Barack and Joe

The Making of an Extraordinary Partnership

By: Steven Levingston, Michael Eric Dyson

Narrated by: Ron Butler

Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

A vivid and inspiring account of the "bromance" between Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

The extraordinary partnership of Barack Obama and Joe Biden is unique in American history. The two men, their characters and styles sharply contrasting, formed a dynamic working relationship that evolved into a profound friendship. Their affinity was not predestined. Obama and Biden began wary of each other: Obama an impatient freshman disdainful of the Senate's plodding ways; Biden a veteran of the chamber and proud of its traditions.

Gradually, they came to respect each other's values and strengths and rode into the White House together in 2008. Side-by-side through two tension-filled terms, they shared the day-to-day joys and struggles of leading the most powerful nation on earth. They accommodated each other's quirks: Biden's famous miscues kept coming, and Obama overlooked them knowing they were insignificant except as media fodder. With his expertise in foreign affairs and legislative matters, Biden took on an unprecedented role as chief adviser to Obama, reshaping the vice presidency. Together, Obama and Biden guided Americans through a range of historic moments: a devastating economic crisis, racial confrontations, war in Afghanistan, and the dawn of same-sex marriage nationwide. They supported each other through highs and lows: Obama provided a welcome shoulder during the illness and death of Biden's son, Beau.

As many Americans turn a nostalgic eye toward the Obama presidency, Barack and Joe offers a new look at this administration, its absence of scandal, dedication to truth, and respect for the media. This is the first audiobook to tell the full story of this historic relationship and its substantial impact on the Obama presidency and its legacy.

©2019 Steven Levingston and Michael Eric Dyson (P)2019 Hachette Books

Critic reviews

"Levingston, a gifted diviner of our political ethos and an eloquent chronicler of our national tendencies, delves purposefully into the relationship between Obama and Biden, showing how it was the magical melding of two forceful personalities who were quite dissimilar in many ways, but no less capable of turning their differences into national benefit.... This buddy film come-to-life is a magnificent story told with poetic verve by a writer who sets his study up like a thriller and crafts it with the pace and surprise of a first-rate novel." (Michael Eric Dyson, from the foreword)

"Barack and Joe brilliantly recounts the remarkable friendship of two very different American leaders. The Obama-Biden axis remains the most potent force in Democratic politics. As the 2020 election nears, this remarkable and timely book will be a must-read for informed voters of every persuasion. Highly recommended!" (Douglas Brinkley, New York Times best-selling author of American Moonshot: John F. Kennedy and the Great Space Race)

"Steven Levingston's brisk, lucid, and essential portrait of the relationship between Barack Obama and his Vice President tells us much that we did not know before - and at a moment when understanding that relationship will be crucial to deciding who should be the next President." (Michael Beschloss)

Over three days...

Disclaimer: this is a book about then Vice President, now President Biden and his relationship with President Obama during his 8 years in the White House.

As I listened, the story of their bromance, for most part I knew about in detail, was still able to surprise, make me laugh out loud and tear up heartily in the same chapter. There were some redundant explanations and over simplified analyses by former Obama administration officials. That being said, this will be a very pleasant and informative listen about two men I deeply respect and admire. If you feel the same way, you'll finish this title in three days.

Really loved the insights this book provided

Barak and Joe provided a great insight into a friendship and working relationship between individuals responsible for managing a huge responsibility. I appreciate more the support and balance each provided for the other, as well as the level-headedness it takes to govern well. The audio book narration is excellent and I enjoyed the authors' skills and abilities to share this story with us.

Not what expected

Thinking this was going to be ABOUT the relationship of Barack and Joe, I find the narrating of direct quotes odd and the narrating of them odder. Couldn’t listen past chapter 2