A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "Valerie has been one of Barack and my closest confidantes for decades... the world would feel a lot better if there were more people like Valerie blazing the trail for the rest of us."--Michelle Obama "The ultimate Obama insider" ( The New York Times ) shares her journey at a pivotal moment in American history When Valerie Jarrett interviewed a promising young lawyer named Michelle Robinson in July 1991 for a job in Chicago city government, neither knew where that meeting might take them. Jarrett would go on to become a trusted friend and advisor to Michelle and Barack Obama -- and one of the most visible, influential African-American women of the twenty-first century. Now, in her forthright and optimistic memoir, Jarrett shares her experience as a mother, daughter, and woman who's experienced the magic that happens once we cast aside any unrealistic expectations of a perfect life or a perfect outcome. In Finding My Voice , she offers a galvanizing testament to the power in staying open to a change in course and an embrace of the uncomfortable. Only then, she argues, can we move forward together and truly learn to value--and listen to--our own voices.