Education of an Idealist

‘Her highly personal and reflective memoir … is a must-read for anyone who cares about our role in a changing world’ Barack Obama THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY:The New York Times • Time • The Economist • The Washington Post • Vanity Fair • Times Literary Supplement ‘What can one person do?’ In this vibrant, galvanizing memoir, human rights advocate and Pulitzer-Prize winning writer Samantha Power offers an urgent response to this question. As she traces her path from Irish immigrant to war correspondent and activist to eventually becoming the youngest-ever US Ambassador to the United Nations, Power writes with a unique blend of suspenseful storytelling, vivid character portraits and disarming honesty. Her account illuminates the challenges of navigating the halls of power while trying to put one’s ideals into practice (and raise two young children along the way), and it shows how – even in the face of daunting challenges – each of us can make a difference. NOW WITH UPDATED AFTERWORD

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AN IRISH TIMES BESTSELLER AN OBAMA FAVOURITE BOOK OF 2019 NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY:The New York Times • Time • The Economist • The Washington Post • Vanity Fair • Times Literary Supplement ‘Her highly personal and reflective memoir … is a must-read for anyone who cares about our role in a changing world.’Barack Obama ‘Samantha Power's book is honest, personal, revealing. It is about the development of a young woman's inner strength and self-knowledge. But it is also a political book, alert to both the power of political will and its limitations.’Colm Tóibín ‘A beautiful memoir about the times we’re living in and the questions we must ask ourselves … I honestly couldn’t put it down’Cheryl Strayed ‘This is a wonderful book … The interweaving of Power’s personal story, family story, diplomatic history and moral arguments is executed seamlessly and with unblinking honesty’New York Times ‘One of the best-written political memoirs of recent years’ Fareed Zakaria ‘It’s a profound, heart wrenching, uplifting, and emotional journey through her life and what she’s seen’Sophia Bush ‘An unusually engaging political memoir…Power is an excellent storyteller, with a deft touch with anecdotes and a nice sense of humour.’Times Literary Supplement ‘Refreshingly frank and self-deprecating … An energizing reminder that conscience has a place in the process of shaping foreign policy’TIME Magazine ‘Uniquely personal and absorbing … A riveting fly-on-the wall insight.’Irish Times ‘Engaging … Power’s memoir is an insider’s account of foreign-policy-making, and an intensely personal one.’Economist  ‘Lively … And strikingly personal …[Power] writes vividly and lucidly here about her turn in the international spotlight.’Vogue

Samantha Power is a leading global voice on human rights and international affairs. She served for four years as President Barack Obama’s human rights adviser and then, from 2013 to 2017, in his Cabinet and as US Ambassador to the United Nations. Power is the author of several books, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning ‘A Problem From Hell’: America and the Age of Genocide, and has been named one of TIME’s ‘100 Most Influential People’ and one of Forbes’ ‘100 Most Powerful Women’. Currently a professor of practice at Harvard Law School and Harvard Kennedy School, she lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Cass Sunstein, and their two children. Power immigrated to the United States from Ireland at the age of nine.