by Cory Booker
First published 2016
Cory Booker argues that empathy, responsibility, and action can transform American politics. The New Jersey Senator traces his journey from a football scholarship at Stanford through Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar and Yale Law School to his decision to work in Newark's troubled neighborhoods. Booker served as a tenants' rights lawyer before joining the City Council and becoming mayor in 2006. He led Newark for over seven years before winning election as New Jersey's first African American Senator in 2013. Booker draws from these experiences to advocate for compassion and solidarity in public life. He addresses mass incarceration, economic justice, environmental issues, and racial inequality. The book combines personal stories with policy observations, featuring people who shaped his civic vision. Booker calls for moving beyond tolerance toward deeper connection, arguing that Americans share a common destiny and must reject despair in favor of active hope.
Genres: american, political-science, social-issues, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-journey, social-commentary
Setting: Newark, New Jersey
Period: 21st-century
223 pages · Hardcover · Ballantine Books