Stand - by Cory Booker (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

The instant New York Times bestseller

An urgent call to rekindle our shared American ideals.

We are living through a time of crisis. The problems we face grow more serious, while our divisions continue to widen. But our history overflows with people who used the power of our foundational virtues to overcome impossible obstacles.

In Stand, Senator Cory Booker offers a hopeful and practical path forward, weaving together powerful stories and stirring personal reflections to remind us that our country's shared ideals can serve as a North Star to guide us, even when our journey feels especially dark and perilous. He argues that our principles are not luxuries; they are vital, strategic keys to our survival and success. By wielding these tools, we can reclaim our sense of common cause and change the course of our country's history.

Stand takes readers on a trip through America's past and present, showcasing moments when individuals and communities--in unexpected situations and against staggering odds--prevailed by embodying the best of our nation's virtues. Through the stories of leaders from President George Washington and Congressman John Lewis, to suffragist Alice Paul and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, to environmental justice advocate Ron Finley and disability rights activist Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins, Booker offers inspiring and actionable insights for Americans from all walks of life.

Published ahead of America's 250th anniversary, Stand is a defiantly optimistic challenge to reclaim our national story and work together to redeem the American dream.

Review Quotes

"Stand captured my mind and my heart. Through Booker's gifted storytelling, a series of virtues essential to our civil society are made concrete by tales of individuals who stood up in times of danger and adversity. These powerful stories evoke our emotions. They inspire us. They give us strength." --Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Leadership: In Turbulent Times

"With energy, insight, and a passion for the best of the American tradition, Cory Booker has issued a compelling and invaluable summons to what Lincoln called our 'better angels.' In an hour of political and moral crisis, Stand not only illuminates the problem but points us toward solutions. This is an important, suprapartisan work that deserves careful consideration by all Americans who long for a ceasefire to the total war our politics has become." --Jon Meacham, author of And There Was Light

"A stirring reminder of the central importance of virtue in a free society. Sen. Booker offers a roadmap not only for realizing the ideals of a more perfect union, but also--and perhaps more importantly--for carrying out the day-to-day practicalities of governance, activism, and community-building. Inspiring, moving, and beautifully written, Stand is mandatory reading for all Americans who seek inspiration in a country and world beset by constant crisis." --Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor, Harvard University

"An argument for moral principles, for ten virtues [Booker] sees as critical to American life, like agency and patriotism, but also vulnerability and humility." --NPR's Morning Edition

"I recommend people read it in these times because [it has] such inspiring stories." --Abby Huntsman, The View

About the Author

Cory Booker is the senior United States senator from New Jersey. Booker earned bachelor's and master's degrees at Stanford University, attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, and earned a law degree at Yale University. He served as mayor of Newark before becoming New Jersey's first Black senator and only the fourth popularly elected Black senator in US history. Booker is a national leader in the effort to expand economic opportunity and create safe, strong, nurturing communities for every American family. He lives in Newark's Central Ward.