
Uh-oh, it looks like your Internet Explorer is out of date.
For a better shopping experience, please upgrade now.

See details
Overview
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
David Axelrod has always been a believer. Whether as a young journalist investigating city corruption, a campaign consultant guiding underdog candidates against entrenched orthodoxy, or as senior adviser to the president during one of the worst crises in American history, Axelrod held fast to his faith in the power of stories to unite diverse communities and ignite transformative political change. Now this legendary strategist, the mastermind behind Barack Obama’s historic election campaigns, shares a wealth of stories from his forty-year journey through the inner workings of American democracy. Believer is the tale of a political life well lived, of a man who never gave up on the deepest promises our country has to offer.
The heart of Believer is Axelrod’s twenty-year friendship with Barack Obama, a warm partnership that inspired both men even as it propelled each to great heights. Taking a chance on an unlikely candidate for the U.S. Senate, Axelrod ultimately collaborated closely Obama on his political campaigns, and served as the invaluable strategist who contributed to the tremendous victories in 2008 and 2012. Switching careers again, Axelrod served as senior adviser to the president during one of the most challenging periods in national history: working at Obama’s side as he battled an economic disaster; navigated America through two wars; and fought to reform health care, the financial sector, and our gridlocked political institutions. In Believer, Axelrod offers a deeper and richer profile of this extraordinary figure—who in just four years vaulted from the Illinois State Senate to the Oval Office—from the perspective of one who was at his side every step of the way.
Spanning forty years that include corruption and transformation, turmoil and progress, Believer takes readers behind the closed doors of politics even as it offers a thrilling call to democratic action. Axelrod’s Believer is a powerful and inspiring memoir enlivened by the charm and candor of one of the greatest political strategists in recent American history.
Product Details
ISBN-13: | 9780143128359 |
---|---|
Publisher: | Penguin Publishing Group |
Publication date: | 02/02/2016 |
Pages: | 544 |
Sales rank: | 257,844 |
Product dimensions: | 5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.30(d) |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Not everyone can point to a moment, the exact time and place, when a lifelong passion began. I can.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Believer"
by .
Copyright © 2016 David Axelrod.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Publishing Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Part 1
1 Roots 13
2 City of the Big Shoulders 25
3 Deadline Dave 38
4 Bow-Tie Bravado 62
Part 2
5 Strategist FOR Hire 73
6 Where the Rubber Hits the Road 85
7 Going National 95
8 The Natural 119
Part 3
9 Magic Carpet Ride 135
10 Shot from a Cannon 148
11 Reluctant Hero 163
12 From "No, I Won't" To "Yes, We… Might" 174
13 An Audacious Decision 189
14 In Lincoln's Shadow 203
15 Growing Pains 216
16 Ecstasy in Iowa 235
17 The Empire Strikes Back 250
18 To Hell (Or At Least Altoona) and Back 269
Part 4
19 From Berlin to Biden 287
20 The Test 303
21 Winning the Big One 314
22 The Dogs That Caught the Car 324
Part 5
23 Next Door to History 343
24 Nothing but Bad Choices 351
25 Why we do the Work 369
26 War and Peace Prize 390
27 The Stubborn World 403
28 "Brutal" 415
Part 6
29 From The Outside Looking In 435
30 Resurgence 442
31 Turbulent Ride, Smooth Landing 463
Epilogue 479
Acknowledgments 489
Index 493
What People are Saying About This
In telling the vivid tales of his own forty years behind the curtain of modern politics, Axelrod reminds us that elections matter to those who don't engage as well as those who do, effectively challenging us all to get involved. --Deval Patrick, Governor of Massachusetts
David Axelrod was present at the creation of President Obama's political career. He reflects on their improbable journey with the faithfulness of a reporter, the ferocity of a political operative, and the passion of a true believer. A riveting read. --George Stephanopoulos, Chief Anchor, ABC News
Beautifully written with warmth, humor, and remarkable self-awareness, Believer is one of the finest political memoirs I have ever read. Through one memorable anecdote after another, Axelrod tells a revealing and moving story of his long and honorable career in public life. This is a thoroughly terrific book. --Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of The Bully Pulpit and Team of Rivals
David Axelrod has written a remarkable book, a deeply honest and unflinching memoir of his journey from cub journalist to political adviser to the President of the United States. From the boisterous wards of Chicago politics to the Oval Office, Believer takes you inside the political warrior's life, with its larger-than-life personalities, exhilarating victories, and gut-wrenching defeats. For Axelrod, the goal is victory, but the enemy is cynicism. Anybody, Democrat or Republican, who loves politics should read this book. --Mike Murphy, Republican strategist
Praise for David Axelrod's Believer
DORIS KEARNS GOODWIN, author of The Bully Pulpit and Team of Rivals
“Beautifully written with warmth, humor, and remarkable self-awareness, Believer is one of the finest political memoirs I have ever read. Through one memorable anecdote after another, Axelrod tells a revealing and moving story of his long and honorable career in public life. This is a thoroughly terrific book.”
DEVAL PATRICK, governor of Massachusetts
“In telling the vivid tales of his own forty years behind the curtain of modern politics, Axelrod reminds us that elections matter to those who don’t engage as well as those who do, effectively challenging us all to get involved.”
MIKE MURPHY, Republican strategist
“David Axelrod has written a remarkable book, a deeply honest and unflinching memoir of his journey from cub journalist to political adviser to the President of the United States. From the boisterous wards of Chicago politics to the Oval Office, Believer takes you inside the political warrior’s life, with its larger-than-life personalities, exhilarating victories, and gut-wrenching defeats. For Axelrod, the goal is victory, but the enemy is cynicism. Anybody, Democrat or Republican, who loves politics should read this book.”
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, chief anchor of ABC News
“David Axelrod was present at the creation of President Obama’s political career. He reflects on their improbable journey with the faithfulness of a reporter, the ferocity of a political operative, and the passion of a true believer. A riveting read.”