Reviewed in Canada on August 7, 2016

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I really admire Carter so much! I don't read a lot of autobiografies so I probably have a poor sense of the book. At times during my reading I found a few things too simple. I think Mr. Carter still regrets no second term amoung other things.

One person found this helpful

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