A PROMISED LAND

President Obama’s distinctively deliberate delivery, singular cadence, and love of words are all fully on display in this, the first volume of his monumental memoir. (Another volume is projected.) The sound of his voice—sometimes professorial, sometimes storytelling, occasionally intimate—is well known around the planet. The audiobook is packed with anecdotes and political memories. What sticks with the listener are the family moments, his growing up in Hawaii and Indonesia, the love story with Michelle, playing with his children, the influences of his mom, grandad, and grandma. Much of his memoir has the quality of an interior monologue in which he explains his famous calm, his work ethic, the job of being president. Opinions populate the paragraphs. Crises abound—and to a remarkable extent, his history is our history. A.D.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2022 Audies Winner © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2020]