A powerful candid and richly detailed memoir from an American icon revealing what life looks
like after the presidency: triumphs tribulations and all. On January 20 2001 after nearly
thirty years in politics—eight of them as president of the United States—Bill Clinton was
suddenly a private citizen. Only fifty-four years old full of energy and ideas he wanted to
make meaningful use of his skills his relationships with world leaders and all he’d learned
in a lifetime of politics but how? Just days after leaving the White House the call came to
aid victims of a devastating earthquake in India and Clinton hit the ground running. Over the
next two decades he would create an enduring legacy of public service and advocacy work from
Indonesia to Louisiana Northern Ireland to South Africa and in the process reimagine
philanthropy and redefine the impact a former president could have on the world. Citizen is
Clinton’s front-row first-person chronicle of his postpresidential years and the most
significant events of the twenty-first century including 9 11 and the runup to the Iraq War
the Haiti earthquake the Great Recession the January 6 insurrection and the enduring culture
wars of our times. With clarity and compassion he also weighs in on the unprecedented
challenges brought on by a global pandemic ongoing income inequality a steadily warming
planet and authoritarian forces dedicated to weakening democracy. Yet Citizen is more than a
political memoir. These pages capture Clinton in a rare and unforgettable light: not only as a
celebrated former president and a foundation leader but as a father grandfather and husband.
He recounts his support for Hillary Clinton during her time as senator secretary of state and
presidential candidate and shares the frustration and pain of the 2016 election. In this
landmark publication the highly anticipated follow-up to the best-selling My Life Clinton
pens an illuminating account of American democracy on a global stage offering a frank
reflection on the past and with it a fearless embrace of our future. Citizen is a
self-portrait of equal parts eloquence insight and candor a testament to one man’s
unwavering commitment to family and nation.
