This book will be a real life 'Roots' story - the African history of America's first family.
While Steve MacDonogh's Pioneers: The Frontier Family of Barack Obama (see LJ review, p. 67) relates the history of Obama's Irish ancestors, Firstbrook takes readers through Obama's Kenyan family history, going back 23 generations across 400 years. [See the Q&A with Firstbrook and fellow biographer Stephen MacDonogh in 10/21/10 BookSmack!-Ed.] (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Peter Firstbrook worked for the BBC for twenty-five years before developing a successful freelance writing and filmmaking career in 2002. He specialises in making historical and international documentaries. He has published three bestselling books.
"The real fascination of this book is the way the complex story of
the Obamas mirrors the equally complex story of Kenya and, indeed,
of Africa. It's a real insight into the good, the bad and the ugly
of colonialism, into how education inevitably brought the demand
for freedom, into rebellion and savagery like the Mau Mau years,
and into the heady idealism, corruption and confusion that followed
independence"
*Irish Independent*
"Scholarly, timely and detailed"
*Bookbag*
"You might wonder if this would be a dry and detailed journey.
Detailed it is. Dry it is not. Firstbrook is a first-rate
storyteller"
*USA Today*
"Fascinating ... [Firstbrook] adds many interesting details to what
we know of the President's heritage"
*New Yorker*
"The real fascination of this book is the way the complex story of
the Obamas mirrors the equally complex story of Kenya and, indeed,
of Africa. It's a real insight into the good, the bad and the ugly
of colonialism, into how education inevitably brought the demand
for freedom, into rebellion and savagery like the Mau Mau years,
and into the heady idealism, corruption and confusion that followed
independence" * Irish Independent *
"Scholarly, timely and detailed" * Bookbag *
"You might wonder if this would be a dry and detailed journey.
Detailed it is. Dry it is not. Firstbrook is a first-rate
storyteller" * USA Today *
"Fascinating ... [Firstbrook] adds many interesting details to what
we know of the President's heritage" -- David Remnick * New Yorker
*
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