Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance

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Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Barack Obama (Author, Narrator), Random House Audio (Publisher)

4.7 10,612 ratings

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Now available unabridged on audio for the first time

Number one New York Times best seller

One of Essence's 50 Most Impactful Black Books of the Past 50 Years

In this iconic memoir of his early days, Barack Obama “guides us straight to the intersection of the most serious questions of identity, class, and race” (The Washington Post Book World).

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.

Listening Length

14 hours and 4 minutes
Author

Barack Obama
Narrator

Barack Obama
Audible release date

October 5, 2021
Language

English
Publisher

Random House Audio
ASIN

B0992PZY9J
Version

Unabridged
Program Type

Audiobook
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Product details

Listening Length	14 hours and 4 minutes
Author	Barack Obama
Narrator	Barack Obama
Whispersync for Voice	Ready
Audible.com Release Date	October 05, 2021
Publisher	Random House Audio
Program Type	Audiobook
Version	Unabridged
Language	English
ASIN	B0992PZY9J
Best Sellers Rank	#9,120 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals) #43 in Biographies of Presidents & Heads of State (Audible Books & Originals) #61 in Biographies of Politicians #70 in Presidents & Heads of State Biographies

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5

10,612 global ratings

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QueenAlena

Phenomenal and Authentic Read!!!!

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2024

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I enjoyed the interpersonal look into President Barack Obama and his journey with his family. Especially, the look back into his father and his Paternal side of the family. This book is a phenomenal and authentic read! I appreciate President Obama for sharing parts of his history that only he could! Salute! Any reader of this book will not be disappointed! And the Audible is exceptional as well-read by the one and only President Obama! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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The Careful Observer

A Brilliant, Self-Written Account Of An Extraordinary Life.

Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2015

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A very normal, White American couple, by all accounts, typical midwesterners, start out in Kansas. The couple has an only child in a daughter, who, it seems from the start was rather unconventional. Eventually, the couple migrates to Hawaii. The daughter goes off to college and is entranced by a fellow African student, a brilliant man by the name of Barack Obama. The two fall in love at a time when interracial marriages were still outlawed in at least one American state. What is even more remarkable is that the parents of the young lady accept their new son-in-law, wishing the best for him and his new wife. The couple has a son and name him after the father. Though the son is technically “bi-racial,” the “one drop rule” of American society does not recognize that categorization, since any person with at least “one drop” of African blood in one's veins is ruled as Black. Interestingly, this child, the product of an African man and an American White woman, is by any true definition, genuinely African-American, a unique Black male in America who does not have slavery as a legacy in his genealogical heritage. When his father abandons his family, the young man struggles for his identity, combing great literature in search of who he is. He finds some comfort in the respect and intelligence of Malcolm X, but shies away from Malcolm's critique of his White ancestry. He goes to live with his mother in Indonesia, just one of the many symbolic cosmopolitan feathers that he will eventually have in his cap. His father haunts his dreams, and reappears for a brief period when he is age 10. He does ok, after a brief teenage experimentation with drugs, landing at a college in Los Angeles. Before he knows it, he can say that he has lived in the 3 largest cities in America, after transferring to a school in New York, and then moving onto Chicago. Everywhere he goes, he must wrestle with his unique racial ancestry, but somehow through it all, he reconciles his past to become an intelligent and strong personality, brimming with confidence. Unlike most memoirs of those who have been president, this is no “as told to” written account. Barack Obama is a very careful and brilliant crafter of words, this book written in a very sensitive and compelling lyrical style, almost as if he is telling it to you-and to you alone-across from him at a living room table. He is simply a great writer. This is an excellent book, on so many levels and is highly recommended. This book can be complemented by another, “Reality's Pen: Reflections On Family, History & Culture,” by Thomas D. Rush. Rush's book can be found right here on Amazon. In Rush's work, we get to see the “average Joe's” fascinating 1989 account of two very long conversations with what will eventually become the first African-American President in American History. It's good to get this account because it occurs long before Obama is famous, between two people just going about the daily business of their lives. What makes the interaction even more compelling is the fact that Obama innocently lays out an image of what he hopes to see occur within his romantic life, a romantic life prior to the time of his introduction to Michelle. It is oh so fascinating, and can be found in the piece on page 95 of Rush's work called, “You Never Know Who God Wants You To Meet.”

9 people found this helpful

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Jayne P. Bowers

The Old Man

Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2022

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Already an admirer, my respect for Barack Obama grew immensely while reading this book. Not only is he a skilled and gifted writer, he’s also a storyteller with a mind for details and flair for engaging the reader. His descriptions of an African dawn: “To the east, the sky lightens above a black grove of trees, deep blue, then orange, hen creamy yellow. The clouds lose their purple tint slowly, then dissipate, leaving behind a single star. As we pull out of camp, we see a caravan of giraffe, their long necks at a common slant, seemingly black before the rising red sun, strange marking against an ancient sky.”

It’s a book about race, yes, but it’s also about family, inheritance, culture, background and how those factors (and more) combine to make us who we are. While most people know Obama’s father was Kenyan and his mother an American from Kansas, most don’t know that much about how they met and later parted ways, his Indonesian stepfather, his white grandparents, Toot and Gramps, with whom he lived in Hawaii during his youth….I’m no biographer, but I do know that Obama’s life was much more complicated than mine.

“How?” ran like a thread through each chapter I read. How does a person develop the strength, capacity, confidence, and character to serve as the President of the United States? It’s an office available to only one person at a time and one that had never been open to a person of color. Learning about his experiences with his family of orientation, especially his grandparents, his time in Indonesia, his college years, the devoted years as a community organizer, and his time spent in Kenya becoming acquainted with brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, and a grandparent added some answers to pieces to the puzzle.

What the book did was remind me once again of how many ways there are to live, love, and serve as we navigate our ways through life. There are no shortcuts to excellence.

13 people found this helpful

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Asha Sreedhar

Very sad, inspirational and interesting story of Barack Obama and his life.

Reviewed in India on May 15, 2023

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This book was very sad, inspirational, and interesting to read as it showed how Barack Obama went through a lot in life living in different countries. This is worth to read and some parts of the story were hard to put down when reading. I would highly recommend it.

2 people found this helpful

Cliente.

interessante

Reviewed in Italy on May 7, 2023

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buona lettura, che esplora la vita d'infanzia e adolescenza dell'ex presidente. Ricco di dettagli e anneddoti sul rapport conflittuale con il padre. Una lettura interessante.

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Carlos Alduncin

Obama is the man

Reviewed in Mexico on June 26, 2019

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Excelente libro, muy recomendable

One person found this helpful

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Ferial Haque

Dreams from My Father: A true Story of Success by Inheriting the Genes

Reviewed in Canada on March 24, 2019

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Barak Obama having grown up with biracial heritage stresses his father's influence while growing up in America. His wisdom and love for his father's background show his love for Michelle and how they set their dreams together... While reading the book I was touched by his father's presence as Afro-American. Having a glimpse of my teenage dreams in a country in British India, and seeing gradual changes of the two divided countries - Pakistan and India. The geographical setting of West and East Pakistan being separated by vast land of India. My dreams to join the Scientific Community was greatly influenced by my late father who was a physicist and died at age 27 years. Being brought up by my mother an academician was an inspiration on my journey to achieve my goals in life. A Book I enjoyed reading and gaining confidence in my ability to continue with my journey...

10 people found this helpful

JORGE A TORREAO DAU

Building an identity

Reviewed in Brazil on March 6, 2019

Verified Purchase

It is easy to appear like someone with a ready made identity. But to search one by seeking ones origin and inheritance, and go beyond ready made categories to embrace change is not. That is what one can see on this inspiring book.

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