Adult Book Club: “Life After Power” by Jared Cohen

Date/Time
Date(s) - 03/14/2025
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Location
Southeast Steuben County Library

Categories


This month’s book will be Life After Power: Seven Presidents and Their Search for Purpose Beyond the White House by Jared Cohen (512 pages).

About the book: Former presidents have an unusual place in American life. King George III believed that George Washington’s departure after two terms made him “the greatest character of the age.” But Alexander Hamilton worried former presidents might “[wander] among the people like ghosts.” They were both right.
Jared Cohen explores the untold stories in the final chapters of these presidents’ lives, offering a gripping and illuminating account of how they went from President of the United States one day, to ordinary citizens the next. He tells how they handled very human problems of ego, finances, and questions about their legacy and mortality. He shows how these men made history after they left the White House.

About the Author: Jared Cohen is the president of global affairs and co-head of applied innovation at Goldman Sachs; before that he was CEO of Jigsaw, which he founded at Alphabet Inc., and in 2016 was Google’s first director of ideas. From 2006 to 2010, he served as a member of the Secretary of State’s policy planning staff and as a close advisor to both Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton. He is a New York Times bestselling author of five books, most recently Accidental Presidents: Eight Men Who Changed America. He has been named to the Time 100 list, Foreign Policy’s “Top 100 Global Thinkers,” and Fortune’s “40 Under 40.” He lives in New York City with his wife and three daughters.

The Adult Book Club meets in-person at the Library on the second Friday of each month. If you have questions about the Book Club, please email Linda Reimer: reimerl@stls.org

 Check our calendar for future dates and book selections.