A Fighting Chance

De: Elizabeth Warren

Narrado por: Elizabeth Warren

An unlikely political star tells the inspiring story of the two-decade journey that taught her how Washington really works - and really doesn’t.

As a child in small-town Oklahoma, Elizabeth Warren yearned to go to college and then become an elementary school teacher - an ambitious goal, given her family’s modest means. Early marriage and motherhood seemed to put even that dream out of reach, but 15 years later she was a distinguished law professor with a deep understanding of why people go bankrupt. Then came the phone call that changed her life: Could she come to Washington, DC, to help advise Congress on rewriting the bankruptcy laws?

Thus began an impolite education into the bare-knuckled, often dysfunctional ways of Washington. She fought for better bankruptcy laws for 10 years and lost. She tried to hold the federal government accountable during the financial crisis but became a target of the big banks. She came up with the idea for a new agency designed to protect consumers from predatory bankers and was denied the opportunity to run it. Finally, at age 62, she decided to run for elective office and won the most competitive - and watched - Senate race in the country.

In this passionate, funny, rabble-rousing book, Warren shows why she has chosen to fight tooth and nail for the middle class - and why she has become a hero to all those who believe that America’s government can and must do better for working families.

©2014 Elizabeth Warren (P)2014 Macmillan Audio

Not the hero we deserve but the hero we need.

Any additional comments?

I hate to be cliche but it's true, I laughed and cried and feel so inspired after finishing this book. Elizabeth Warren truly is a champion of the people and I hope she stays in the senate for a long, long time. My absolute favorite line from the the book is when she describes talking to little girls at various rally's during her first election campaign and telling them "My name is Elizabeth Warren, and I'm running for United States Senate, because that's what girls do."

Wonderful!!!

Any additional comments?

I loved this book. Very inspiring. I can't wait to work on her Presidential campaign.

Compelling and inspiring life story

Elizabeth Warren is a strong, funny, and inspiring person. She makes me a proud progressive

Uplifting Life Story with Vacuous Philosophy

Any additional comments?

I listed to this book to obtain a coherent picture of the liberal philosophy. I cannot listen to the loonies like Rachel Maddow but Warren is articulate and coherent. Her life story is very uplifting, a true American success story. And, her anger at the big banks and desire to reign them in is also very compelling. If the story stopped there, I would have been a big supporter. Unfortunately, Ms. Warren continues on to extol the virtues of every government program, teachers union, social security, Medicare, etc. It appears that there is no government program that she thinks has ever been misplaced, wasted money, made mistakes, etc. It is too bad because she would be a formidable and logical spokesperson for sensible liberal philosophy if she was just a little more even handed. For example, the big banks had a lot of blame for selling mortgages to people who the banks knew could never afford the payments BUT there were also many people who tried to exploit the easy mortgage money to get rich and thus went bust. As another example, her adoration of Barney Frank is misplaced as he pushed the big banks to relax lending rules to enable poor people to buy home even though they would not have qualified for mortgages under more stringent rules.I still am looking for rationale and sensible politicians who capture the center.

A Must Read for every citizen

I usually do not spend a lot of time thinking about politics (too upsetting) and don't really know what made buy this book. I think I heard some friends making some positive remarks about Elizabeth Warren, which included something about her being a great candidate for president, so I wanted to inform myself in case that were to become a possibility.
At first I was having some trouble with the author reading the book herself. I have listened to hundreds of audiobooks and only twice did I enjoy the authors reading their own books.
Once I got used to her very casual personal style, though, I actually found it made a lot of sense, since it is a very personal story, and it felt like she was sitting in my living room, talking to me,
The story she told was fascinating, and impressive, albeit shocking, Fascinating because of the way it was told (she is a good writer, telling it so anyone can understand her message, without feeling talked down to), impressive because she has done an enormous amount of research and appears to be passionate about her work, while also knowing how to delegate tasks, as well as being a team player, and never losing sight of her goal once it's set; and shocking because of the blatant corruption in our government, which is going unchecked. I do read Chris Hedges, who has written about the same kinds of things. She is not making this up.
I look forward to reading more of her books to become a more informed citizen. I hope she runs for president. She's what this country needs to turn some things around.

Not What I Expected

I like Elizabeth Warren as both a person and a politician, but this book wasn't what I was hoping to read. I was hoping for something more enlightening in terms of the theory and practice of financial policy. Instead, this book is more of an autobiography of Warren's own journey as a public figure.

That said, the story was compelling, and her communication style is both clear and endearing.

all dog's aside

Really enjoyed hearing about her self determination. Could have done without all the dog asides.

A womam of the people!

This is the story of someone who has worked hard to succeed and remembers where she came from and who helped along the way to get where she is today.

A delightful listen!

I laughed, I cried, I fell more in love with Elizabeth Warren. Her passion for helping regrow the middle class is palpable and moving. A Fighting Chance is inspiring, informative and endearing. Warren's narration is sincere and gives the sense she's not a run of the mill politician, but a passionate fighter for change whose work in financial reform encouraged her to work in politics. A very engaging listen.

Inspiring!

I am so profoundly motivated by Senator Warren's journey. She is definitely the personification of the canary in the mine. Thank God for her courage and commitment to making a difference during this lifetime!!