--- description: Former President Barack Obama posted his 2017 book and music roundup. Here's what Barack Obama listened to and read in 2017. title: Here's Barack Obama's Favorite Books and Music of 2017 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt86b9ab57e5cd5656/6988f6b8cf40a86698c4ac64/barack-obama.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Ideas](/section/ideas/) ## Ideas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Books](/tag/books/) ## Books Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Here Are Barack Obama's Favorite Books and Music of 2017  by [Jamie Ducharme](/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Dec 31, 2017 8:42 PM CUT  Barack Obama delivers a speech in Paris, France. Barack Obama delivers a speech in Paris, France.Chesnot—Getty Images  by [Jamie Ducharme](/author/jamie-ducharme/)  ## Jamie Ducharme Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Ducharme is a contributor to TIME. Dec 31, 2017 8:42 PM CUT Former President Barack Obama used the newfound “extra time on \[his\] hands” to do plenty of reading in 2017, according to his annual year-end roundup of books and music. “During my presidency, I [started a tradition of sharing my reading lists](http://time.com/4638127/barack-obama-book-list/ "undefined") and playlists,” Obama wrote on Facebook Sunday. “It was a nice way to reflect on the works that resonated with me and lift up authors and artists from around the world. With some extra time on my hands this year to catch up, I wanted to share the books and music that I enjoyed most.” Obama’s book list includes a healthy mix of fiction _(The Power_, by Naomi Alderman)_,_ non-fiction (_Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City_, by Matthew Desmond) and memoirs (_Dying_, by Cory Taylor). Here’s the full list: --- > “” --- The former president’s 2017 [playlist is even more diverse](http://time.com/4629441/barack-obama-playlists/ "undefined"), running the gamut from Camila Cabello’s “Havana” to Bruce Springsteen’s classic “Born in the U.S.A.” (“Not out yet, but the blues version in his Broadway show is the best!” Obama added of the latter.) You can see all of Obama’s recommendations in his Facebook post. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5082975/barack-obama-2017-book-music-list/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5082975/barack-obama-2017-book-music-list/"},"headline":"Here Are Barack Obama's Favorite Books and Music of 2017","datePublished":"2017-12-31T20:42:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T18:42:10.809Z","description":"Obama had some \"extra time\" on his hands this year","url":"https://time.com/5082975/barack-obama-2017-book-music-list/","keywords":["Books","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt86b9ab57e5cd5656/6988f6b8cf40a86698c4ac64/barack-obama.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jamie Ducharme","jobTitle":"Ducharme is a contributor to TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/jamie-ducharme/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt86b9ab57e5cd5656/6988f6b8cf40a86698c4ac64/barack-obama.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Introductory Session To The 7th Summit Of Les Napoleons In Paris","caption":"Introductory Session To The 7th Summit Of Les Napoleons In Paris","creditText":"Chesnot—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5082975/barack-obama-2017-book-music-list/","name":"Here Are Barack Obama's Favorite Books and Music of 2017"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"10 Days That Define the Obama Presidency","description":"As the president's final term comes to a close, TIME has taken a look back at the most consequential moments of his two terms in office, moments and decisions that will likely have a reach that extends far beyond his presidency.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/phWdWzJp/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-01-19T21:52:50.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/phWdWzJp.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5082975/barack-obama-2017-book-music-list/","duration":"PT21M59S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5082975/barack-obama-2017-book-music-list/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```