Madame President: The Extraordinary Journey of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

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BEST BOOKS of 2017 SELECTION by THE WASHINGTON POST NEW YORK POST The harrowing, but triumphant story of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, leader of the Liberian women s movement, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and the first democratically elected female president in African history.When Ellen Johnson Sirleaf won the 2005 Liberian presidential election, she demolished a barrier few thought possible, obliterating centuries of patriarchal rule to become the first female elected head of state in Africa s history Madame President is the inspiring, often heartbreaking story of Sirleaf s evolution from an ordinary Liberian mother of four boys to international banking executive, from a victim of domestic violence to a political icon, from a post war president to a Nobel Peace Prize winner Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and bestselling author Helene Cooper deftly weaves Sirleaf s personal story into the larger narrative of the coming of age of Liberian women The highs and lows of Sirleaf s life are filled with indelible images from imprisonment in a jail cell for standing up to Liberia s military government to addressing the United States Congress, from reeling under the onslaught of the Ebola pandemic to signing a deal with Hillary Clinton when she was still Secretary of State that enshrined American support for Liberia s future.Sirleaf s personality shines throughout this riveting biography Ultimately, Madame President is the story of Liberia s greatest daughter, and the universal lessons we can all learn from this Oracle of African women. Read Madame President: The Extraordinary Journey of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf by Helene Cooper – kino-fada.fr Madame Presidentt, Helene Cooper s biography of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first female president of Liberia, was not an easy book to read The history of Liberia is so horrendous, the violence so overwhelming, the suffering of her people unimaginable that I had to often step away Cooper does not tidy things up for easy reading The story of Liberian female empowerment is remarkable, a courageous story from a country where an estimated 75% of the women have encountered rape and sexual abuse Madame Presidentt, Helene Cooper s biography of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first female president of Liberia, was not an easy book to read The history of Liberia is so horrendous, the violence so overwhelming, the suffering of her people unimaginable that I had to often step away Cooper does not tidy things up for easy reading The story of Liberian female empowerment is remarkable, a courageous story from a country where an estimated 75% of the women have encountered rape and sexual abuse Ellen herself rose from abused wife to a Harvard education, from mother to leadership in the international banking industry, from working for a dictator to her democratic election as President.Ellen made mistakes and learned from them She m...Five stars for content as Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was and is a very important figure in world history, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, a leader of Liberia and one tough triumphant person.Four stars for drama There is so much death and violence witnessed over the decades in war torn Liberia that the narrative seems at times numb to it I have seen this same effect in a few WWII memoirs that I have read Three stars for the writing I don t know if the story was difficult to translate into English or Five stars for content as Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was and is a very important figure in world history, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, a leader of Liberia and one tough triumphant person.Four stars for drama There is so much death and violence witnessed over the decades in war torn Liberia that the narrative seems at times numb to it I have seen this same effect in a few WWII memoirs that I have read Three stars for the writing I don t know if the story was difficult to translate into English or some of it is was written in near time but the writing is very linear and not especially introspective It is almost like too much happened in ...posted on Litsy This book is why I m somewhat random in how I select audiobooks It never occurred to me that Liberian history was so fascinating and awful, or that the transformation this woman represents could be so special on so many levels So much to say Extraordinarily and grotesque violence, 70% of women raped in a civil war before Sarleaf began rebuilding And then Ebola...As a public health professional, I was impressed how President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf handled the Ebola Crisis in Liberia 2013 2016 President Sirleaf has now launched a massive mental health program for the Ebola survivors Liberia was just beginning to make some headway out of its horrible state when it was hit by the Ebola epidemic I started looking forinformation about her I discovered she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011 This book not only provides the biography of Sirleaf but As a public health professional, I was impressed how President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf handled the Ebola Crisis in Liberia 2013 2016 President Sirleaf has now launched a massive mental health program for the Ebola survivors Liberia was just beginning to make some headway out of its horrible state when it was hit by the Ebola epidemic I started looking forinformation about her I discovered she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011 This book not only provides the biography of Sirleaf but also provides a brief overview history of Liberia Cooper tells the early life of Sirleaf, her marriage at seventeen and birth of four boys quickly thereafter Cooper covers the horrible Civil War 1989 2003 and the imprisonment of Sirleaf and her near brushes with death Cooper covers the horrible violence and carnage of the Civil War so readers need to be prepared Sirleaf worked for the Liberian Treasury Department and then went on to work at the World Bank She became an expert in government debt When she was el...Madame President by Helen Cooper is an inspiring read Women everywhere will be awed at the work done by one woman, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf She has gone beyond any other woman of her time in a country that mistreated women as objects Here, I got to follow the brave and clever woman as she rose from just a mother to a president of a nation Going to prison, suffering like every other woman has done,yet she managed to rise dispite the hardships that fell upon her I was amazed She kept on Madame President by Helen Cooper is an inspiring read Women everywhere will be awed at the work done by one woman, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf She has gone beyond any other woman of her time in a country that mistreated women as objects Here, I got to follow the brave and clever woman as she rose from just a mother to a pr...This was my Women s History Month selection, and what an inspiring selection this was Ellen Johnson Sirleaf experienced what I wouldn t think possible to become president of Liberia It s quite unbelievable the atrocities women were forced to accept as normal everyday life while in military rule This abhorrent behavior is typical of military coups that end up with a paranoid and power hungry leader they are not one for the people or the country s interest This has a lot to do with a lack of This was my Women s History Month selection, and what an inspiring selection this was Ellen Johnson Sirleaf experienced what I wouldn t think possible to become president of Liberia It s quite unbelievable the atrocities women were forced to accept as normal everyday life while in military rule This abhorrent behavior is typical of military coups that end up with a...I had the opportunity to hear Ellen Johnson Sirleaf speak in 2015 and was deeply impressed by her history, her presence, her decisiveness, her courage, her persistence This book has only increased my admiration for her as a person, as a politician, and as a bureaucrat.Trigger warning violence, rape In Liberia a woman s place is in the market, selling oranges and potato greens and kola nuts It is in the hot outdoor kitchen, sweating as she bends over a mortar to pound fermented I had the opportunity to hear Ellen Johnson Sirleaf speak in 2015 and was deeply impressed by her history, her presence, her decisiveness, her courage, her persistence This book has only increased my admiration for her as a person, as a politician, and as a bureaucrat.Trigger warning violence, rape In Liberia a woman s place is in the market, selling oranges and potato greens and kola nuts It is in the hot outdoor kitchen, sweating as she bends over a mortar to pound fermented cassava for fufu It is in the field, baby strapped to her back as she hacks at the sugarcane stalks that will fetch the money that will pay for this semester s school fees for her children And it is on her back in the dirt as one, two three, four drunk soldiers rap...This was a fascinating read The only things I really knew about Liberia before reading this was that it was founded by freed American slaves and that Charles Taylor was bad This book, though it purports to be about Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, really isthe story of Liberia over the past few decades Author and journalist Cooper delves into the workings of the Liberian government and the civil war, using Sirleaf as sort of a framing device.Not realizing this while starting the book, I found it This was a fascinating read The only things I really knew about Liberia before reading this was that it was founded by freed American slaves and that Charles Taylor was bad This book, though it purports to be about Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, really isthe story of Liberia over the past few decades Author and journalist Cooper delves into the workings of the Liberian government and the civil war, using Sirleaf as sort of a framing device.Not realizing this while starting the book, I found it somewhat frustrating at times Sirleaf s life is fascinating She went to the United States for a college degree and a master s, worked in the Liberian government, and also worked for organizations like the World Bank and Citibank For a woman born in 1938, who was doing this work in the 1960s and 1970s, this is incredible How many meetings must she have attended where she was the only woman or only black person And yet, this book doesn t del...Powerfully memoir on Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.A visionary who was not limited by circumstances, people nor her gender A fighter, both literally and figuratively A woman who took Liberia from obscurity, poverty, hunger and desease to a country slowly on the mend Like a phoenix, Liberia rose from its war torn ashes to rebuilding itself all because of one woman s vision and a whole lot of women who believed in her vision too.A woman who fought with the system Against the system Within the system Powerfully memoir on Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.A visionary who was not limited by circumstances, people nor her gender A fighter, both literally and figuratively A woman who took Liberia from obscurity, poverty, hunger and desease to a country slowly on the mend Like a phoenix, Liberia rose from its war torn ashes to rebuilding itself all because of one woman s vision and a whole lot of women who believed in her vision too.A woman who fought with the system Against the system Within the system to ensure...Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is the first female to be elected president of a country in Africa and one of three female African Nobel Laureates Cooper s book offers us glimpses into her childhood, but mostly focuses on her rise to fame as an econom...

Madame President: The Extraordinary Journey of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
  • 12 January 2018
  • Hardcover
  • 336 pages
  • 145169735X
  • Helene Cooper
  • Madame President: The Extraordinary Journey of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf