آل أوباما .. القصة غير المروية لعائلة افريقية

by Peter Firstbrook

كل ما نعرفه في الحقيقة هو نصف أوباما..وهنا نصفه الآخر..معلوماتٌ عن نسبه أذهلته هو شخصيّاًكتابٌ أرهقَ مؤلِّفه بما جمعه من معلومات طريفة ومذهلة لم يكن الحصول عليها بالأمر اليسير، استهدفت النصف غير المعروف من الرئيس الأميركي باراك أوباما.تمكَّن المؤلِّف، وهو مخرج أفلام وثائقية، من العودة بالزمن مئات السنين ليكتشف انتماء الرئيس إلى شعب اللو الذي تتحدَّر جيناته من محاربين أفارقة قدامى.يصف المؤلِّف كيف انطلقت قبائل سلالة أوباما من السودان عبر سنين طويلة لتستقرَّ أخيراً في كينيا. ويورد الكثير من التفاصيل الممتعة عن نمط حياتها ومعتقداتها وحروبها واستراتيجياتها ومستعمراتها وقلاعها وتميُّزها بالعجرفة والغرور.

وقد تمكَّن من تجميع قطع هذه اللوحة المتكاملة من معلومات استقاها عبر رحلته إلى القرية الكينية التي تحدَّر منها أوباما؛ ومقابلاته مع معظم أقرباء الرئيس، مُغطّياً نشأته ومعاناته في مرحلة الشباب جرّاء عدم تأقلمه مع إرثه العرقي، ومكانته الآن في كينيا التي يعتبره شعبها أشبه بالقدّيسين، والظروف التي أوصلته إلى زعامة البيت الأبيض.

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Africa, Kenya, Presidents, Audiobook

396 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2010

About the author

Peter Firstbrook is author of The Voyage of the Matthew (about the explorer John Cabot), Lost on Everest (about George Mallory), and The Obamas: The Untold Story of an African Family. He worked for the BBC for twenty-five years as a television producer, director and executive producer, specializing in historical documentaries. He has won over thirty international awards, including on two occasions the Royal Television Society award for best documentary. He divides his time between London and the Isle of Wight.

Reviews

[Abbe]

From

Starred Review The most famous family in Kenya—and, indeed, the world—provides the context for exploring the broader history of that nation as documentary filmmaker Firstbrook explores the Obama family legacy. He draws on academic historical research as well as oral history and interviews to trace Barack Obama’s family history back 23 generations. Part of the Luo, the second largest tribe in Kenya (following the Kikuyu), the Obama family traversed through several ancestral lands before religion (some were Seventh-Day Adventists, and others were Muslims) and distance separated them into the towns of Kendu Bay and K’ogelo. He highlights Obama’s paternal grandfather, Onyango, who traveled beyond the ancestral lands, prospered, fought in two world wars, and witnessed bloody revolt against British colonialism as well as Kenyan independence. His son, Barack, similarly restless and ambitious, was educated in Hawaii (where he met President Obama’s mother) and the continental U.S. before returning home to continue straddling tribal tradition and the demands of modern Western culture. Obama senior was critical of the government and friendly with Tom Mboya, an activist, who was killed during the Jomo Kenyatta administration, adding to suspicion later when Obama was killed in a car accident. Enhanced with maps and photographs, this is an epic look at the history of a nation and a family. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The story of Barack Obama’s Kenyan roots, this title is the product of dozens of interviews with Obama’s African relatives, presented by the first person to trace Obama’s family history back 400 years and 23 generations. --Vanessa Bush

Product Description

On January 20, 2009, a few hundred men, women, and children gathered under trees in the twilight at K’obama, a village on the shores of Lake Victoria in western Kenya. Barack Obama’s rise to the American presidency had captivated people around the world, but members of this gathering took a special pride in the swearing in of America’s first black president, for they were all Obamas, all the president’s direct African family.

In the first in-depth history of the Obama family, Peter Firstbrook recounts a journey that starts in a mud hut by the White Nile and ends seven centuries later in the White House. Interweaving oral history and tribal lore, interviews with Obama family members and other Kenyans, the writings of Kenyan historians, and original genealogical research, Firstbrook sets the fascinating story of the president’s family against the background of Kenya’s rich culture and complex history.

He tells the story of farmers and fishermen, of healers and hunters, of families lost and found, establishing for the first time the early ancestry of the Obamas. From the tribe’s cradleland in southern Sudan, he follows the family generation by generation, tracing the paths of the famous Luo warriors—Obama’s direct ancestors—and vividly illuminating Luo politics, society, and traditions.

Firstbrook also brings to life the impact of English colonization in Africa through the eyes of President Obama’s grandfather Onyango. An ambitious and disciplined man who fought in two world wars, witnessed the bloody Mau Mau insurrection, and saw his country gain independence from white rule, Onyango was also hot-tempered and autocratic: family lore has it that President Obama’s grandmother abandoned the family after Onyango attempted to murder her. And Firstbrook delves into the troubled life of Obama’s father, a promising young man whose aspirations were stymied by post-independence tribal politics and a rash tendency toward self-destruction—two factors that his family believes contributed to his death in 1982. They say it was no accident, as described in the president’s memoirs, but rather a politically motivated hit job.

More than a tale of love and war, hardship and hard-won success, The Obamas reveals a family history—epic in scope yet intimate in feel—that is truly without precedent.

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've heard it said that the best way to get your family genealogy prepared is to run for a high public office. It's been published (true?) that on his mother's side President Obama is distant kin to Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh. Here is a genealogy for his father. It is not a recitation of names and dates and places. It tells the fascinating story of the President's African family and places it within the history of the Luo tribe and the development of what we know today as Kenya.

Firstbrook begins on the night of the President's inauguration in K'obama where three TVs (one brought in by wheel barrow) and generators to run them are set up for an outdoor communal watch. He then takes you through the migrations that brought the Obamas to western Kenya and eventually to the place they call "Home Square".

You learn that both father and grandfather were high achievers for their place and time and that both were both temperamental. It is not a fact, but the implication is there, that Obama's birth grandmother left Obama's grandfather because she feared for her life. The frequently seen presidential grandmother Sarah is not "the" grandmother, but "a" grandmother... the one who raised Barak Hussein Obama, Sr. when his birth mother fled. You learn why Sarah lives in K'ogelo and not K'obama.

The huge extended family is described and there are examples of their daily lives and the type of arguments that have torn them apart. Many are Seventh Day Adventists; others followed President Obama's grandfather to Islam. Raised a Muslim, Obama's father claimed no religion as an adult.

Hussein (a name he selected upon conversion to Islam) Onyango Obama, the President's grandfather, was educated and influenced by the British. He participated in two World Wars on behalf of the British, only to be jailed and broken by them during the Mau Mau (he was neither a member nor sympathizer) uprisings. Barack Obama, Sr., went to Hawaii on a scholarship privately funded by Americans who in the aftermath of Kenyan independence wanted to help build the country through educating its youth. Following his time in the US (and the birth of his now famous son), he had a series of important jobs in Kenya, all lost due to alcohol. His life may have been lost due to alcohol, or as many Luo believe, in a veiled political assassination. Firstbrook brings all this to life.

Like his forbearers, Obama is a scholar and a participant in the politics of his time. There is a staggering comparison of his life to that of his kinsmen.

The book is highly readable and has excellent support documents. There is very clear family tree, a detailed timeline, and two glossaries, one for people and another for terms and place names.

I highly recommend this book for those interested in the President's Kenyan family.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A "family biography" is a rare work indeed when it comes to the African continent. My own PhD research is trying to fill this gap, so I was interested in Firstbrook's attempt with the Obama family.

He does a very admirable job. His experience as a journalist brings an easy to read style that synthesizes things well. He also includes some unique tidbits on African history not present in the typical Kenyan scholarly works (e.g. Muhimu during Mau Mau). Also, his access to the Obama family and the oral testimonies he gathered from them are incredibly surprising - such evidence adn sources I am struggling to find in my own research.

But, ultimately, it's a book that's not entirely satisfying. The latter half focuses on Obama's father, leaving the story of Obama's mother and step-mother's (there were 3) somewhat hidden. In usual fashion, it is the story of men with rare glimpses into the lives of the women.

As a way of understanding the current US President, it was insightful. Both President Obama's father and grand-father possessed strong personalities and were described by their friends and family as arrogrant. It's not surprising that President Obama carries much of his grand-father and father's characteristics, even though he barely knew either. But, at the same time, the life of President Obama is admirable and praise worthy - if for no other reason, for overcoming an absentee drunk, abusive father and a disconnected life. For all the "sins of the fathers" weighing against President Obama, it is amazing the person he has become.

[S'hi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading this book before other books about Barack Obama gave it a freshness which made it passable, but something irritated me about it. The constant referral to how many generations until the first black American president. When immersed in the tales of African tribes I found this an unwanted intrusion which continually unsettled me.

Later, when I had read Obama himself, I also felt some of the strands in this book were not as 'personal from this writer' as they were made out to be. It increased my feeling that all he was interested in was riding on the back of someone else's fame and effort.It made it disappointing.

Yet, there is obviously a lot of his own research and experience here. So it seems a great shame that he couldn't feel that confidence within himself which Barack Obama actually calls for us to take on for ourselves. I think this is why I found this book so disappointing.

Yet it is still a good read for the African history which we don't have through the distortions of explorers telling it their own way. And also for the amount it draws together into one volume.

[Lynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Obamas in Africa are traced back to the 15th century, so this book is really about African history, in particular, Kenya. The most interesting part was about the Luo culture of Obama's great grandfather. Contemporary Kenyan politics became a sad story of tribal conflict and corruption. Obama's father was also a tragic figure with much promise (a Harvard graduate) who seemed to lack a moral compass. Our president is fortunate that a strong woman and her parents raised him, not his father.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a lineage. Barack Sr. was a gifted scholar, avowed atheist, polygamist, alcoholic who physically and emotionally abused his wives and killed several people driving drunk before eventually ending his own life that way. Onyango, the President's grandfather, travelled the world and served with honour in both world wars in the King's African Rifles. He was a practicing Muslim, and a polygamist, who made substantial sacrifices to educate his children in the best British Mission schools available in Kenya. Both were buried in the Obama family compound in traditional Luo tribal fashion.

[Felecia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first Ebook I am reading off of my new Kindle. This book was ok. It was a book about President Obama's ancestors and their lives growing up in Africa, and how they were connected to the president. The book focused more on African culture and people, and not so much on President Obama. Still found it interesting to learn about African culture and history though..

[Scott Klemm · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I found Peter Firstbrook’s "The Obamas: The Untold Story of an African Family" fascinating. I learned, for example, that most of the Obamas were Seventh Day Adventists (not Muslims), and that Obama is presumably a corruption of the name Mobam. (You need to read the book to find out what this means.) Also, Firstbrook presents compelling arguments that should put to rest the “birther” controversy.

One of the things that drew my attention to the book was that it provided a general survey of the history of Kenya. I have had a special interest in East Africa since my visit to Kenya in 2006.

Firstbrook traces Barack Obama’s roots back to the Luo migration into Kenya from the Sudan. He has blended written history with oral tradition. In chapter 3, “The Life and Death of Opiyo Obama,” he describes the beliefs and customs of the early Luo people. Opiyo lived in the 19th century, and was the great grandfather of President Obama’s father. Here, apparently unbeknownst to the author, an anachronism was used for the epigraph at the head of the chapter. “ADONG AROM GI BAO MA KANERA: May I grow as tall as the eucalyptus tree in my uncle’s homestead.” What’s wrong with this? The eucalyptus is not indigenous to Africa. The tree is of Australian origin, and even if brought by the missionaries early in the 20th century, it would take at least a few decades before the tree reached any appreciable height. Therefore, it could not have been said at the closing of each storyteller’s anecdote as suggested by Firstbrook - at least not during the time of Opiyo Obama.

There is little to criticize in Peter Firstbrook’s book. The only other mistakes I found was the statement that Islam allows five wives (four is the correct number), and the town just a little northwest of Mt. Kenya on the map on page 16 is Nanyuki – not Nanyaki.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and wholeheartedly recommend it. I found it very interesting and informative. If it were not for the few minor errors I detected, I would have given it the full five stars.(less)"
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Apr 24, 2011 06:50pm · see review

[Ellison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps written in an attempt to garner attention like other profitable writings on the subject the author follows the lineage of the President back to just after Noah when they left the Sudan due to...Global Warming to move to Kenya. The were wealth, brave, oh, and had MANY wives!

Then Whitey showed up and applied taxes! Gives much back story into the colonization of Africa. Obama's daddy gets a scholarship to the University of Hawaii where he gets a white schoolgirl preggers (despite being already married!)

He moves on to Boston where he eventually leaves to return home where he calls himself Dr. Obama despite not finishing school. Mentions faith. He tells everyone who will listen how smart he is. So smart he loses his job and gets killed in a drunken car accident for which there is a conspiracy about. Occasional insight. According to family lore being left-handed makes a person questionable, Obama is left-handed. Hmmm.

[Carrie F. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was successful at explaining the tribal culture of Africa. Obama is from the Luo group and the authors traces them to the beginning of the common era. And forward to President Obama's grandfather and father.

[Michael Powell · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little 5 star a lot of 2-3 star

[Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author makes an exhaustive effort to trace President Obama's family history in Kenya as much as is possible. Quite interesting but doesn't move very fast.

[Madlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good well written book about the ancestry of the Obama’s father and family as well as his mother.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Obamas: The Untold Story of an African Family is an interesting mix of the history and origin of the Obama family and the history of Kenya. The book explores the origins of the Luo tribe, how they migrated to the Eastern coast of Lake Victoria and how they responded to cultural changes brought by European exploration and colonization. The book provides details of the most recent generations of the Obama family and shows how national politics, family politics, religious differences and cultural change affected them and split the clan into several groups. The book details how the life of Barack Obama Senior was influenced by his Muslim father, his involvement in Nationalistic politics and his American education. The book also explores his return to Kenya after his time at Harvard and how politics affected his life and eventually lead to his early death.

[Ethan Green]

There are really two themes in this book. The first of which I really enjoyed- the majority of the book where the author was giving a history of the Luo people, colonial east Africa, and the past Obamas. The second theme really damaged the author's credibility because he repeatedly showered fawning adoration and adulation on the President and denigrated anyone foolish enough to disagree with or dislike Obama.

[Barbara Atlas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it because I learned lots of African and Kenyan history, life for the Kenyans under colonial rule, some of the progressive and terrible things the Europeans and Africans did. Dr. Livingston died of illnesses he contracted while exploring Kenya, Stanley was the child of an American prostitute who made himself famous as a journalist. It picked up where Dreams of my Father scratched the surface and left so many questions.

[Estelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Traces President Obama's patrimonial lineage from the diaspora of the people from southern Sudan to travels through Uganda, and settlement on the shores of Lake Victoria. This was the settlement of the Luo tribe in what is now Kenya. Through historical record and oral history Firstbrook describes the ancestral line of the Obamas, along with a history of Kenya from colonial times through modern-day independence

[Douglas Gorney · Rating 4 out of 5]

My interview with author Peter Firstbrook in The Atlantic: http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainm...

[Aasim Waheed · Rating 4 out of 5]

good

[Lorraine Tracey]

This was a really amazing book and when I didn't think I could respect Barack Obama any more - well this look back on his ancestral heritage has raised him even higher in my estimations. This book is raw in its telling of life in Kenya and tribal laws, initiations and expectations. Even up to and including the very recent history of Barack Obama's own father - it is absolutely mind blowing that Barack Obama became the President of the United States. Deep respect and I hope that whatever he is doing now, is bringing him and his family great joy, peace and happiness.
Recommend this one!

[Myra Flowers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written book and an interesting and informative account of President Obama's origins. Mr. Firstbrook writes of African history through the story of President Obama's family. He incorporates information of the culture and history and politics of Kenya. He avoids sanctification of Barak Obama Jr and treats him with the respect due a president but without the sugar coating . I learned so much from this book.

[StephenPaul ChaseJr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Obamas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!