A Singular Woman
The Untold Story of Barack Obama's Mother
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Narrated by:
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January LaVoy
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By:
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Janny Scott
About this listen
A major publishing event: an unprecedented look into the life of the woman who most singularly shaped Barack Obama: his mother.
President Obama has written extensively about his father, but little is known about Stanley Ann Dunham, the fiercely independent woman who raised him, the person he credits for, as he says, "what is best in me." Here is the missing piece of the story. Award-winning reporter Janny Scott interviewed nearly 200 of Dunham's friends, colleagues, and relatives (including both her children), and combed through boxes of personal and professional papers, letters to friends, and photo albums, to uncover the full breadth of this woman's inspiring and untraditional life, and to show the remarkable extent to which she shaped the man Obama is today.
Dunham's story moves from Kansas and Washington state to Hawaii and Indonesia. It begins in a time when interracial marriage was still a felony in much of the United States, and culminates in the present, with her son as our president - something she never got to see. It is a poignant look at how character is passed from parent to child, and offers insight into how Obama's destiny was created early, by his mother's extraordinary faith in his gifts and by her unconventional mothering. Finally, it is a heartbreaking story of a woman who died at age 52, before her son would go on to his greatest accomplishments and reflections of what she taught him.
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Born to a Jewish family in Estonia in 1901 and brought to America in 1906, the architect Louis Kahn grew up in poverty in Philadelphia; by the time of his death in 1974, he was widely recognized as one of the greatest architects of his era. Yet this enormous reputation was based on only a handful of masterpieces, all built during the last 15 years of his life.
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A book about architect needs pictures
- By Kristin Olson-garewal on 10-15-17
By: Wendy Lesser
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Strange Stones
- By: Peter Hessler
- Narrated by: George Backman
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Full of unforgettable figures and an unrelenting spirit of adventure, Strange Stones is a far-ranging, thought-provoking collection of Peter Hessler’s best reportage - a dazzling display of the powerful storytelling, shrewd cultural insight, and warm sense of humor that are the trademarks of his work. Over the last decade, as a staff writer for The New Yorker and the author of three books, Peter Hessler has lived in Asia and the United States, writing as both native and knowledgeable outsider in these two very different regions.
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funny, entertaining
- By Katherine on 08-02-13
By: Peter Hessler
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Oracle Bones
- A Journey Through Time in China
- By: Peter Hessler
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 18 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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A century ago, outsiders saw China as a place where nothing ever changes. Today, the country has become one of the most dynamic regions on earth. In Oracle Bones, Peter Hessler explores the human side of China's transformation, viewing modern-day China and its growing links to the Western world through the lives of a handful of ordinary people.
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Great Book, except for the narration.
- By DMH on 11-09-10
By: Peter Hessler
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The Invitation-Only Zone
- The True Story of North Korea's Abduction Project
- By: Robert S. Boynton
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Throughout the late 1970s and early '80s, dozens of Japanese citizens were abducted from coastal Japanese towns by North Korean commandos. In what proved to be part of a global project, North Korea attempted to reeducate the abductees and train them to spy on the state's behalf. When the project faltered, the abductees were hidden in a series of guarded communities known as "Invitation-Only Zones" - the fiction being that these were exclusive enclaves, not prisons.
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Over enthusiastic reader!
- By AJW on 02-14-16
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One Child
- The Story of China's Most Radical Experiment
- By: Mei Fong
- Narrated by: Janet Song
- Length: 7 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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When Communist Party leaders adopted the one-child policy in 1980, they hoped curbing birthrates would help lift China's poorest and increase the country's global stature. But at what cost? Now, as China closes the book on the policy after more than three decades, it faces a population grown too old and too male, with a vastly diminished supply of young workers. Mei Fong has spent years documenting the policy's repercussions on every sector of Chinese society.
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Best Book Club Discussion Ever!!
- By Rachael W. Schettenhelm on 05-01-17
By: Mei Fong
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Lady Bird and Lyndon
- The Hidden Story of a Marriage That Made a President
- By: Betty Boyd Caroli
- Narrated by: Amanda Carlin
- Length: 16 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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A fresh look at Lady Bird Johnson that upends her image as a plain Jane who was married for her money and mistreated by Lyndon. This Lady Bird worked quietly behind the scenes through every campaign, every illness, and a trying presidency as a key strategist, fundraiser, barnstormer, peacemaker, and indispensable therapist.
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Lady Bird & btw Lyndon
- By Richard on 11-27-15
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Age of Ambition
- Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China
- By: Evan Osnos
- Narrated by: Evan Osnos, George Backman
- Length: 16 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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As the Beijing correspondent for The New Yorker, Evan Osnos was on the ground in China for years, witness to profound political, economic, and cultural upheaval. In Age of Ambition, he describes the greatest collision taking place in that country: the clash between the rise of the individual and the Communist Party’s struggle to retain control.
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Come back when you have a warrant!
- By Neuron on 11-06-15
By: Evan Osnos
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And So It Goes
- Kurt Vonnegut: A Life
- By: Charles J. Shields
- Narrated by: Fred Berman
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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New York Times best-selling author and biographer Charles J. Shields crafts this fascinating portrait of literary icon Kurt Vonnegut. The first authorized biography of the influential American writer, And So It Goes examines Vonnegut’s life, from his childhood to his death in 2007, and explores how the author changed the conversation of American literature.
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Probably only for die hard Vonnegut fans
- By Watery M on 12-22-12
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Passing Strange
- A Gilded Age Tale of Love and Deception Across the Color Line
- By: Martha A. Sandweiss
- Narrated by: Lorna Raver
- Length: 14 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Brilliant scientist and witty conversationalist, best-selling author and architect of the great surveys that mapped the West after the Civil War, Clarence King was named by John Hay "the best and brightest of his generation". But King hid a secret from his Gilded Age cohorts and prominent family in Newport: for 13 years he lived a double life - as the celebrated White explorer, geologist, and writer Clarence King and as a Black Pullman porter and steelworker named James Todd.
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Race and Identity
- By Roy on 03-22-10
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Young China
- How the Restless Generation Will Change Their Country and the World
- By: Zak Dychtwald
- Narrated by: Zak Dychtwald
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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A close-up look at the Chinese generation born after 1990, exploring through personal encounters how young Chinese feel about everything from money and sex to their government, the West, and China’s shifting role in the world - not to mention their love affair with food, karaoke, and travel. Set primarily in the Eastern 2nd tier city of Suzhou and the budding Western metropolis of Chengdu, the book charts the touchstone issues this young generation faces.
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Erudite, enthralling, and engaging!
- By Anonymous User on 03-22-19
By: Zak Dychtwald
What listeners say about A Singular Woman
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Barb
- 04-16-19
The title of the book may well have been, “An Exceptional Woman”
The woman in the story was an exceptional woman but you had to dig deep to find her. The beginning of the book read like an org chart or who begat whom. The rest of it was pretty academic until the last couple of chapters where the characters were fleshed out, including emotions, & became real. In the end, it would seem that Obama did not appreciate who his mother was until he no longer had her. Given the life she chose away from him, this is understandable. Still, she was a good woman and he is a good man .. no accident there.
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- maggie rose
- 05-04-11
singularity can be a virtue
i have only just purchased this audiobook and am looking forward to listening to it. remarkable women are always worth hearing about. thanks to audible dot com for getting this book to us.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Jacki Carton
- 04-18-16
A PhD in Anthropology?!
I had no idea how educated Barack Obama's mother was. A PhD in Anthropology no less. What an amazing woman. Unconventional, intellectual and dedicated to improving the plight of poor women, especially in Indonesia. I knew she was born in Kansas and died of cancer in her fifties. She was so much more and now I know. And she has an amazing daughter, Maya.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Pat
- 07-13-11
"Always on the outside looking in"
J. Scott's research pieces the details of S. Ann Dunham's life. Her life as a caring, loving mother to two inter-racial children; her hardships as a single mother with an inter-racial child growing up in the 60's in Hawaii & Indonesia; and her devoted research as an anthropologist working in Indonesia. No matter your politics, this is an interesting account of Ann's life that ultimately affected the world and basically changed history. The book has alot of detail about Indonesia and gets technical at times. As a daughter of an Italian mother who left her entire family to move to the US, I remained intrigued by Ann's need to always go back to Indonesia and somehow live a life as someone on the outside looking in.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Sharlotte
- 06-09-18
Way too long!
I realize the author did a lot of research and wanted to share it all; however, at some point there should be discrimination over what the reader must wade through. This is the perfect example of far too many details and a real need of editing!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Margo P
- 10-27-12
Amazing story about an amazing woman
Would you listen to A Singular Woman again? Why?
Yes, I may listen to it again. The story was fascinating about a woman born before WWII who manages against many odds to make a career in a male field while raising two bi racial children in racist countries.
It is also an Americana story, life in Kansas and how people move about the country.
And it tells us a lot about Barack Obama and how he got to be who he is? Want to know Barack Obama? Forget D-nish's projections. Read this book
What other book might you compare A Singular Woman to and why?
As an American story about a singular person it reminded me of Ron Reagan's My Father At 100. I enjoyed them both and gained a lot of insight.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No, too long, although I would listen to it going from North Carolina to New Jersey. It would make the time fly.
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3 people found this helpful
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- caithriana
- 05-14-11
Infinite star person, noble book effort, ok audio
Hopefully this woman's story will continue to be told in this and in other ways that capture her drive, romanticism and love of people and culture from different nations. I would welcome a different audible reading that is slower with pauses that allow more time to capture the spirit - her spirit, her expansive world's spirit, at the special moments, of which there are many, articulated in this book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Kathleen McDonald
- 06-07-11
A Remarkable Woman
Having traveled throughout Indonesia, while paying special attention to cultural aspects of the people (funeral celebrations and so forth) and buying my fair share of local handicrafts, I was thoroughly delighted with this book. I was so impressed with Janny Scott's investigative reporting on Ann Dunham's intellect, interests, travels and anthropology studies that I just bought a copy of Dunham's doctoral thesis, "Surviving Against the Odds". While she may not have been the perfect parent, Ms. Dunham instilled superior values in her two children who have excelled beyond the expectations of most parents for their offspring. The interviews with her children were particularly enlightening and enjoyable. I highly recommend this book. It ended far too soon for me.
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7 people found this helpful
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- Juno Tzu
- 06-11-23
Redundant story
Singular might reference Ann Dunham thinking primarily of herself. She does work she passionately supports, to the exclusion of much else. Her work helped women in developing countries, though.
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- darswords
- 10-11-11
What a Woman!
What a woman! I was very impressed with this book. I do not usually read non-fiction. But this was the first book available for Kindle from my local library. I downloaded the Audible version to help hold my attention to the text.
If there were any books that could bring the plight of women to light it is this book. Here we have a woman who had family who were college educated and encouraged their offspring to seek the highest education possible. This woman went to Indonesia to study the poor, especially the women.
Don't think about this book as an extension of the President. She was her own person even before her son was born. It seems she had all the breaks, got to travel and all, but she had the courage of her convictions and goals to help others.
I think many women who read this will see a part of themselves reflected back. Had my mother had the opportunity that Stanley Ann Durham had I think she would have been a happier person. Having a happy, well define parent could only result in happy, well defined children.
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8 people found this helpful