Barack Obama to debut books podcast as he and wife Michelle keep up post-presidency cash in

WASHINGTON — Former President Barack Obama will front a new podcast beginning next month that focuses on six “great” books as he and wife Michelle continue to expand their post-White House media ventures.The 44th president described the forthcoming “A Great Book With Barack Obama” pod as a way of trying to reintroduce Americans to reading.“At a time when fewer people are able to sit down with a book, it’s important to remember the joy and power that can come from reading,” the former president explained on social media Monday.“And some books don’t just tell a story — they change the way we see the world.”The six-episode podcast will center around books that Obama said influenced his thinking on faith, politics, and race in America.The books include: “The Fire Next Time” by James Baldwin; “Song of Solomon” by Toni Morrison; “All the Pretty Horses” by Cormac McCarthy; “Gilead” by Marilynne Robinson; “All the King’s Men” by Robert Penn Warren; and “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” by John le Carré.“I invited some friends to explore why these books resonate, how they can shape our understanding of ourselves and each other, and why literature matters now more than ever,” added Obama, who awarded Morrison the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 and later called the Nobel laureat a “good friend.”The guest list for the limited edition podcast has not yet been made public.“A Great Book with Barack Obama” will be available on Audible in collaboration with the couple’s production company, Higher Ground.

Higher Ground and Audible previously teamed up on “Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast,” which produced 11 episodes between March 2023 and February 2024.The former president and author Malcolm Gladwell also co-hosted an eight-part series released by Higher Ground this summer called “Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise” that focused on post-Civil War America.Higher Ground, which was founded in 2018, has al...