Ardent testimony to the significance of Harris’ triumph.
Grateful letters on the occasion of a historic election.
After Barack Obama was elected, Brooks-Bertram, an activist, historian, and co-founder of the Uncrowned Queens Institute for Research and Education on Women, gathered and published a compendium of letters to Michelle Obama, and she followed with a collection to support the first Black woman superintendent of Buffalo Public Schools. Kamala Harris’ election as vice president inspires her latest effort, a volume of “greetings, advice, warnings, prayers, requests, affirmations, and demands” from 100 women around the world, including activists, professionals, civil rights leaders, and Girl Scouts. “I am going to reach for my dreams because of Kamala and not be criticized as a black girl,” writes a ninth grade Girl Scout from New York. “One piece of advice I would give you is to not listen to people who say you can’t do it,” counsels a fifth grade Girl Scout from California. The letters are consistently ebullient, celebratory, and hopeful. A retired community activist from Atlanta exults, “My heart got that burst of pride that comes when one of my own children does something that makes me particularly proud to be their mother.” A Jamaican immigrant living in NYC: “Your drive, leadership and fortitude is so needed in this country right now, and I know that you will be able to accomplish your goals despite roadblocks that will come your way….I also hope that you and Joe Biden will reestablish The President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities.” Many writers urge Harris to address the nation’s many ills: systemic racism, White supremacy, climate change, the criminal justice system, and the racial, economic, housing, and medical disparities that have accelerated during the pandemic. “You have the opportunity to be a light in the darkness,” notes a business leader from Oklahoma. “You have our support behind you,” says a director and cinematographer, “but please, vote for us as we voted for you.”
Ardent testimony to the significance of Harris’ triumph.Pub Date: Feb. 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-68435-162-6
Page Count: 248
Publisher: Red Lightning Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
A determined if self-regarding portrait of a candidate striving to define herself and her campaign on her own terms.
An insider’s chronicle of a pivotal presidential campaign.
Several months into the mounting political upheaval of Donald Trump’s second term and following a wave of bestselling political exposés, most notably Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s Original Sin on Joe Biden’s health and late decision to step down, former Vice President Harris offers her own account of the consequential months surrounding Biden’s withdrawal and her swift campaign for the presidency. Structured as brief chapters with countdown headers from 107 days to Election Day, the book recounts the campaign’s daily rigors: vetting a running mate, navigating back-to-back rallies, preparing for the convention and the debate with Trump, and deflecting obstacles in the form of both Trump’s camp and Biden’s faltering team. Harris aims to set the record straight on issues that have remained hotly debated. While acknowledging Biden’s advancing decline, she also highlights his foreign-policy steadiness: “His years of experience in foreign policy clearly showed….He was always focused, always commander in chief in that room.” More blame is placed on his inner circle, especially Jill Biden, whom Harris faults for pushing him beyond his limits—“the people who knew him best, should have realized that any campaign was a bridge too far.” Throughout, she highlights her own qualifications and dismisses suggestions that an open contest might have better served the party: “If they thought I was down with a mini primary or some other half-baked procedure, I was quick to disabuse them.” Facing Trump’s increasingly unhinged behavior, Harris never openly doubts her ability to confront him. Yet she doesn’t fully persuade the reader that she had the capacity to counter his dominance, suggesting instead that her defeat stemmed from a lack of time—a theme underscored by the urgency of the book’s title. If not entirely sanguine about the future, she maintains a clear-eyed view of the damage already done: “Perhaps so much damage that we will have to re-create our government…something leaner, swifter, and much more efficient.”
A determined if self-regarding portrait of a candidate striving to define herself and her campaign on her own terms.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9781668211656
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sharp, entertaining view of the news media from one of its star players.
The veteran newscaster reflects on her triumphs and hardships, both professional and private.
In this eagerly anticipated memoir, Couric (b. 1957) transforms the events of her long, illustrious career into an immensely readable story—a legacy-preserving exercise, for sure, yet judiciously polished and insightful, several notches above the fray of typical celebrity memoirs. The narrative unfolds through a series of lean chapters as she recounts the many career ascendency steps that led to her massively successful run on the Today Show and comparably disappointing stints as CBS Evening News anchor, talk show host, and Yahoo’s Global News Anchor. On the personal front, the author is candid in her recollections about her midlife adventures in the dating scene and deeply sorrowful and affecting regarding the experience of losing her husband to colon cancer as well as the deaths of other beloved family members, including her sister and parents. Throughout, Couric maintains a sharp yet cool-headed perspective on the broadcast news industry and its many outsized personalities and even how her celebrated role has diminished in recent years. “It’s AN ADJUSTMENT when the white-hot spotlight moves on,” she writes. “The ego gratification of being the It girl is intoxicating (toxic being the root of the word). When that starts to fade, it takes some getting used to—at least it did for me.” Readers who can recall when network news coverage and morning shows were not only relevant, but powerfully influential forces will be particularly drawn to Couric’s insights as she tracks how the media has evolved over recent decades and reflects on the negative effects of the increasing shift away from reliable sources of informed news coverage. The author also discusses recent important cultural and social revolutions, casting light on issues of race and sexual orientation, sexism, and the predatory behavior that led to the #MeToo movement. In that vein, she expresses her disillusionment with former co-host and friend Matt Lauer.
A sharp, entertaining view of the news media from one of its star players.Pub Date: Oct. 26, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-316-53586-1
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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