No story has been more central to America’s history this century than the rise of Barack Obama, and until now, no journalist or historian has written a book that fully investigates the circumstances and experiences of Obama’s life or explores the ambition behind his rise. Those familiar with Obama’s own best-selling memoir or his campaign speeches know the touchstones and details that he chooses to emphasize, but now—from a writer whose gift for illuminating the historical significance of unfolding events is without peer—we have a portrait, at once masterly and fresh, nuanced and unexpected, of a young man in search of himself, and of a rising politician determined to become the first African-American president.

The Bridge offers the most complete account yet of Obama’s tragic father, a brilliant economist who abandoned his family and ended his life as a beaten man; of his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, who had a child as a teenager and then built her career as an anthropologist living and studying in Indonesia; and of the succession of elite institutions that first exposed Obama to the social tensions and intellectual currents that would force him to imagine and fashion an identity for himself. Through extensive on-the-record interviews with friends and teachers, mentors and disparagers, family members and Obama himself, David Remnick allows us to see how a rootless, unaccomplished, and confused young man created himself first as a community organizer in Chicago, an experience that would not only shape his urge to work in politics but give him a home and a community, and that would propel him to Harvard Law School, where his sense of a greater mission emerged.

Deftly setting Obama’s political career against the galvanizing intersection of race and politics in Chicago’s history, Remnick shows us how that city’s complex racial legacy would make Obama’s forays into politics a source of controversy and bare-knuckle tactics : his clashes with older black politicians in the Illinois State Senate, his disastrous decision to challenge the former Black Panther Bobby Rush for Congress in 2000, the sex scandals that would decimate his more experienced opponents in the 2004 Senate race, and the story—from both sides—of his confrontation with his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright. By looking at Obama’s political rise through the prism of our racial history, Remnick gives us the conflicting agendas of black politicians : the dilemmas of men like Jesse Jackson, John Lewis, and Joseph Lowery, heroes of the civil rights movement, who are forced to reassess old loyalties and understand the priorities of a new generation of African-American leaders.

The Bridge revisits the American drama of race, from slavery to civil rights, and makes clear how Obama’s quest is not just his own but is emblematic of a nation where destiny is defined by individuals keen to imagine a future that is different from the reality of their current lives.

5 Responses to “The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama”

1. Sacramento Book Review says:

   September 24, 2010 at 12:00 am

   The book opens with an account of the clash on the bridge on Selma, Alabama, as told by the Civil Rights leader U.S. Rep. John Lewis. In this brilliant biography, one is told about the many cities and enemies which Obama encountered in his long quest of become the President of the United States; the individuals who saw Obama as immodest and very lucky.

   If one wants to view race as a factor of social construct one must see the true Obama isolated in Hawaii, without a father or many black community friends. It was not until Obama met his future brother-in-law, Craig Robertson, that it was the first time Obama encountered black people. Further, the author has shown in these pages the Americans who felt the racial dilemma that had developed would not be forgotten. It should be pointed out that Obama was elected in the wake of a crisis, and such things as the banking system nearing collapse along with the war in Iraq which made him very unpopular.

   Reviewed by Claude Ury

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2. W. Jamison says:

   September 23, 2010 at 12:00 am

   DR has included lots of research that fleshes out the Obama books. There are aspects of O’s father’s life that we are not privy to before as well as O’s mom. This sort of info adds to the picture we have of what makes O so unique and dynamic. While O’s books tend to show how he is an example of the American Life DR gives us a picture that shows O as a Quintessential Example of what an American Life can be. The Bridge is also an interesting metaphor since if we consider the Pontiff as the Bridge – in which case the Pope of the RC Church stands as the contemporary Roman Emperor bridging the Divine and the Human and then explore this metaphor over and above the bridge of Civil Rights, MLK, and now O – we can easily see the movement towards equality and respect as a Platonic recognition that such equality and respect marks the Divine order of the universe. It is the direction we should go to grow and this gives us hope.

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3. M. Shelton says:

   September 6, 2010 at 12:00 am

   Great for Obama lovers, but since he lacks the experience, knowledge and patriotism to be president, I as a reader did not care for his life and much less for his rise to president.

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4. David W. Southern says:

   August 29, 2010 at 12:00 am

   David Remnick’s book, “The Bridge,” is a highly detailed work (586 pages of text) of the life of Barack Obama. It is richly researched and even-handed and is especially revealing in regard to the early life of the first African American president. While not uncritical, the book favors Obama in that it undermines the myths and lies being perpetrated about him by rightwingers. Any rational person of goodwill will not come away from this immersion in the life of Obama and believe that he is, say, a Marxist, a Muslim, a hater of white people, or a tool of Wall Street (the latter a myth disseminated by the left). Obama is what anyone would know if he/she closely followed his campaign of 2008: a moderate liberal and a brilliantly cerebral person with many academic accomplishments.

   As already explained, the book is first-rate in its exploration of Obama’s childhood, especially his relationship with his father, mother, and maternal grandparents. It follows young “Barry” as he tries to establish his identity as a mixed race person who is abandoned by his Kenyan father and who is often apart from his Kansas-born mother. The book is also excellent on the election of 2008, the primaries and the general. If the book has a fault, it is overly detailed and digressive at points. When he talks about Obama and the black rights, he needlessly recounts the whole history of the civil right movement. His account of the relations of blacks to city of Washington and the White House from the founding of the republic is a bit tiresome for anyone who is already remotely familiar with the story. Still, this is a fine read, a wonderfully informative book on the 44th commander-in-chief.

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5. Scott Schiefelbein says:

   August 23, 2010 at 12:00 am

   When you finally put down David Remnick’s new bio, “The Bridge,” about the young life and meteoric rise of President Barack Obama, you could be forgiven if you felt that you had just read your first biography of a Vulcan. Like Mr. Spock, the Barack Obama of these pages emerges as an intensely logical, intellectual man who applies his powerful intellect to even the most emotional of questions, including, “am I a black man?”

   This is an unfair distortion, of course, but it makes the point. David Remnick has written an exhaustively researched tale of Barack Obama, but the President-to-be stands aloof and removed from the narrative. The “juiciest” parts of the bio go to other players – Obama’s tragically flawed father, his distant-but-loving mother, his devoted grandparents, Michelle, Hillary, Reverend Wright, and Jesse Jackson all emerge as more emotional, visceral beings. To be sure, Remnick was able to get Obama’s own perspective into the pages – for a sitting President Obama appears to have graciously given Remnick a lot of access. But whether it’s describing his white high school friends’ desire to be Dr. J, or his trial-by-fire experiences as a community organizer in Chicago or as a state Senator in Illinois, Obama always approaches everything with his patented cool, calm, and collected approach.

   The man is an introspective genius. Remnick draws many parallels between the historical role the memoir played for famous black Americans – the memoir was often written early in life as a means of self-discovery, per Remnick. Obama follows suit, using his early writing efforts to crystallize his world and self-views. This rare gift for introspection and self-awareness may explain why Obama seems so well-adjusted as he tries to get the world back on its proper axis.

   But other characters are just more interesting in this book, perhaps because their flaws are so readily apparent. Reverend Wright makes for a particularly intriguing man for Remnick shows him as a man of genuine wit and achievement who descends nearly into madness after his more colorful sermons come to light. The Clintons stride across the stage as flawed wunderkinds who realize to their horror that they have been replaced by a guy who lives up to his potential. John McCain and Sarah Palin show up late in all their hissing glory – McCain particularly does not get much credit for his graceful concession speech. And Obama’s parents and grandparents deserve their own book(s).

   While Remnick makes clear that Obama has benefitted from a lot of luck in his political career, Remnick makes clear that Obama has had the talent and drive to capitalize on his luck. As the cliche goes, “the harder I work, the luckier I get.” This is a darn good book – not a timeless classic of political biography, but a worthy exploration of how Obama got to where he is while confronting perhaps the most unfair question in America – “are you black enough?” It is a good reminder that, every once in a while, we elect the right person to the Presidency.

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