Joe Biden: Our 46th President

by Beatrice Gormley

An illuminating biography of the 2020 Democratic Nominee for President of the United States.

Genres: Biography, Presidents, History, Middle Grade

256 pages, Paperback

Published January 12, 2021

About the author

Born in Glendale, California, Beatrice grew up in Southern California. After graduating from Pomona College, she worked in publishing near San Francisco. There she met and married Robert Gormley, and they moved to Massachusetts. They have two daughters.
Since age 9 Beatrice had wanted to become a writer. But it wasn't until after her children were born that she really focused on her writing. In 1981 her first book, Mail Order Wings,was published. Since then she's written many popular novels and biographies for young people. Her most recent books are Second Lives, a novel of humans and other animals, and the biography Joe Biden: Our 46th President.

Reviews

[Stephanie Tournas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very readable look at President Joe Biden’s personal and political life. From his childhood as “Joey,” a small, short but scrappy kid who stuttered, to his life in politics, this 256 page biography really covers it all. There is an emphasis on the value of honesty (“My word as a Biden,”) and how his close, tightly knit family life intermeshed with his political career, distinguished by fighting for civil rights and caring about the middle class. I didn’t realize Biden was the first in his family to graduate from college. He had always been an upbeat person, but the tragedy of losing his first wife and youngest daughter in a car crash was life changing. After the death of his son Beau, of cancer, Biden bounced back, his demanding job of Vice President under Barack Obama one of the things that kept him going. It was funny to read about his many gaffes, and his reputation as a “motormouth.” The biography is largely laudatory, so I am glad those negatives are included.

I liked the occasional informational side bars about topics relative to his life and career, such as “Racial Segregation,” “The U.S. Senate,” and “The School Busing Dispute.” The tone is conversational and is appropriate for elementary and middle school students, although so much detail about Biden’s every political office and committee may overwhelm younger readers.

I have two complaints: the author repeats quite a few times that Joey was small and short for his age. I understand that the author wanted to say that you can still be a success if you are short and small, but it was overdone. Secondly, the addition of photos would have been welcome to break up the text.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gormley's book is aimed at a younger audience, making the material accessible for middle schoolers who are just starting to learn modern American history, but this book is a good read for anyone, as Biden has been somewhat overlooked by the national media. I will admit that I myself knew very little about his background before reading this, and was shocked by the tragedies Biden overcame.

Biden's life become a journey though American history from WWII to today, showing us how various high level events - political, military, social - affected every day people like the Biden family, and how Biden himself decided to become one of the decision makers in order to truly try and turn around and help others, albeit making plenty of mistakes along the way.

In order to actually make it to press, the book ends abruptly after Pennsylvania being the appropriately deciding state for Biden's win, but with a message that makes it clear Biden's work, despite everything he has accomplished so far, has only just begun.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wouldn't have picked up this book on my own, but it was for a challenge with our Summer reading program, and if you know me, you know what I'd do to be put in a drawing!

My question is, is it possible to write a political book without being biased? I felt this book definitely leaned left. I enjoyed learning about Biden's childhood and growing up years, but once it got into the political parts I didn't care for it at all. It bashed Trump a ton, and I just really don't like politics and all the contention it brings.

[Natasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Let me preface by saying I am not conservative. However, I felt that this book was a sanitized and 'Cliffnotes' version of Biden's story. This book occasionally touched on his errors in judgment, but the authorl presented it as something minor or yet another challenge for Biden to successfully overcome. The wording of this book appeared like it was aimed towards young readers (like high school age), since it detailed common civics knowledge. This book was a good introduction to Biden, but do not expect a lot of details.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is ok. It's a bit too tightly wound -Joe just pulls himself up by his boot straps and gets out of life's difficulties (poverty, stutter, lack of education, bad grades in college, etc etc). I did learn more about VP Biden's Senate life but there are no photographs. A bonus: there are insets on some pages that pull out relevant historical information. They are not very graphically pleasing as they are just thrown in the text but I'm glad they're there.

[Trudy Snetsinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Easy to read, enough politics to support the story but not so much that the read gets lost in the details. Recommended for those wanting to learn more about him and the America he lives in.

[Skye Croom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick and easy read

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

That's my President.

[Kevin Koppelmann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very partisan, It did cover some of his personal life.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In fifteen short chapters written in a conversational tone, Beatrice Gormley offers middle-grade readers an accessible biography of Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr. (b. 1942), from his growing up in a close-knit family to the beginning months of his presidency. Readers learn of the personal problems and tragedies in his life as well as the challenges he has faced throughout his political career: becoming the U.S. Senator from Delaware in 1974, serving two terms as Barack Obama’s vice president, winning the 2020 election, and being sworn in on January 20, 2021, as the country’s 46th president. Sidebars inserted throughout the narrative provide related information about events and issues such as racial segregation, voting rights, civil rights, and the Electoral College. A list of resources is included. (Gr 3 up)