Overview

In January 2006, after the Republic of Liberia had been racked by fourteen years of brutal civil conflict, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf-Africa's ""Iron Lady""-was sworn in as president, an event that marked a tremendous turning point in the history of the West African nation. In this stirring memoir, Sirleaf shares the inside story of her rise to power, including her early childhood; her experiences with abuse, imprisonment, and exile; and her fight for democracy and social justice. This compelling tale of survival reveals Sirleaf's determination to succeed in multiple worlds: from her studies in the United States to her work as an international bank executive to her election campaigning in some of Liberia's most desperate and war-torn villages and neighborhoods. It is also the story of an outspoken political and social reformer who, despite danger, fought the oppression of dictators and championed change. By sharing her story, Sirleaf encourages women everywhere to pursue leadership roles at the highest levels of power, and gives us all hope that, with perseverance, we can change the world.

Full Product Details

9780061353475

Table of Contents

Reviews

""Exceptionally well written, a true story that seems as much a thriller as the remembrances of an ambitious and brave woman. . . . This timely book, essential for anyone who hopes to understand West Africa in general and Liberia in particular, is a lesson in courage and perserverance."" - Washington Post ""Sirleaf's life was remarkable. . . . [A] larger-than-life persona. . . . Sirleaf, who is considered the Obama of Africa, is up to the challenge. . . . With three years left in her presidential term, Sirleaf will have plenty of fodder for a sequel by the time she's out of office."" - Forbes ""A carefully written memoir of life in Liberia. . . . Sirleaf contextualizes contemporary events in the bigger picture."" - Kirkus Reviews ""In and out of government, in and out of exile, but consistent in her commitment to Liberia, Sirleaf in her memoir reveals herself to be among the most resilient, determined and courageous as well. She writes with modesty in a calm and measured tone. . . . Widely instructive."" - Publishers Weekly ""An inspiring inside look at a nation struggling to rebuild itself and the woman now behind those efforts."" - Booklist ""This is the incredible story of a woman who spent her life talking tough to the lunatics surrounding her. It is an accessible walk through Liberian history, told by someone who was somehow always in the center of the political storm."" - New York Times Book Review

A carefully written memoir of life in Liberia, a wonderful, beautiful, mixed-up country struggling mightily to find itself. So writes the country's sitting president, who came to office in an improbably constitutional way. Sirleaf's bloodline is instructive. She is part European, her maternal grandfather a German expelled from the country during World War I as a move to prove Liberia's loyalty to the United States; her mother was a fair-skinned child with long, wavy hair, not the easiest thing to be in the ethnically torn nation. Her father was tall, brown-skinned, and stylish...a son of a Gola chief from Bomi County. Through luck and hard work, she attained a fine education at the College of West Africa. However, she notes, the view of her nation that she took away was the Americo-Liberian one, for Liberia had been settled in part by repatriated slaves who did not always fit in - and whose descendants still do not. After studying in America, she became an economic advisor to Liberia's president in the late 1970s, a time when the economy began to falter, which in turn undid the near century of comparative political calm the country had enjoyed. The next two decades saw a coup during which Sirleaf was imprisoned, then the onset of a civil war that killed a quarter of a million of our 3 million people and displaced most of the rest. That she survived the succeeding regimes is testimony to her diplomatic skill and good fortune. Recounting these events and her rise to power, Sirleaf contextualizes contemporary events in the bigger picture. One of Africa's chief problems, she writes, is debt, and one way to settle debt in the days of the Cold War was to align with the United States or the Soviets, at which point the money flowed in - and the blood began to flow out, which explains much recent history.Of interest to students of modern Africa, but less well written than Helene Cooper's remarkable memoir The House at Sugar Beach (2008), which addresses some of the same events. (Kirkus Reviews)

An inspiring inside look at a nation struggling to rebuild itself and the woman now behind those efforts. --Booklist Exceptionally well written, a true story that seems as much a thriller as the remembrances of an ambitious and brave woman. . . . This timely book, essential for anyone who hopes to understand West Africa in general and Liberia in particular, is a lesson in courage and perserverance. --Washington Post This is the incredible story of a woman who spent her life talking tough to the lunatics surrounding her. It is an accessible walk through Liberian history, told by someone who was somehow always in the center of the political storm. --New York Times Book Review

Exceptionally well written, a true story that seems as much a thriller as the remembrances of an ambitious and brave woman. . . . This timely book, essential for anyone who hopes to understand West Africa in general and Liberia in particular, is a lesson in courage and perserverance. -- Washington Post

Author Information

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has received several prestigious awards, including the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom. She holds numerous degrees, among them a master's in public administration from Harvard University. President Sirleaf lives in Monrovia, Liberia.

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