The Truths We Hold: An American Journey Hardcover – January 8, 2019

I will admit that I bought this book because I like Kamala Harris, and I am excited about the possibility of her becoming the first black female president. What drew me in was reaffirming through this book how AWESOME, REAL, and very QUALIFIED she is. She has worked her butt off her entire life. Kamala Harris knows and understands the black community; marginalized communities; everyday Americans; and people who are either poor, middle class or well off. I learned so much about her in this book. Her early upbringing was rooted in activism through her parents. She had exposure to Shirley Chisholm, Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, and so many more as a young child. Her strong mothers’ influence and example; diverse and culturally aware upbringing; and the community she lived in are a large part of what shaped her. From her years living abroad in Canada; to her love of the HBCU at Howard University; and her sisterhood with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, she has had varied life experiences. Her double major undergraduate degrees in Economics and Political Science also played a part in her understanding of politics and issues related to the economy. This is a woman who has worked hard to earn her positions as a District Attorney, Attorney General, US Senator, and more recently as Vice President. As a DA she was very tough on violent offenders like murderers, child traffickers, rapists, etc., but at the same time she understood that not everyone that was arrested or incarcerated was a bad person, so she implemented the Back on Track program for non violent offenders to get their lives back on track with education, job training, community service, etc. in exchange for having their records expunged. This program has since been replicated around the country. She has fought for and won for victims of predatory housing lenders; and students taken advantage of by for-profit colleges. This is a woman who sees problems, but also “does something” about them. She researches issues, talks to people, does her homework and works to find solutions to problems. She also appears to be someone who is not afraid to take the heat when she needs to make difficult, yet necessary decisions.She comes across as someone with integrity, grit, an incredible work ethic, intelligence, and someone who cares about all people, regardless of race or ethnicity.I am so excited about the opportunity to vote for her in this upcoming election. I strongly recommend reading or listening to this book to learn more about who Kamala Harris is and what has shaped her.I’m impressed.

I read (I should say listened, since she reads the audio version) this book a few years ago and now plan to do so again now that she's running for President. An incredible inspiring book for any American who treasures freedom and love for their fellow human beings. A wonderful book. I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Thank you for writing this book, sharing your life and especially for your public service. Great read and highly recommend.

For our October pick in Between These Sheets book club, we decided to read Senator Kamala Harris’s book The Truths We Hold: An American Journey. We also used our book club meeting as an opportunity to rally the vote for the Biden/Harris campaign. The discussion we had in mid October, just a few weeks before the 2020 election, was engaging and exciting.“When I was a little girl, my father wanted me to run free… I would take off, the wind in my face, with the feeling that I could do anything.”Kamala Harris’s book offered great insights into her background and experiences that shape her views on America. She goes into great detail about her experiences serving as DA in San Francisco, as DA of California and during her first term as a United States Senator representing the state of California.“I knew I was there for the victims. Both the victims of crimes committed and the victims of a broken criminal justice system. For me, to be a progressive prosecutor is to understand- and act on- this dichotomy… to look out for the overlooked, to speak up for those whose voices aren’t being heard, to see and address the causes of crime, not just their consequences, and to shine a light on the inequality and unfairness that lead to injustice.”I really appreciated learning more about her personal journey. Ms. Harris used anecdotal stories from her lived experiences to better illustrate her points. This book was a relatable and easy read although it dealt with complex and important topics.“I looked at him there, on one knee, and burst into tears. Mind you, these were not graceful Hollywood tears streaming down a glistening cheek. No, I’m talking about snorting and grunting, with mascara smudging my face.“There were times that I felt Ms. Harris was not comfortable opening up about herself so personally. I was OK with this since I appreciated her serious tone and occasional personal story. I thought the book came together very nicely and is more important than ever.“I talked about women’s issues, at least what I see as women’s issues: the economy, national security, health care, education, criminal justice reform, climate change.”I eagerly await Kamala Harris being sworn into the office of Vice President in a few weeks.“The American people have not given up on the American Dream. I know this to be true. But when you can’t sleep at night, how can you dream?”

Very profession focused She does discuss her early life thoroughly

I’m reading this to my husband and the book is full of surprises, for example that she moved to Canadá at age 12 and had to speak French in school. Learning about her early influences has been eye opening. Growing up she describes her exposure to leading black activists artists and musicians at Rainbow Sign. Her description of her jobs in the DA office demonstrate her commitment to her staff and her desire to get at the underlying causes of problems. Her description of how Doug proposed is amusing. The book, which was written with professional “collaborators “ according to the acknowledgments, flows well from topic to topic. I think it could easily be read by middle schoolers and up while still being quite interesting for adults. With so many people trying to define Kamala now, I found this book to be very revealing about her intelligence, strategic impulses and her compassion.

I believe this book should be reissued and made a part of her presidential campaign. This is the leader our country needs now. The book is concise , warm intelligent and interesting. A great introduction to a future president of the United States.

Great book so far........I love biographies! This one is especially great as she became the first female vice-President....Kamala is a great writer!I bought the book for myself and I am 72....Just had to give my 2 cents in here since you are asking how old was the person that I got this book for? lolAge here would not matter in my opinion she is a great roll model for may people young and older!!

politics

Fascinating insight into this, courageous, brave lady’s history of growing up and becoming what she is today. God Bless America and Kamala.

Book

it’s okay ig, i thought it would be much better since it’s from kamala but sadly it was very boring.good enough for a 4 star rating tho! 7/10