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Kamala Harris: die Biografie
Das Porträt einer selbstbewussten, starken und intelligenten Die erste deutschsprachige Biografie über Kamala Harris.
Kamala Harris ist die erste Frau im Amt des Vizepräsidenten der USA. Dan Morain schreibt in dieser Biografie über ihren Weg zur mächtigsten Frau im Land. Als Journalist, der sie auf diesem Weg viele Jahre lang begleitet hat, versteht er wie kaum ein anderer, welche Ereignisse Kamala Harris prägten und zu den Überzeugungen führten, für die sie entschlossen einsteht. Er zeigt, was es für sie bedeutete, als Tochter einer Inderin und eines Jamaikaners im Kalifornien der 60er- und 70er-Jahre aufzuwachsen, wie sie erst Attorney General von Kalifornien, dann US-Senatorin und schließlich Vizepräsidentin an der Seite von Joe Biden wurde. Auch dass ihr Weg dabei nicht frei von Niederlagen und Rückschlägen war, wird in Dan Morains Biografie Kamala Harris hat loyale Unterstützer und erbitterte Gegner. Sie wollte Präsidentin werden und ist „nur“ Vizepräsidentin geworden – und doch ist sie die Hoffnung vieler, vor allem schwarzer Amerikanerinnen, denn Kamala Harris’ Weg zeigt, was sie in ihrem Land erreichen können.
Kamala Harris ist die erste Frau im Amt des Vizepräsidenten der USA. Dan Morain schreibt in dieser Biografie über ihren Weg zur mächtigsten Frau im Land. Als Journalist, der sie auf diesem Weg viele Jahre lang begleitet hat, versteht er wie kaum ein anderer, welche Ereignisse Kamala Harris prägten und zu den Überzeugungen führten, für die sie entschlossen einsteht. Er zeigt, was es für sie bedeutete, als Tochter einer Inderin und eines Jamaikaners im Kalifornien der 60er- und 70er-Jahre aufzuwachsen, wie sie erst Attorney General von Kalifornien, dann US-Senatorin und schließlich Vizepräsidentin an der Seite von Joe Biden wurde. Auch dass ihr Weg dabei nicht frei von Niederlagen und Rückschlägen war, wird in Dan Morains Biografie Kamala Harris hat loyale Unterstützer und erbitterte Gegner. Sie wollte Präsidentin werden und ist „nur“ Vizepräsidentin geworden – und doch ist sie die Hoffnung vieler, vor allem schwarzer Amerikanerinnen, denn Kamala Harris’ Weg zeigt, was sie in ihrem Land erreichen können.
385 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 12, 2021
323 people are currently reading
1064 people want to read
About the author
Dan Morain
2 books6 followersDan Morain has covered California policy, politics, and justice-related issues for more than four decades, including twenty-seven years at the Los Angeles Times and eight at The Sacramento Bee, where he was editorial page editor.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 196 reviews
February 4, 2021
I was disappointed in this. I found the book very tedious and - I'm sorry to say - quite boring. It's a lot of names in a lot of places at a lot of dates. I wanted to get an understanding of Kamala as a person, but all I felt I got, was her resume.
November 25, 2021
Don't read it, that's all I can say. After reading an autobiography like Becoming, this was an utter failure. Like I mentioned in my 50% completed review, there is nothing about Kamala Harris here. It's just a lot of names that a non American like me doesn't know, lots of dates and unnecessary details. Not to forget a lot of newspaper clippings. I learnt nothing about Kamala Harris and the book talks nothing about Kamala Harris's way other other the line being forcefully fitted into the book a couple of time.
The only enjoyable pages are when Trump gets mentioned, well that man knows how to entertain audience, doesn't he!!
I am so happy I managed to get to the finish; no matter how bad a book is, I can't leave it midway and this book tested my motto a hell lot.
The only enjoyable pages are when Trump gets mentioned, well that man knows how to entertain audience, doesn't he!!
I am so happy I managed to get to the finish; no matter how bad a book is, I can't leave it midway and this book tested my motto a hell lot.
July 6, 2024
I have once again decided to embark on a mission to read a number of books on subjects that will be of great importance to the upcoming 2024 US Presidential Election. This was a great success as I prepared for 2020, with an outcome at the polls (and antics by both candidates up to Inauguration Day) that only a fiction writer might have come up with at the time! Many of these will focus on actors and events intricately involved in the US political system over the last few years, in hopes that I can understand them better and, perhaps, educate others with the power to cast a ballot. I am, as always, open to serious recommendations from anyone who has a book I might like to include in the process.
This is Book #2 in my 2024 US Election Preparation Challenge.
In an attempt to get a better idea about one of the key players in this upcoming presidential election, I turned to this biography of Vice-President Kamala Harris by reputable journalist Dan Morain. In a strong piece that seeks to offer some perspective to the current second-in command, Morain presents a well-paced piece that sketches some of the key aspects of Harris’s life, as well as some of her key views on important issues, which could become highly important, should she return to the West Wing and potentially have the chance to sit in the Oval Office. Looking more at the woman, rather than pitting her against others for the role of vice-president or president, Morain effectively shares some of the stories he know about Harris, a woman who made waves in California, where the journalist has spent the last four decades covering political issues. Well told and explored in some detail, Dan Morain offers up a keen view of a woman with whom I have little knowledge (which is a little worrisome, knowing how close she is to complete power in the United States). A great read for anyone interested in learning a great deal in short order.
Born to immigrants from India and Jamaica, Kamala Harris entered the world ready to battle. While her father, an academic with strong views, soon faded from her life, Harris’ mother, Shyamala Gopalan, showed her daughter the power of civil rights and how to battle for what is due to everyone, not just a small part of the country. As a young girl, Harris learned the importance of always speaking up and advocating for those who may not be able to speak for themselves. Harris always felt that this life lesson from her mother was important and would use this passion to drive her as a youth, a student, and when she entered the political arena.
After moving and finishing her public education in Montreal, Kamala Harris returned to the United States to attend university. She embraced her minority status and used the tools her mother offered her to defend her rights, never standing down, even as parts of the United States wanted to keep blacks and other minorities boxed up in their own communities. This advocacy helped push Harris towards always wanting to help those in need, attending law school to ensure that she could make a difference and not simply complain from the sidelines. She returned to California and sought to make a difference in the District Attorney’s Office in San Francisco, one of the state’s most litigious and rights-conscious cities. As Morain explains, Harris used some connections to ensure she was an up and coming lawyer in the DA’s office, never shying away from the tough cases. This would be the beginning of a difficult and yet worthwhile political career.
Building on her successes, Harris sought to become the next DA, where she could make more differences for all those in San Francisco, no matter the colour of their skin or personal political preferences. Some of her views were not accepted by many, especially senior California Democrats, but Harris stood firm on her convictions. One such example that Morain explores was a decision not to see the death penalty against a man who shot and killed an SFPD officer during a conflict. While Harris knew she was not going to win any friends, she held firm to the views she presented as a candidate and allowed those who opposed her to voice their concerns. Her convictions would always lead her and Kamala Harris never turned her back on the views she used to get herself elected.
Continuing her claim to power, Harris sought to win the position of Attorney-General (AG) for the state. This would require her not only to win over San Francisco, but the entire state. State office holders knew she would be a tough opponent and some stepped aside, while others sought to challenge Harris to ensure she was not given a simple walk into a powerful and important position. Morain posits that some would likely see the California AG position as a step towards national office, where she hoped to make a real difference. She had already made some inroads with Barack Obama, having known and worked with the man years earlier, as well as making waves by challenging some of the views helped by powerful office holders. Her focus in the Attorney-General position proved to be protecting the most vulnerable from exploitation. While she had always wanted to ensure that women were not pulled into the world of sex work, Harris spent a lot of time focussing her attention on removing children from sexual exploitation however she could. Marian spends a great deal of time exploring this platform topic and exemplifying it throughout the middle part of the book. There is no doubt that Kamala Harris sought to enshrine the rights of the unheard, helping prove that she could make a difference and would not stand down. This would become essential when she sought a position on the national stage.
A Senate race was something that Kamala Harris felt that she had been waiting her entire life to fight, with hopes of winning. The truth proved to be less exciting that she might have imagined. At a time when her notoriety was high, Kamala Harris tossed her name into the ring and was able to rush her way to victory, as depicted through the chapters relating to it in the biography. The world was more transfixed with other things on the national stage, namely the battle between Clinton and Trump for the presidency At a time when many were sure the first woman would become president, no one expected to stomach the Trump Administration or the man pulling all the levers. This is where Kamala Harris’ arrival on the national scene proved to make her mark. The no-nonsense prosecutor and strong-willed Attorney-General was able to score key Senate committee assignments and found herself pushing into the limelight to challenge much of what the administration wanted to do with their time in the White House. While a rookie senator, Harris kept things in check as best she could, ensuring that she voiced her concerns and made Trump feel awkward, a position she would relish in the years to come. Challenging the likes of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh helped her become a household name, especially as she was relentless in pushing justice and legal matters, all of which made sure she helped those who needed the assistance, as well as ensuring the truth saw the light of day. This was the Kamala Harris who wold be a formidable opponent when it came time to challenge the political norms of Washington and make a play for a presidential nomination.
In a brief final section of the book, Morain presents the push that Kamala Harris made in 2019 and 2020 to secure a spot in the Democratic field for president. Her strong ties to California and her no-nonsense sentiments about the law would be part of her platform, as well as trying to ensure that women’s rights were not lost amongst all the candidates. However, as much as Harris sought to make a nam for herself, some of her past decisions as AG and DA came back to haunt her, costing time and money in a field of candidates who would not stop to allow anyone to pick themselves up. Before the California primary in March 2020, Harris read the tea leaves and bowed out, noticing that her campaign contributions could not match those of heavy hitters like Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. Harris would focus her time as a senator and hope to make change on the national scene from there.
Hopes re-inflated when Biden, who had recently secured the nomination of his party, chose her to be his running mate on the Democratic ticket. While Harris never sought to settle for second best, this might be a chance for her to work from within and secure a strong nomination for a future run. When that might be was up in the air, as it is today, with Biden choosing to run again, against the better judgment of those within the party and the general public, with Hurricane Trump on the horizon to recapture the White House. What will come of Harris and her leadership capabilities are left to another book, as Dan Morain’s narrative ends before the Biden Administration took office. Perhaps he will have more to say in a follow-up or addendum to this strong biographical piece.
While I might have looked for a book to explore the life and times of Kamala Harris during my 2020 presidential election read, I suppose waiting until now was as good a time as any. I wanted something that would help me see Kamala Harris through eyes other than her own, yet also might provide me a balanced analysis. Dan Morain, a journalist who has been following her through California politics from the start of her time on the scene until the present. Morain pulls no punches and seeks to explore the woman through both the hard times and the celebratory moments of her political career. Morain paces the biography through a number of well-researched chapters to show how Kamala Harris rose from a simple upbringing to become one of the major players in the federal political arena. Spelling out truths, some of which do not shed a positive light on Harris, Morain sought to depict a woman who wanted to make a difference and not simply fall in line to ride the wave to become US vice-president. While Harris has not been mute since assuming the role as second to Joe Biden, she has not made the mark many might have hoped. Let us not get into the discussion of the role of VP here, but with things on precarious ground for the Democrats and their candidate, Kamala Harris will have to ensure that she views and passion for the country is shown and not shelved, as many wonder if the 2024 vote could be more a plebiscite on her leadership, rather than Biden’s past four years. Only time will tell, but I am glad to have taken some time to learn more about Kamala Harris and her rise to power.
Kudos, Mr. Morain, for an enriching read on a great subject.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
This is Book #2 in my 2024 US Election Preparation Challenge.
In an attempt to get a better idea about one of the key players in this upcoming presidential election, I turned to this biography of Vice-President Kamala Harris by reputable journalist Dan Morain. In a strong piece that seeks to offer some perspective to the current second-in command, Morain presents a well-paced piece that sketches some of the key aspects of Harris’s life, as well as some of her key views on important issues, which could become highly important, should she return to the West Wing and potentially have the chance to sit in the Oval Office. Looking more at the woman, rather than pitting her against others for the role of vice-president or president, Morain effectively shares some of the stories he know about Harris, a woman who made waves in California, where the journalist has spent the last four decades covering political issues. Well told and explored in some detail, Dan Morain offers up a keen view of a woman with whom I have little knowledge (which is a little worrisome, knowing how close she is to complete power in the United States). A great read for anyone interested in learning a great deal in short order.
Born to immigrants from India and Jamaica, Kamala Harris entered the world ready to battle. While her father, an academic with strong views, soon faded from her life, Harris’ mother, Shyamala Gopalan, showed her daughter the power of civil rights and how to battle for what is due to everyone, not just a small part of the country. As a young girl, Harris learned the importance of always speaking up and advocating for those who may not be able to speak for themselves. Harris always felt that this life lesson from her mother was important and would use this passion to drive her as a youth, a student, and when she entered the political arena.
After moving and finishing her public education in Montreal, Kamala Harris returned to the United States to attend university. She embraced her minority status and used the tools her mother offered her to defend her rights, never standing down, even as parts of the United States wanted to keep blacks and other minorities boxed up in their own communities. This advocacy helped push Harris towards always wanting to help those in need, attending law school to ensure that she could make a difference and not simply complain from the sidelines. She returned to California and sought to make a difference in the District Attorney’s Office in San Francisco, one of the state’s most litigious and rights-conscious cities. As Morain explains, Harris used some connections to ensure she was an up and coming lawyer in the DA’s office, never shying away from the tough cases. This would be the beginning of a difficult and yet worthwhile political career.
Building on her successes, Harris sought to become the next DA, where she could make more differences for all those in San Francisco, no matter the colour of their skin or personal political preferences. Some of her views were not accepted by many, especially senior California Democrats, but Harris stood firm on her convictions. One such example that Morain explores was a decision not to see the death penalty against a man who shot and killed an SFPD officer during a conflict. While Harris knew she was not going to win any friends, she held firm to the views she presented as a candidate and allowed those who opposed her to voice their concerns. Her convictions would always lead her and Kamala Harris never turned her back on the views she used to get herself elected.
Continuing her claim to power, Harris sought to win the position of Attorney-General (AG) for the state. This would require her not only to win over San Francisco, but the entire state. State office holders knew she would be a tough opponent and some stepped aside, while others sought to challenge Harris to ensure she was not given a simple walk into a powerful and important position. Morain posits that some would likely see the California AG position as a step towards national office, where she hoped to make a real difference. She had already made some inroads with Barack Obama, having known and worked with the man years earlier, as well as making waves by challenging some of the views helped by powerful office holders. Her focus in the Attorney-General position proved to be protecting the most vulnerable from exploitation. While she had always wanted to ensure that women were not pulled into the world of sex work, Harris spent a lot of time focussing her attention on removing children from sexual exploitation however she could. Marian spends a great deal of time exploring this platform topic and exemplifying it throughout the middle part of the book. There is no doubt that Kamala Harris sought to enshrine the rights of the unheard, helping prove that she could make a difference and would not stand down. This would become essential when she sought a position on the national stage.
A Senate race was something that Kamala Harris felt that she had been waiting her entire life to fight, with hopes of winning. The truth proved to be less exciting that she might have imagined. At a time when her notoriety was high, Kamala Harris tossed her name into the ring and was able to rush her way to victory, as depicted through the chapters relating to it in the biography. The world was more transfixed with other things on the national stage, namely the battle between Clinton and Trump for the presidency At a time when many were sure the first woman would become president, no one expected to stomach the Trump Administration or the man pulling all the levers. This is where Kamala Harris’ arrival on the national scene proved to make her mark. The no-nonsense prosecutor and strong-willed Attorney-General was able to score key Senate committee assignments and found herself pushing into the limelight to challenge much of what the administration wanted to do with their time in the White House. While a rookie senator, Harris kept things in check as best she could, ensuring that she voiced her concerns and made Trump feel awkward, a position she would relish in the years to come. Challenging the likes of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh helped her become a household name, especially as she was relentless in pushing justice and legal matters, all of which made sure she helped those who needed the assistance, as well as ensuring the truth saw the light of day. This was the Kamala Harris who wold be a formidable opponent when it came time to challenge the political norms of Washington and make a play for a presidential nomination.
In a brief final section of the book, Morain presents the push that Kamala Harris made in 2019 and 2020 to secure a spot in the Democratic field for president. Her strong ties to California and her no-nonsense sentiments about the law would be part of her platform, as well as trying to ensure that women’s rights were not lost amongst all the candidates. However, as much as Harris sought to make a nam for herself, some of her past decisions as AG and DA came back to haunt her, costing time and money in a field of candidates who would not stop to allow anyone to pick themselves up. Before the California primary in March 2020, Harris read the tea leaves and bowed out, noticing that her campaign contributions could not match those of heavy hitters like Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. Harris would focus her time as a senator and hope to make change on the national scene from there.
Hopes re-inflated when Biden, who had recently secured the nomination of his party, chose her to be his running mate on the Democratic ticket. While Harris never sought to settle for second best, this might be a chance for her to work from within and secure a strong nomination for a future run. When that might be was up in the air, as it is today, with Biden choosing to run again, against the better judgment of those within the party and the general public, with Hurricane Trump on the horizon to recapture the White House. What will come of Harris and her leadership capabilities are left to another book, as Dan Morain’s narrative ends before the Biden Administration took office. Perhaps he will have more to say in a follow-up or addendum to this strong biographical piece.
While I might have looked for a book to explore the life and times of Kamala Harris during my 2020 presidential election read, I suppose waiting until now was as good a time as any. I wanted something that would help me see Kamala Harris through eyes other than her own, yet also might provide me a balanced analysis. Dan Morain, a journalist who has been following her through California politics from the start of her time on the scene until the present. Morain pulls no punches and seeks to explore the woman through both the hard times and the celebratory moments of her political career. Morain paces the biography through a number of well-researched chapters to show how Kamala Harris rose from a simple upbringing to become one of the major players in the federal political arena. Spelling out truths, some of which do not shed a positive light on Harris, Morain sought to depict a woman who wanted to make a difference and not simply fall in line to ride the wave to become US vice-president. While Harris has not been mute since assuming the role as second to Joe Biden, she has not made the mark many might have hoped. Let us not get into the discussion of the role of VP here, but with things on precarious ground for the Democrats and their candidate, Kamala Harris will have to ensure that she views and passion for the country is shown and not shelved, as many wonder if the 2024 vote could be more a plebiscite on her leadership, rather than Biden’s past four years. Only time will tell, but I am glad to have taken some time to learn more about Kamala Harris and her rise to power.
Kudos, Mr. Morain, for an enriching read on a great subject.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
August 2, 2021
Another of a half dozen gifted books from this year. This was of course clearly designed for the post-inauguration market.
If you are a diehard fan of Kamala Harris, you will love this book. I don’t imagine there are many politicians that have fanatics, but Kamala may be that inspiring to you and if so, you will enjoy this book.
If you are looking for a quick primer on the Vice President, this might not be what you want. The short length might fool you, but it’s no quick read.
It’s tough work for any Harris biographer. She has tried to keep her life as private as any public figure can. Harris has also spent her career making the politically safe choices that fuel her ambition. In this case, she is not unlike her two predecessors-Joe Biden and Mike Pence.
In which case, Morain is pretty even handed, but the book references Harris’s autobiography enough that I suspect the best advice is to start there.
In many ways, the book is a detailing of the top California state issues regarding legal business over the last 40 years, and while it might be nostalgic to revisit names like Brown, Davis, Wilson and Deukmajien, for this non-Californian, it was a bit of a slog.
I suspect most readers will find it as such, or perhaps maybe I was just looking for something different. Morain, towards the end of the book shares some unique insight from those who worked closest with her. More of that insight would have made a better book, but perhaps he preferred more of a name/date/place book.
Morain does do a good job of showing some of the empathetic side of Harris. The book ends with the election-no doubt to hit the market- but some more about the past two years would probably have helped. Again, this one is probably not the best go-to for someone wanting a quick Harris primer.
If you are a diehard fan of Kamala Harris, you will love this book. I don’t imagine there are many politicians that have fanatics, but Kamala may be that inspiring to you and if so, you will enjoy this book.
If you are looking for a quick primer on the Vice President, this might not be what you want. The short length might fool you, but it’s no quick read.
It’s tough work for any Harris biographer. She has tried to keep her life as private as any public figure can. Harris has also spent her career making the politically safe choices that fuel her ambition. In this case, she is not unlike her two predecessors-Joe Biden and Mike Pence.
In which case, Morain is pretty even handed, but the book references Harris’s autobiography enough that I suspect the best advice is to start there.
In many ways, the book is a detailing of the top California state issues regarding legal business over the last 40 years, and while it might be nostalgic to revisit names like Brown, Davis, Wilson and Deukmajien, for this non-Californian, it was a bit of a slog.
I suspect most readers will find it as such, or perhaps maybe I was just looking for something different. Morain, towards the end of the book shares some unique insight from those who worked closest with her. More of that insight would have made a better book, but perhaps he preferred more of a name/date/place book.
Morain does do a good job of showing some of the empathetic side of Harris. The book ends with the election-no doubt to hit the market- but some more about the past two years would probably have helped. Again, this one is probably not the best go-to for someone wanting a quick Harris primer.
August 31, 2024
With the presidential election in full swing, I wanted to learn more about the Democratic Party’s nominee. As I’m not normally a fan of politicians’ autobiographies, I decided that instead of reading Kamala Harris's The Truths We Hold I would instead find the best available biography of her, which is Dan Morain’s book. While I was not expecting an in-depth expose, given that the author is a longtime California political reporter, I had high hopes that it would be a work that would offer insights into her years in state politics, possibly supplemented with interviews with the many people who have known Harris throughout that time.
Unfortunately, this isn’t that book. What Morain produced instead is a rehashing of his reporting and that of others from over the course of Harris's career, supplemented with details gleaned from her autobiography and a couple of memoirs from other important politicians. While Morian’s portrayal of Harris as an instinctively cautious politician does offer a few insights, I was left with more a sense of an opportunity missed to provide the sort of in-depth reportage on Harris that only someone with the author’s familiarity with California politics and politicians might have provided. Hopefully someone else can step in to provide that sort of book while the major figures are still alive and memories remain fresh, otherwise the best opportunity to understand such a reserved person may be lost for good.
Unfortunately, this isn’t that book. What Morain produced instead is a rehashing of his reporting and that of others from over the course of Harris's career, supplemented with details gleaned from her autobiography and a couple of memoirs from other important politicians. While Morian’s portrayal of Harris as an instinctively cautious politician does offer a few insights, I was left with more a sense of an opportunity missed to provide the sort of in-depth reportage on Harris that only someone with the author’s familiarity with California politics and politicians might have provided. Hopefully someone else can step in to provide that sort of book while the major figures are still alive and memories remain fresh, otherwise the best opportunity to understand such a reserved person may be lost for good.
February 21, 2021
This book sinks in Californiana like a lead weight; the minutiae is excrutiating. If that's your bag, have at it. If not, even if you're raring for a paean to Harris, don't bother with this. Do yourself a favor and just read The New Yorker articles on Harris (e.g. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20... ). Or read her autobiography, The Truths We Hold, from which Morain sources most of his info.
Morain's career has been focused on California politics and Harris became SF District Attorney and then CA State Attorney General, so bla bla bla about CA politics, crime and criminal justice initiatives, gun control, charges against parents of habitual school truants, and mortgage relief to people who took on far more than they could pay. [I used to live in CA and was astonished by the folks earning $9/hour in the Del Monte packing plants buying $400,000 homes; um, as a taxpayer, I don't want to bail out people living above their means; ditto student loan debt eradication].
I'll save you the trouble and summarize:
Kamala's mom to Kamala, what do you want? "Fee-dom!" (3). That Harris has repeated this brings to mind the German term Fremdschämen, embarrassment on behalf of another. I'm red-faced for her.
About the assistance she received from her relationship with the married Willie Brown-the-Rainmaker: "He used that clout to open doors for Harris early in her career, part of a long tradition of mentorship and patronage. No one rises on his or her own...." (34). (What's a little adultery in politics, after all?; sex is a commodity, a means of exchange).
Harris's character is unimpeachable, we read. In fact, when no one was watching, she visited a dying fan (64), demonstrating her humanity and true caring nature [egads]. "...Harris, always scouring the political landscape..." (67) just reveals moxy.
"The comparisons between Harris and Obama were unmistakable, if facile: they are biracial, smart and attractive; both accomplished attorneys; and both reflective of the new face of the Democratic Party, if not the nation itself. The May 2006 edition of Ebony magazine names them both as being among the '100 + Most Influential Black Americans.' Her photo was number 5; his was number 67." When asked about Obama's legacy, "I have my own legacy," she told the reporter" (69). Now that's some authentic humility right there.
Most important takeaway: Harris's sister, Maya, is married to the Tony West, chief legal officer of Uber, you know, those folks who want to avoid paying health insurance and other safety nets and make everyone an independent contractor. He is responsible for its legal, security and compliance and [lack of] ethics functions. He had been Associate Attorney General of the United States and general counsel of PepsiCo, another company known for its lack of ethics, union busting, and bottled public water tap water (Aquafina). That's quite a pedigree prioritizing monetary gain over ethics. I didn't know this until p. 115. How was this nugget kept out of the news?
As a necessary aside not in this book:
Harris and Gov. Moonbeam "oversaw the passage of the first ride-hailing state law in the country, California actively assisted ride hailing’s rise. The California law, which became a national model, included a state preemption that handcuffed the ability of local governments to establish their own laws for ride hailing, as they were already doing for traditional taxis.
This turned out to be a terrible mistake. It set the stage for the destructive business model that soon swamped city after city. It did not take long before ride hailing’s familiar features became apparent. The companies flooded the streets with cars, resulting in dramatically increased traffic congestion, along with more pollution and carbon emissions. New York City published a report called “Empty Seats, Full Streets,” which showed that a third of drivers have empty cars as they circle, looking for a passenger and burning up hydrocarbons. Too many drivers meant not only more traffic and emissions, but not enough work for all of the drivers. Many do not even make minimum wage after driving expenses are deducted from their gross incomes." Read this: https://prospect.org/labor/kamala-har...
It's a perplexing paradox that Harris's sister became pregnant at 17 and gave birth, although the Indian grandmother was a contraception educator and Harris is an ardent advocate for abortion rights. Yes, of course, Democrats defend individual choice and all that, but what if her sister, Maya, had aborted her beloved niece, Meena? Just puzzling this out...
Her modest achievements in CA are listed in chapter 20. "Certainly she could have done more...But she was mindful of who she is, a Black woman..." (132). "Critics and some friends say Kamala Harris was overly cautious during her time as attorney general. There is evidence to support that view" (146). Obviously we are meant to see Harris as a politically astute moderate, until...
In her victory speech after winning a seat in the Senate in 2016, Harris repeated "the word 'fight' no fewer than 26 times:
"I intend to fight for BLM...for students against loan debt, to fight against Big Oil and science deniers, and to fight for workers' rights to collective bargaining and for gun safety laws" (165). BLM is an avowedly Marxist organization. Student loan debt erasure is regressive; it privileges the wealthy who will earn enough with their degree over time to pay off the debt. Science deniers include those on the Left who say that biological sex does not exist, so we can eradicate it, which will privilege men (see my review of Irreversible Damage"). This is an appropriate place to insert Harris's Tweet regarding equity vs. equality:
https://twitter.com/kamalaharris/stat...
Several chapters are devoted to Harris's role in the attempt to tie Russia to Trump's election. She refused to meet with Trump's nominees, preferring instead to "grill them in public...with yes-or-no questions about complex topics that could not be answered in simple ways....[This] might make for good sound bites, but it did little to provide the public with answers...[or] foster productive relationships..." (188). Again, she knows how to position herself, which is affirmed by the spectacle of Harris v. Kavanaugh. Is it that Democrats believe Christine Blasey Ford and don't believe Tara Reade? Misogyny abounds on both sides of the aisle.
The Biden-Harris presidential campaign is lightly treated in the final chapters 32-34, since we all lived through it and it's fresh in memory.
That's it. Nothing surprising, edifying or revealing. Skip this one.
Morain's career has been focused on California politics and Harris became SF District Attorney and then CA State Attorney General, so bla bla bla about CA politics, crime and criminal justice initiatives, gun control, charges against parents of habitual school truants, and mortgage relief to people who took on far more than they could pay. [I used to live in CA and was astonished by the folks earning $9/hour in the Del Monte packing plants buying $400,000 homes; um, as a taxpayer, I don't want to bail out people living above their means; ditto student loan debt eradication].
I'll save you the trouble and summarize:
Kamala's mom to Kamala, what do you want? "Fee-dom!" (3). That Harris has repeated this brings to mind the German term Fremdschämen, embarrassment on behalf of another. I'm red-faced for her.
About the assistance she received from her relationship with the married Willie Brown-the-Rainmaker: "He used that clout to open doors for Harris early in her career, part of a long tradition of mentorship and patronage. No one rises on his or her own...." (34). (What's a little adultery in politics, after all?; sex is a commodity, a means of exchange).
Harris's character is unimpeachable, we read. In fact, when no one was watching, she visited a dying fan (64), demonstrating her humanity and true caring nature [egads]. "...Harris, always scouring the political landscape..." (67) just reveals moxy.
"The comparisons between Harris and Obama were unmistakable, if facile: they are biracial, smart and attractive; both accomplished attorneys; and both reflective of the new face of the Democratic Party, if not the nation itself. The May 2006 edition of Ebony magazine names them both as being among the '100 + Most Influential Black Americans.' Her photo was number 5; his was number 67." When asked about Obama's legacy, "I have my own legacy," she told the reporter" (69). Now that's some authentic humility right there.
Most important takeaway: Harris's sister, Maya, is married to the Tony West, chief legal officer of Uber, you know, those folks who want to avoid paying health insurance and other safety nets and make everyone an independent contractor. He is responsible for its legal, security and compliance and [lack of] ethics functions. He had been Associate Attorney General of the United States and general counsel of PepsiCo, another company known for its lack of ethics, union busting, and bottled public water tap water (Aquafina). That's quite a pedigree prioritizing monetary gain over ethics. I didn't know this until p. 115. How was this nugget kept out of the news?
As a necessary aside not in this book:
Harris and Gov. Moonbeam "oversaw the passage of the first ride-hailing state law in the country, California actively assisted ride hailing’s rise. The California law, which became a national model, included a state preemption that handcuffed the ability of local governments to establish their own laws for ride hailing, as they were already doing for traditional taxis.
This turned out to be a terrible mistake. It set the stage for the destructive business model that soon swamped city after city. It did not take long before ride hailing’s familiar features became apparent. The companies flooded the streets with cars, resulting in dramatically increased traffic congestion, along with more pollution and carbon emissions. New York City published a report called “Empty Seats, Full Streets,” which showed that a third of drivers have empty cars as they circle, looking for a passenger and burning up hydrocarbons. Too many drivers meant not only more traffic and emissions, but not enough work for all of the drivers. Many do not even make minimum wage after driving expenses are deducted from their gross incomes." Read this: https://prospect.org/labor/kamala-har...
It's a perplexing paradox that Harris's sister became pregnant at 17 and gave birth, although the Indian grandmother was a contraception educator and Harris is an ardent advocate for abortion rights. Yes, of course, Democrats defend individual choice and all that, but what if her sister, Maya, had aborted her beloved niece, Meena? Just puzzling this out...
Her modest achievements in CA are listed in chapter 20. "Certainly she could have done more...But she was mindful of who she is, a Black woman..." (132). "Critics and some friends say Kamala Harris was overly cautious during her time as attorney general. There is evidence to support that view" (146). Obviously we are meant to see Harris as a politically astute moderate, until...
In her victory speech after winning a seat in the Senate in 2016, Harris repeated "the word 'fight' no fewer than 26 times:
"I intend to fight for BLM...for students against loan debt, to fight against Big Oil and science deniers, and to fight for workers' rights to collective bargaining and for gun safety laws" (165). BLM is an avowedly Marxist organization. Student loan debt erasure is regressive; it privileges the wealthy who will earn enough with their degree over time to pay off the debt. Science deniers include those on the Left who say that biological sex does not exist, so we can eradicate it, which will privilege men (see my review of Irreversible Damage"). This is an appropriate place to insert Harris's Tweet regarding equity vs. equality:
https://twitter.com/kamalaharris/stat...
Several chapters are devoted to Harris's role in the attempt to tie Russia to Trump's election. She refused to meet with Trump's nominees, preferring instead to "grill them in public...with yes-or-no questions about complex topics that could not be answered in simple ways....[This] might make for good sound bites, but it did little to provide the public with answers...[or] foster productive relationships..." (188). Again, she knows how to position herself, which is affirmed by the spectacle of Harris v. Kavanaugh. Is it that Democrats believe Christine Blasey Ford and don't believe Tara Reade? Misogyny abounds on both sides of the aisle.
The Biden-Harris presidential campaign is lightly treated in the final chapters 32-34, since we all lived through it and it's fresh in memory.
That's it. Nothing surprising, edifying or revealing. Skip this one.
March 16, 2021
I learned a lot of interesting information while reading this book. It's biography that almost could be called a journal of Kamala's career path. I felt the author was writing as an unbiased observer.
January 21, 2021
4.5 rounding up because it was the perfect day to listen! Admire her, looking forward to fresh healing competent future, welcome back America!
May 15, 2025
lanie wody i pisanie nie na temat final boss
o Kamali dowiedziałam się więcej z editów😭
o Kamali dowiedziałam się więcej z editów😭
August 10, 2024
As far as biographies go, this one was middling at best. I feel like I have a somewhat solid grasp of Kamala Harris’s biggest professional accomplishments and missteps after reading this, but don’t feel like I got a real sense of who she is as a person. This felt more like a history of contemporary California politics than a Harris bio, which makes sense as it was written by a California based journalist covering politics and criminal justice. It jumped around to different topics and timelines, and I found myself confused and having a hard time following. I’m thinking that maybe her memoir would be a better choice if you are looking for a clearer sense of Kamala Harris the human being (I haven’t read it).
April 3, 2021
I'm not a fan of Kamala Harris. Dan Morain obviously is. That's fair. I will concede happily that she has good qualities and has done good things. However, Morain's unrelenting support for her throughout the book grows irritating. He quite simply has nothing bad to say about her. He bends over backward to explain away facts inconvenient to Harris's perfection. And of course, he acts as if liberal viewpoints on most issues are plain common sense.
Heck, that's not even my main complaint. Weighing in at a measly 230 pages of actual text, the book doesn't really justify its own existence. Biographies don't have to be long, but if they're short, they had better be really good. This isn't. Mere paragraphs are dedicated to topics that ought to have several pages, and easily could have several pages. The information is almost never more than surface level.
Occasionally, Morain, randomly inspired to provide extra detail, will zero in on people like Willie Brown and Kimberly Guilfoyle. Those people never really show up again in the book, and the extra information he gives isn't really pertinent to anything he's been saying.
Morain didn't interview Harris for the book. He explains this by saying she was too busy running for Vice-President, which is suspect. Interviews are one of the things that candidates for office do. After all, Joe Biden found time to sit down with Evan Osnos for Joe Biden. But whatever. Instead, Morain draws heavily from Harris' autobiography, The Truths We Hold. Do yourself a favor and just read that, uninterrupted by Morain, if you are interested in Harris.
Finally, the book ends before the conclusion of the 2020 election. Yet it was published in 2021 - so clearly it wasn't intended as a resource for voters (unlike say, The Real Romney). And yet, it can't have been intended as a celebration of Harris's victory, since she had not yet won when he finished the book. So what was the point of writing it?
This is Morain's first book, and it shows. It is limited in its scope, biased in its presentation, and unable to shed any new light on Harris. There are many things to be written about Kamala Harris, and she deserves to be written about. Though this book is not it, her definitive biography will eventually be written. I look forward to reading it.
Heck, that's not even my main complaint. Weighing in at a measly 230 pages of actual text, the book doesn't really justify its own existence. Biographies don't have to be long, but if they're short, they had better be really good. This isn't. Mere paragraphs are dedicated to topics that ought to have several pages, and easily could have several pages. The information is almost never more than surface level.
Occasionally, Morain, randomly inspired to provide extra detail, will zero in on people like Willie Brown and Kimberly Guilfoyle. Those people never really show up again in the book, and the extra information he gives isn't really pertinent to anything he's been saying.
Morain didn't interview Harris for the book. He explains this by saying she was too busy running for Vice-President, which is suspect. Interviews are one of the things that candidates for office do. After all, Joe Biden found time to sit down with Evan Osnos for Joe Biden. But whatever. Instead, Morain draws heavily from Harris' autobiography, The Truths We Hold. Do yourself a favor and just read that, uninterrupted by Morain, if you are interested in Harris.
Finally, the book ends before the conclusion of the 2020 election. Yet it was published in 2021 - so clearly it wasn't intended as a resource for voters (unlike say, The Real Romney). And yet, it can't have been intended as a celebration of Harris's victory, since she had not yet won when he finished the book. So what was the point of writing it?
This is Morain's first book, and it shows. It is limited in its scope, biased in its presentation, and unable to shed any new light on Harris. There are many things to be written about Kamala Harris, and she deserves to be written about. Though this book is not it, her definitive biography will eventually be written. I look forward to reading it.
April 15, 2021
Diese Biographie über Kamala Harris hat mich interessiert, weil ich mehr über die Frau erfahren wollte, die nun als erste Schwarze Frau Vizepräsidentin der USA wurde.
Leider konnte mich Dan Morrain mit seinem Buch nicht überzeugen. Die ersten hundert Seiten erfährt man als Leser sehr viel über die kalifornische Lokalpolitik und deren Protagonisten. Kamala Harris wird meist nur im Nebensatz erwähnt. Dafür werden sehr viele Namen von lokalen Amtsträgern und Politikern genannt, die mir als Nicht-Kalifornier nichts sagen und deren politischen Spielchen mich auch nicht interessieren.
Ab Seite 100 habe ich das Buch dann quergelesen, in der Hoffnung doch noch mehr über den Menschen Kamala Harris zu erfahren. Ich hatte aber das Gefühl, das hier einfach der Inhalt bereits erschienener Artikel zu einem Buch zusammengetragen wurden. Das was ich mir erhofft hatte, nämlich Kamala Harris über ihr politisches Tun hinaus kennenzulernen, wurde nicht erfüllt.
Im Nachwort wird dann noch erwähnt, dass Kamala Harris oder ihre Familie nichts zur Erstellung des Buches beigetragen haben. Genau den Eindruck hatte ich auch, hier wird ein Bild gezeichnet, dass man sich auch über aufmerksames Lesen von bereits veröffentlichten Artikeln aneignen kann.
Daher kann ich das Buch leider gar nicht empfehlen.
Leider konnte mich Dan Morrain mit seinem Buch nicht überzeugen. Die ersten hundert Seiten erfährt man als Leser sehr viel über die kalifornische Lokalpolitik und deren Protagonisten. Kamala Harris wird meist nur im Nebensatz erwähnt. Dafür werden sehr viele Namen von lokalen Amtsträgern und Politikern genannt, die mir als Nicht-Kalifornier nichts sagen und deren politischen Spielchen mich auch nicht interessieren.
Ab Seite 100 habe ich das Buch dann quergelesen, in der Hoffnung doch noch mehr über den Menschen Kamala Harris zu erfahren. Ich hatte aber das Gefühl, das hier einfach der Inhalt bereits erschienener Artikel zu einem Buch zusammengetragen wurden. Das was ich mir erhofft hatte, nämlich Kamala Harris über ihr politisches Tun hinaus kennenzulernen, wurde nicht erfüllt.
Im Nachwort wird dann noch erwähnt, dass Kamala Harris oder ihre Familie nichts zur Erstellung des Buches beigetragen haben. Genau den Eindruck hatte ich auch, hier wird ein Bild gezeichnet, dass man sich auch über aufmerksames Lesen von bereits veröffentlichten Artikeln aneignen kann.
Daher kann ich das Buch leider gar nicht empfehlen.
December 26, 2020
Though the Vice President-elect was well known among Californians, the country learned much more about Kamala Harris when President-elect Joe Biden named her to the Democratic ticket in August 2020. In Kamala’s Way (Simon & Schuster), journalist Dan Morain—who has covered California policy, politics, and justice-related issues for more than four decades at the Los Angeles Times and the Sacramento Bee—offers a revelatory biography of the first Black woman Vice President, charting how the daughter of two immigrants in segregated California became one of this country’s most effective power players.
October 25, 2025
Review of Kamala’s Way:
Dan Morain covered California politics for decades and he’s very well informed on the history and details of the inner workings of the Golden State. Morain did not have access to Kamala Harris or her family members for this book, which is not his fault. That being said, it creates a ceiling for this biography. Morain humanizes Harris and is evenhanded albeit positive in his depiction of Harris. But he also sometimes naturally assumes the politics of California are that of the nation at large. At times, we don’t get the depth we need from a great biography of a prominent political leader. Still, Morain writes a solid work that provides interesting, albeit, limited, insights into the first Black woman and first Asian American Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee. Rating: 3.5/5
Dan Morain covered California politics for decades and he’s very well informed on the history and details of the inner workings of the Golden State. Morain did not have access to Kamala Harris or her family members for this book, which is not his fault. That being said, it creates a ceiling for this biography. Morain humanizes Harris and is evenhanded albeit positive in his depiction of Harris. But he also sometimes naturally assumes the politics of California are that of the nation at large. At times, we don’t get the depth we need from a great biography of a prominent political leader. Still, Morain writes a solid work that provides interesting, albeit, limited, insights into the first Black woman and first Asian American Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee. Rating: 3.5/5
March 25, 2021
Thank heavens, I’ve finished this dreadful book. It was like reading a 225-page resume. The only things I learned about “Kamala’s Way” were: She can be very nice to people she likes (i.e., Democrats), she can be very mean to people she doesn’t like (i.e., Republicans), and she’s the maddening sort of politician who runs for office not because she (or he) wants that job and the opportunity to serve the good of all, but rather to get positioned for the next (higher) office and to continually adjust to prevailing political winds. Oh, I also learned the proper way to pronounce her first name: COMma-la. If you want to learn about Kamala Harris as a person, skip this book and find something published in The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, or a similar publication that hires writers who actually know how to put together an interesting, readable personality profile.
April 3, 2021
I hate to say this but... Don't read this book unless you really want to know and understand more about California's laws and politics. It's full of names, dates, and confusing details that are honestly utterly boring if you are only interested in Kamala's journey.
I'm going to read Kamala's autobiography (The Truths We Hold: An American Journey) now that I know exactly what I want to read.
Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me. If you're not American you will probably feel like it's a book filled with scattered information, and it does feel overwhelming.
Having said that, I just want to mention that Kamala Harris is a badass!!!
I'm going to read Kamala's autobiography (The Truths We Hold: An American Journey) now that I know exactly what I want to read.
Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me. If you're not American you will probably feel like it's a book filled with scattered information, and it does feel overwhelming.
Having said that, I just want to mention that Kamala Harris is a badass!!!
March 7, 2021
Sehr viel wissenswertes rund um Kamala Harris und die Politik, die sie umgibt. Aber eine Biografie! von Kamala Harris ist es für mich nicht, der Fokus liegt eher auf verschiedenen politischen Entscheidungen und Figuren, die Kamala Harris umgeben und wozu sie vielleicht einen Kommentar abgegeben hat oder ein kleines bisschen dran beteiligt war. Dennoch denke ich, dass das Werk gut recherchiert ist und auch interessante Informationen enthält
August 6, 2021
DNF op pagina 100.
Altijd al eens een soort 300-pagina lange Wikipedia pagina over Kamala Harris willen lezen, maar waar alle structuur is uitgehaald? Dan is dit hét boek voor jou. Is dat niet helemaal je ding? Dan zeker niet doen.
Altijd al eens een soort 300-pagina lange Wikipedia pagina over Kamala Harris willen lezen, maar waar alle structuur is uitgehaald? Dan is dit hét boek voor jou. Is dat niet helemaal je ding? Dan zeker niet doen.
February 8, 2021
Niet zo'n sterke biografie, vind ik. Weinig directe waarnemingen, wel uitvoerige beschrijvingen van juridische onderwerpen waarbij de vicepresident voorheen betrokken was, maar de echte Kamala Harris blijft wat raadselachtig. Eén ding is duidelijk, zij is een gedreven en ambitieuze persoonlijkheid die weloverwogen een eigen koers vaart om een rechtvaardiger maatschappij te scheppen.
February 14, 2021
[stopped at page 26] It gives me no great joy to write a thoroughly negative review about ANY book, but I must be honest. This book is terrible! The author seems to have no idea how to structure a paragraph: he will provide a sentence or two (maybe even several) on his subject, Kamala Harris, then he will go off on some seemingly irrelevant tangent -- introducing other people into the narrative, then as promptly dropping them -- and meander around until returning to his subject. He also seems to have no sense of chronology, of how one event in a life leads to another event, which, in turn, leads to yet another. Doesn't Simon & Schuster even HIRE editors any more? -- There might be a decent biography buried in among the lines of this book, but the thicket of verbiage is badly in need of trimming and rearranging. UGH!
January 31, 2021
A hagiography that might bring benefits to the author. Of course, the unpleasant parts are conveniently forgotten, the well known parts are carefully white washed and the rest is overblown.
September 2, 2024
I read the Audible audiobook edition narrated by Soneela Nankani.
This biography tells us of Shyamala Gopalan, breast cancer researcher, biomedical scientist at McGill University and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, mother and guiding light to Kamala. The apparently estranged father is Donald Harris to which at least some of his post-Keynesian ideas on development economics have had the adjective Marist applied. If I can, I will read Capital Accumulation and Income Distribution (1978) for myself and decide. This would be out of curiosity as it does not appear there is any direct connection here to Kamala's worldview.
Kamala's political career from Calif. Attorney General to Senator. Along the way, she had to support capital punishment (the law) while being personally against it. While the state generally goes Democratic on presidential elections in our time, state politics have an active conservative and Republican dimension which played into laws developed on immigrants, homosexuals, etc. during her time. Nothing really jarred me here, but she had some gaffes that I can see dredged up and some controversial topics such as the case of death row inmate Kevin Cooper and other aspects of Kamala Harris' record as a prosecutor. We learn she is for gun control that could limit killed children (Chapter 16: The Damned Photos).
Chapter 21: Joe Biden Gives Harris a Hand tells us of the personal appearance made to support her Senatorial bid, building on the friendship between Kalama and Beau Biden as attorney general of Delaware. During her time in the Senate, she grilled Jeff Sessions and Judge Brett Kavanaugh on the Mueller Investigation, a woman's right to choose, and the sexual misconduct allegations.
In a dramatic moment of the Democratic primary debate in 2019, California Sen. Kamala Harris confronted former Vice President Joe Biden about his history of opposition to “bussing,” the policy of transporting students to schools outside their neighborhoods to try to reduce racial segregation. We learn this strained their friendship. Of course, that was overcome and Biden picked her as a running mate. That is where this biography ends, reminding us of 'I'm speaking', when Harris reined in Mike Pence during the VP debate and taking us to Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris using the Mary J. Blige Song 'Work That' for her election victory speech (Chapter 34: Dancing in the Rain).
This biography tells us of Shyamala Gopalan, breast cancer researcher, biomedical scientist at McGill University and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, mother and guiding light to Kamala. The apparently estranged father is Donald Harris to which at least some of his post-Keynesian ideas on development economics have had the adjective Marist applied. If I can, I will read Capital Accumulation and Income Distribution (1978) for myself and decide. This would be out of curiosity as it does not appear there is any direct connection here to Kamala's worldview.
Kamala's political career from Calif. Attorney General to Senator. Along the way, she had to support capital punishment (the law) while being personally against it. While the state generally goes Democratic on presidential elections in our time, state politics have an active conservative and Republican dimension which played into laws developed on immigrants, homosexuals, etc. during her time. Nothing really jarred me here, but she had some gaffes that I can see dredged up and some controversial topics such as the case of death row inmate Kevin Cooper and other aspects of Kamala Harris' record as a prosecutor. We learn she is for gun control that could limit killed children (Chapter 16: The Damned Photos).
Chapter 21: Joe Biden Gives Harris a Hand tells us of the personal appearance made to support her Senatorial bid, building on the friendship between Kalama and Beau Biden as attorney general of Delaware. During her time in the Senate, she grilled Jeff Sessions and Judge Brett Kavanaugh on the Mueller Investigation, a woman's right to choose, and the sexual misconduct allegations.
In a dramatic moment of the Democratic primary debate in 2019, California Sen. Kamala Harris confronted former Vice President Joe Biden about his history of opposition to “bussing,” the policy of transporting students to schools outside their neighborhoods to try to reduce racial segregation. We learn this strained their friendship. Of course, that was overcome and Biden picked her as a running mate. That is where this biography ends, reminding us of 'I'm speaking', when Harris reined in Mike Pence during the VP debate and taking us to Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris using the Mary J. Blige Song 'Work That' for her election victory speech (Chapter 34: Dancing in the Rain).
March 15, 2021
A revelatory biography of the first Black woman to stand for Vice President, charting how the daughter of two immigrants in segregated California became one of this country’s most effective power players.
There’s very little that’s conventional about Kamala Harris, and yet her personal story also represents the best of America. She grew up the eldest daughter of a single mother, a no-nonsense cancer researcher who emigrated from India at the age of nineteen in search of a better education. She and her husband, an accomplished economist from Jamaica, split up when Kamala was only five.
The Kamala Harris the public knows today is tough, smart, quick-witted, and demanding. She’s a prosecutor—her one-liners are legendary—but she’s more reticent when it comes to sharing much about herself, even in her memoirs. Fortunately, former Los Angeles Times reporter Dan Morain has been there from the start.
In Kamala’s Way, he charts her career from its beginnings handling child molestation cases and homicides for the Alameda County District Attorney’s office and her relationship as a twenty-nine-year-old with the most powerful man in the state: married Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, a relationship that would prove life-changing. Morain takes readers through Harris’s years in the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, explores her audacious embrace of the little-known Barack Obama, and shows the sharp elbows she deployed to make it to the US Senate. He analyzes her failure as a presidential candidate and the behind-the-scenes campaign she waged to land the Vice President spot. Along the way, he paints a vivid picture of her values and priorities, the kind of people she brings into her orbit, the sorts of problems she’s good at solving, and the missteps, risks, and bold moves she’s made on her way to the top.
My Thoughts: In Kamala’s Way, we meet an unconventional, bright, and ambitious girl who grows into a young woman on the move. A woman with goals and an intensity about achieving them. She had no problem being mentored by powerful people, including an older man who opened some doors for her.
But she worked hard and had the ability to speak out against the wrongs she witnessed in her daily life. Moving from her role as a prosecutor to attorney general of California and finally to a senate seat in 2016, she was poised to become the change that she wanted to effect in the world and was ready to correct the ills she encountered.
Sometimes her “way” put her on a path of antagonizing some, while at other times, her truly compassionate side shone through. In the end, she stayed focused and finally found her true calling in the 2020 election as the Vice President in Joe Biden’s Presidency.
Sometimes the author skipped around a lot in the telling of this story, but he always caught me up in the end. 4.5 stars.
There’s very little that’s conventional about Kamala Harris, and yet her personal story also represents the best of America. She grew up the eldest daughter of a single mother, a no-nonsense cancer researcher who emigrated from India at the age of nineteen in search of a better education. She and her husband, an accomplished economist from Jamaica, split up when Kamala was only five.
The Kamala Harris the public knows today is tough, smart, quick-witted, and demanding. She’s a prosecutor—her one-liners are legendary—but she’s more reticent when it comes to sharing much about herself, even in her memoirs. Fortunately, former Los Angeles Times reporter Dan Morain has been there from the start.
In Kamala’s Way, he charts her career from its beginnings handling child molestation cases and homicides for the Alameda County District Attorney’s office and her relationship as a twenty-nine-year-old with the most powerful man in the state: married Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, a relationship that would prove life-changing. Morain takes readers through Harris’s years in the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, explores her audacious embrace of the little-known Barack Obama, and shows the sharp elbows she deployed to make it to the US Senate. He analyzes her failure as a presidential candidate and the behind-the-scenes campaign she waged to land the Vice President spot. Along the way, he paints a vivid picture of her values and priorities, the kind of people she brings into her orbit, the sorts of problems she’s good at solving, and the missteps, risks, and bold moves she’s made on her way to the top.
My Thoughts: In Kamala’s Way, we meet an unconventional, bright, and ambitious girl who grows into a young woman on the move. A woman with goals and an intensity about achieving them. She had no problem being mentored by powerful people, including an older man who opened some doors for her.
But she worked hard and had the ability to speak out against the wrongs she witnessed in her daily life. Moving from her role as a prosecutor to attorney general of California and finally to a senate seat in 2016, she was poised to become the change that she wanted to effect in the world and was ready to correct the ills she encountered.
Sometimes her “way” put her on a path of antagonizing some, while at other times, her truly compassionate side shone through. In the end, she stayed focused and finally found her true calling in the 2020 election as the Vice President in Joe Biden’s Presidency.
Sometimes the author skipped around a lot in the telling of this story, but he always caught me up in the end. 4.5 stars.
abgebrochen
May 3, 2021Ich hatte die Wahl zwischen dieser Biografie und der Autobiografie von Kamala selbst und habe mich bewusst gegen die Autobiografie entschieden, weil ich ein möglichst ehrliches Bild von dieser Person haben wollte und das konnte ich mir bei einer Autobiografie und dann auch noch von einer Politikerin nun wirklich nicht vorstellen. Das war leider auch mein einziger Gedanke beim Kauf dieses Buches, großartig recherchiert habe ich nicht mehr und das hat sich als Fehler erwiesen.
Denn wenn ich recherchiert hätte, hätte ich herausgefunden, dass Dan Morain nie ein Interview mit Kamala Harris oder Angehörigen geführt hat, zumindest nicht für diesen Zweck. In seiner Funktion als Redakteur verschiedener Zeitungen hat er sie schon das ein oder andere Mal interviewt, diese Interviews hatten aber ganz andere Hintergründe und sind teilweise schon etwas älter. Seine Informationen zieht Morain aus diversen Berichten, Zeitungsartikeln und - ich fasse es immer noch nicht - ihrer eigenen Autobiografie! Allein im ersten Kapitel zitiert er VIER MAL aus ihr! Ja toll, dann hätte ich ja genau so gut die lesen können. Auch ihre Social Media Kanäle werden gerne mal zitiert, wie seriös man diese Quellen finden möchte sei mal dahingestellt. Schließlich sind alle auf Instagram, Twitter und Co. ja auch immer so ehrlich ;)
Als ich mir das Quellenverzeichnis dann genauer angesehen habe, ist mir dann auch folgendes aufgefallen: In dieser 365 Seiten Biografie werden ganze 23 Mal seine eigenen Zeitungsartikel als Quelle genannt. Seine Tätigkeit als Journalist möchte ich damit natürlich nicht in Frage stellen, merkwürdig kommt mir das aber schon vor.
Auf mich macht dieses Buch leider den Eindruck, einfach nur Geld machen zu wollen.
Denn wenn ich recherchiert hätte, hätte ich herausgefunden, dass Dan Morain nie ein Interview mit Kamala Harris oder Angehörigen geführt hat, zumindest nicht für diesen Zweck. In seiner Funktion als Redakteur verschiedener Zeitungen hat er sie schon das ein oder andere Mal interviewt, diese Interviews hatten aber ganz andere Hintergründe und sind teilweise schon etwas älter. Seine Informationen zieht Morain aus diversen Berichten, Zeitungsartikeln und - ich fasse es immer noch nicht - ihrer eigenen Autobiografie! Allein im ersten Kapitel zitiert er VIER MAL aus ihr! Ja toll, dann hätte ich ja genau so gut die lesen können. Auch ihre Social Media Kanäle werden gerne mal zitiert, wie seriös man diese Quellen finden möchte sei mal dahingestellt. Schließlich sind alle auf Instagram, Twitter und Co. ja auch immer so ehrlich ;)
Als ich mir das Quellenverzeichnis dann genauer angesehen habe, ist mir dann auch folgendes aufgefallen: In dieser 365 Seiten Biografie werden ganze 23 Mal seine eigenen Zeitungsartikel als Quelle genannt. Seine Tätigkeit als Journalist möchte ich damit natürlich nicht in Frage stellen, merkwürdig kommt mir das aber schon vor.
Auf mich macht dieses Buch leider den Eindruck, einfach nur Geld machen zu wollen.
February 20, 2021
Not exactly a puff piece but not an in depth look at the personality and circumstances that led to Kamala Harris being the first to break the national glass ceiling. Rather, the author provides a basic overview of the highlights of Kamala's biography, focusing mainly on her steps up the political ladder. And thats the trouble I have with the book. On the one hand, it was good to brush up on her professional highlights-prosecutor, district attorney, attorney general, Senator. But her decision making, although clearly leaning left and reflecting her liberal values, really were, in essence, political decisions. What she decided to do, what she decided not to do. What she decided to say. What she decided not to say. Its not pure. Politics is not pure. If you want to achieve anything, you've got to get elected, you've got to play the game, make the right connections, raise money. And thats what makes the book a little disappointing. I wanted to read the book and just love her! Instead I realized that truthfully, she's a politician doing what politicians do. However, don't get me wrong. Her political savvy led her to the Vice Presidency and who knows whats coming next. I'll still be voting for her!
February 22, 2021
the author seemed to deliver a neutral narrative most of the way. while i have not been following kamala politically and could not corroborate the facts and achievements ,had to agree with some of the below:
-lack of bipartisanship
-possibly perceived as threat by elderly politicians
- inability to digest a smart brown voice
- apt use f social media in harvesting support
but i had to laugh at the below:
- fighting spirit being instilled into her since the time her mother took her out to protest in stroller....this was really pushing it
very little has been mentioned about her faith which is a area of interest to me.just like Bobby jindal she seem to have opportunistically chosen Christianity as being Christian is one of the major criteria for being an American president. have spent a significant amount of time in states and cant believe a Hindu American would identify as African American except under dire circumstances or an arising opportunity. another factor that could lead to it is a left leaning mindset of parents if any....
-lack of bipartisanship
-possibly perceived as threat by elderly politicians
- inability to digest a smart brown voice
- apt use f social media in harvesting support
but i had to laugh at the below:
- fighting spirit being instilled into her since the time her mother took her out to protest in stroller....this was really pushing it
very little has been mentioned about her faith which is a area of interest to me.just like Bobby jindal she seem to have opportunistically chosen Christianity as being Christian is one of the major criteria for being an American president. have spent a significant amount of time in states and cant believe a Hindu American would identify as African American except under dire circumstances or an arising opportunity. another factor that could lead to it is a left leaning mindset of parents if any....
March 26, 2021
O Kamali Harris zrobiło się na świecie głośno, kiedy po wygranych przez Joe Bidena wyborach, stała się wiceprezydentką Stanów Zjednoczonych. Pierwszą kobietą na takim stanowisku w historii. Historii, która pisze się na naszych oczach, a to naprawdę coś niesamowitego. Nic więc dziwnego, że ludzie chcą poznać tę niezwykłą kobietę, dowiedzieć się czegoś o jej dzieciństwie, tym, co ją kształtowało, jaka jest, gdy gasną światła kamer. Cóż.. z tej książki się tego nie dowiecie. "Kamala Harris. Pierwsza biografia" to bardziej opowieść o tym, co działo się w USA, kiedy Harris pięła się po szczeblach kariery, niż opowieść o niej samej. Bardzo jej mało w jej własnej biografii. Ta książka wręcz pęka w szwach od miejsc, ludzi, dat, wydarzeń, ale gdzieś w tym wszystkim zgubiła się sama postać Kamali Harris. I jest w tym wszystkim taka chaotyczna, że czasem się gubiłam. Ja po przeczytaniu czuję tylko jedno: lekkie rozczarowanie, bo nie dostałam tego, czego od tej książki oczekiwałam.
September 21, 2024
I’d rate this 3.5ish if I could, but I’ll round up.
This read like an elongated article and that made sense knowing the author was a journalist. It was a bit dry, he didn’t seem to have too much personal knowledge of Kamala. I did love the personal stories from the people who did know her. And as someone who has never been to California, let alone followed their politics, I did appreciate the historical context of a lot of what was going on during her career. It was disappointing to know she didn’t participate in this and most of her commentary came from her own memoir as I have that to read. But she’s young and (hopefully) the best of her career is yet to come, so many more books will be written about her.
This read like an elongated article and that made sense knowing the author was a journalist. It was a bit dry, he didn’t seem to have too much personal knowledge of Kamala. I did love the personal stories from the people who did know her. And as someone who has never been to California, let alone followed their politics, I did appreciate the historical context of a lot of what was going on during her career. It was disappointing to know she didn’t participate in this and most of her commentary came from her own memoir as I have that to read. But she’s young and (hopefully) the best of her career is yet to come, so many more books will be written about her.
January 24, 2021
I have to admit I don't know much about Kamala, other than what has been in the press as she was running for President and then as Biden's VP. What I did see I liked, so when this book popped up at my library's website I requested it to learn more. This one gives a bit on her family back ground, but more focused on her professional life and her rise through California politics. At times I wasn't sure if the author liked Kamala, didn't like her or was indifferent. Overall it was fairly positive. Where Kamala was judged a bit harshly was were all women are and probably especially Black women. I like that Kamala is tough on the establishment and hope she keeps fighting it.
April 8, 2021
Czasami lubię wskoczyć w literaturę amerykańską, a "Kamala Harris" to bardzo dobry przykład takiej literatury. Dan Morain bardzo dobrze prowadzi czytelnika przez kolejne etapy życia Kamali. Poznając bliżej panią Harris stwierdzam, iż jest rekinem politycznym, walcząca o sprawy ważne i ważniejsze, nieodpuszczająca, trzymająca się swoich poglądów. Jeśli tylko jej kariera nadal będzie się rozwijać może zajść na sam szczyt..
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