To his fans, he is an inspiring once-in-a-generation politician like President John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert, both assassinated in the 1960s. The 1995 memoir showcased the lyrical writing style that would later mark some of his best-known speeches. It also helped to shape Obama’s political identity.
“The Audacity of Hope,” published in 2006, outlined Obama’s political philosophy, which he says was moulded by the Midwestern values of his mother and grandparents. Brisk sales of the two books have made him a millionaire.
Born in Hawaii to a white mother from Kansas and a black father from Kenya, Obama spent part of his childhood in Indonesia.
In the 2004 speech to the Democratic National Convention that vaulted him to rock-star status, he introduced himself to America as someone who hoped to bridge divisions, political and racial.
The first-term Illinois senator, known for his stirring eloquence, now draws tens of thousands to his political rallies and is the author of two best-selling autobiographical books.
Obama spent his early adult years as a community organizer in Chicago, where he lives with his wife, Michelle, and their two daughters, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7. He first gained national prominence in 1990 when he became the first black editor of the Harvard Law Review.
He later worked as a civil rights lawyer and taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago. He was elected to the Illinois senate in 1996 but suffered a crushing defeat in 2000 when he ran for the U.S. Congress against an incumbent Democrat. In 2004, he was elected to the U.S. Senate.