I can't believe I never left a review for this title!

We were eight years in power is a remarkable book, not just for the quality of the essays it offers--Ta-Nehisi Coates writes with a mix of precision and directness that compels readers' attention. What really makes it remarkable--and here I'm speaking as a teacher of writing--is the "Notes" that precede each essay. Coates discusses how political changes have changed since the original writing of each piece. He also reflects on his own development as a writer. Having original works paired with metacognitive reflection is a teacher's dream come true. Coates models the kinds of self-examination that I try to help y students develop. Reading his "Notes" gives them a language and structure for this self-examination.

I've been teaching the book as part of a required university course for the past four or five years--and I am delighted with the kind of critical awareness it allows my students to develop.

Highlighted this book at the links below because it is such an important, powerful book. Loved this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this reader's copy. In exchange, I am providing an honest review.

I was very "excited" to read this book so perhaps my expectations were heightened. Broken down into eight years of our nation having its first African-American President, Coates provides basically two essays for each year. The essay which was featured in The Atlantic, for which he wrote for a time, and an introductory or explanatory essay of The Atlantic piece.

It was all, in my humble opinion, a bit too much. Coates has gained notoriety as an intellectual, he's a distinguished writer who got to the place he is through a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. He struggled for years until he finally broke through with his voice. But it's all so much. There are two ways to approach being known as an intellectual. One way is to adapt to your audience and be able to speak to them on their level no matter what the level is so that your ideas and thoughts are heard and understood by the majority. The other way is to stay in your elevated status and change nothing about how you communicate to people and if they can't keep up then oh well, too bad for them. You are an intellectual and don't adapt to others. I'm not sure where Coates falls but he definitely doesn't adapt for his listening and reading audiences. He's very prolific with his thoughts and putting them into words on paper. He's very high-minded. In one sense this is all very good. He's confident in what he writes and knows, he doesn't back down from even criticism from the very President he's been writing about. But in another sense, this is not good because he's leaving a lot of people behind in his wake of words. He's, well, too prolific. I am a reader and not intellectual but not dimwitted either and I found his essays tedious to get through. There were sentences here and there that stuck out but they got lost in all the words surrounding them.

I almost gave up on this book more times than I can remember. Basically, every time I picked up the book I thought, "Why am I still reading this?" It was very tedious. When I finally closed in on 100% I got very excited except the book kept going. It's like the words just wouldn't stop. This book is more than 100%, it's like 102%. And when all is said and done here's my takeaway from the whole book, Coates thought Obama's years in office weren't as productive as they should have been. Is that even the correct takeaway? If not, I'm sure Coates has plenty to say about it.

Celebrated author, Ta-nehisi Coates announced his book tour for ☛ WE WERE EIGHT YEARS IN POWER: AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY [pub: One World/@Randomhouse] yesterday! Selfishly, I waited 'til I bought my ticket to post this. Nowwww, I can put you on 😎.
#NYC check out the #author in convo with his publisher, Chris Jackson, Tues., Oct. 3, 2017 from 6-8pm at Tishman Auditorium [53 5th Ave., betw 13th & 14th Streets, 10003] Tix $35 on eventbrite. Swipe ⬅ for more stops on his nationwide tour.
#GetLitWithPaula 📚🍸

The writings that Ta-Nehisi Coates has published are a gift to the world. They passionately inspire us to think critically about the world, and about our relationships with others. I so appreciate the tone that he uses in these essays to push people out of their comfort zones and into a more thoughtful, open place. Highly recommended!

Ta-Nehisi Coates is a powerful writer and speaker. A collection of essays originally written for The Atlantic Magazine, this is a must read for everyone.

Amazing. A must real for all people, especially teachers. Now is the best time to start educating ourselves about POC.

A powerful, superbly well-written collection of essays by one of America's best essayists. I'm familiar with the author's work from The Atlantic, mainly, so I'm always on the look-out for more of his work. "We Were Eight Years in Power" was widely praised when it was first published, and it's not surprising why.

Highly recommended.

An interesting concept - a look back at a series of 8 essays Coates wrote during the Obama administration, each with a forward written in 2017 and how the post-Obama/now Trump reality altered the view. I liked a lot of the ideas and stories that Coates puts forward here, but I do wish they had drawn me in a bit more - I'm not sure if it needed more "forward motion" energy, or less repetition, or what, but it just didn't pull me in as much as I'd hoped.

This book is a series of eight articles that were originally published in The Atlantic reflecting on the history of discrimination against African Americans and the presidency of Barack Obama as well as the backlash that occurred as a result of his election as the first African American president. He even makes a case for reparations as well. He even goes into the "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" way of thinking. He also goes into the tragedy of the election of Donald Trump and how racism was a factor in his election as well as a backlash against the first African American president. He does skip over the fact that sexism also played a part in his election since there are still some conservatives who don't think that a woman should be president.

A series of essays taken from Coates during the eight-year period of Barack Obama's presidency. This includes his last essay on the Obama Presidency called My President Was Black. What he wants to demonstrate in these essays comes from the title of the book. People fear a good Negro government. After Reconstruction ended, it demonstrates that African-Americans can govern and govern well despite claims to the opposite. These essays demonstrate the problems with racism, identity, and legacy as an African-American growing up in this country. The last essay is a beautiful treatise on the importance of Obama and brings the book full circle.

We Were Eight Years in Power collects eight essays by Ta-Nehisi Coates, one for each year that Barack Obama was in power. The essays were originally printed in The Atlantic and each is introduced by Coates' later reflections on how he feels about the issues since the election of Trump. The title itself was taken from the words of Thomas Miller, a Black man elected to the South Carolina House during Reconstruction, another period when it seemed Black people could succeed in US society only to have this early experiment in integration quickly snatched away by racism. The essays cover many topics including slavery, Jim Crow, the effects of gentrification and mass incarceration on the Black population, and the Black Conservatism of Bill Cosby. They are all well-written, well-documented, insightful, informative, and clear and they pack a real punch.

I was first granted access to this book back in 2017 from Netgalley and the publishers. At the time, although I read it immediately, no matter how many times I tried I couldn't seem to write a review and eventually gave up. However, in this era of Trump and the rise of white nationalism throughout the west including in Canada, I decided to read it again. This is the kind of book that should be read by anyone who cares how we got to this sorry pass and where we may be heading in the future and I recommend it highly.

I was never a fan of the author, now I hope he keeps boldly speaking truth to power forever and ever amen.

This is a collection of 8 essays written by Ta-Nehisi Coates: 1 from The Village Voice and the rest from The Atlantic. Each essay is prefaced by a new intro placing the piece in context with What We Know Now.

For everyone who is still wondering What Happened when 45 was elected POTUS, this is a good starting point. It is ONLY a starting point, no one thing should be The Explanation. It's not that simple.

Recommended for errbody.

A collection of eight essays published in the atlantic. One for each year of Obama’s presidency. Some memoir, a lot of grappling with race and violence and identity in America today. We can see clearly see how trump and the rise of white supremacy have been a backlash to the Obama administration. This would be a great book club selection, or any other intimate study read-along situation with ample room for discussions about the many heavy topics. Not really the kind of book you want to read alone -this drives you to conversation and grappling.

Mr. Coates writes eloquently and with great social insight, but the reader may feel frustrated or despondent over the truths presented in these essays, from the past and its reflection in the present state of affairs. The world - and especially America - needs solutions, not reactionary fixes but long term resolutions through education and community inclusion for all. The tragedy is that President Obama placed us on the path toward these goals, but the shadow of our better selves thwarted our journey. This book reminds us of the destination that awaits us.

Obviously this book covers important topics, but I found it too repetitive for a casual read. I realize that this is due to the essays having been originally published as stand alone pieces in <i>The Atlantic</i>, but it makes for a tedious read. I did appreciate the introductions Coates added to each piece.

I cannot think of a for fitting subtitle than the one for this book. An American Tragedy, indeed, well-deserving all caps, even. This collection of Coates' articles written during President Obama's years in office are a sobering and heart-wrenching look back at a groundbreaking presidency, only to be followed by such a ginormous shit-show that it is hard to believe we are talking about the same America. Sadly, we are.

Prior to this read, I was familiar with Coates' work and had enjoyed several of his articles for The Atlantic, though some of these were still new to me. And truthfully, I am having a very difficult time putting into words all the emotions I felt while reading this one. As a result, this might actually be one of the worst reviews I have ever written because no matter how I try, the words I write don't properly convey how important this book is. I might as well just stand on an actual soapbox on a street corner, banging a drum and shouting at passers-by that they MUST read this book. What I CAN say is that if you are looking for the voice of this generation in regards to writing, speaking, thinking about race, you can stop now; Coates is that voice, that writer, that thinker. Not only are the articles fantastic, but it is the in-between stuff that really pops. Coates prefaces each article with further writing, discussing his frame of mind at the time, what was going on when he penned that particular articles, and his reflections on it now that President Obama's time in office is receding further and further in the rear-view mirror. It is interesting to read of how his writing and thinking evolved over the course of Obama's two terms, and how that impacted him as a whole. You can certainly locate each individual article online, but please trust me when I say your time and money spent on the book would be well worth it. In fact, I wish this would become required reading in high school and beyond - especially two of the most powerful essays in a strong collection of work: "My President Was Black" and "The Case for Reparations". The latter is especially eye-opening, even for those who think they already have a solid grasp on how deeply racism is embedded into every day life in America, even in 2018. ESPECIALLY in 2018.

In the final essay, the epilogue really to eight years of President Obama, comes Coates' final thoughts entitled, "The First White President". The title alone really makes one stop and think, with Coates providing his thoughts on why the statement is so infuriatingly accurate, and I thoroughly agree with his argument - that trumplethinskin's "entire political existence hinges on" a black president coming before him. he truly won for no other reason than being a white male, it really is that simple. This grossly unqualified candidate lead the way on the birtherism 'movement', and has demanded multiple times to see President Obama's transcripts, because OF COURSE a black man could not really be intelligent enough to attend an Ivy League school (sometimes when I type, I roll my eyes so hard I am worried they will roll right out of my head). If this line of thinking from trump makes you uncomfortable, good. It should. His thoughts, words, and actions are so normalized at this point, I fear we may never recover. 2020 can not come fast enough, and we must do all we can in the Midterm elections to right this ship before we reach the point of no return.

In addition to the aforementioned articles, Coates touches on a number of other topics as well in his selection of work from each year of the Obama presidency. One of my other favorites was a piece on Michelle Obama, her upbringing, and message sent in conjunction with that of her husband's. Also addressed at length is the epidemic of mass incarcerations and the impact that has on Black families - another fantastic piece that is timely and horrifying.

Basically what I am trying to say here is that the collection is superb. Even those articles from the earliest years of the Obama Administration are just as important now as they were then. We are also lucky enough to be able to go back to those articles now, with the knowledge we have gained in the time since they were first written. This brings another dimension to Coates' writing that we should be thankful for. In these articles, as well as the prefaces he has included for each of them, Coates writes in such a persuasive way, yet still allows himself to be completely open and vulnerable. He does not have all the answers, nor does he claim to. But to understand one another and work toward building a better, more inclusive future, his words provide a wonderful starting point - if everyone is will to take those steps and begin that journey.

I highly recommend this book to pretty much any and everyone. The unfortunate part is that those who might need it the most in all likelihood will never pick it up. Therein lies the problem. But the rest of us can and must pick up the slack and keep moving forward.

Ta-Nehisi Coates's follow up to BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME did not disappoint. The introductory essays really helped to keep the original essays even more relevant today. Coates's writing is illuminating and educational in addition to being plain old good reading.

Simply incredible. Coates is an immensely talented author and reading this collection was genuinely a pleasure though admittedly somewhat depressing every time I remembered who the current president of the USA is.

This is a collection of quintessential Coates, so if you like his other stuff, you'll like this. I found it too uncritical of Obama, but those are my own personal political views. His writing is, of course, phenomenal.