We're Better Than This: My Fight for the Future of Our Democracy

The audiobook containsbeautiful memories of Representative Elijah Cummings narrated by LaurenceFishburne and Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, with a foreword written and read bySpeaker Nancy Pelosi. Included are the eulogies from his funeral delivered byPresidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, Secretary Hillary Clinton, SpeakerNancy Pelosi, Harry Spikes, KweisiMfume, Bishop Walter Scott Thomas, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, Jennifer Cummings, Adia Cummings, andJames Cummings.

Baltimore Congressman Elijah Cummings was knownfor saying "We're better than this."

Hesaid it in Baltimore, a city on the verge of explosion over police treatment ofcitizens. He said it in Congress when microphones were shut down, barringfree speech. He said it when the President flaunted his power and ignoredthe Constitution. He said it when the President resorted to bullying, name-calling and feeding racial divisions. We are better than this. Hecontinued to say it until his final days last October. He said it becausehe believed we must call out what is wrong and call on our better selves tomake things right.

In We're Better Than This, Cummings details the formative moments in his life that prepared him to holdPresident Donald Trump accountable for his actions while in office. Cummingspowerfully weaves together the urgent drama of modern-day politics and thedefining stories from his past. He offers a unique perspective on how hisupbringing as the son of sharecroppers in a South Baltimore neighborhood, rampantwith racism and poverty, laid the foundation of a life spent fighting forjustice.

Cummingswas known for his ability to referee contentious members of Congress and reachacross the aisle for the sake of justice. Since his early days in politics, Cummings proved his abilities as a leader and legal mind who could operate atthe highest levels of democracy, always working with - and for - theunderserved.

Partmemoir, part call-to-action, the book goes behind the scenes with the HouseDemocratic leadership, offering an eye-opening account of the relentless andunprecedented obstructionism by both the President and GOP. Cummings' finalwords present a vital defense of how government oversight defines ourcollective trust and makes the case that, even in the face of our nation's mostchallenging times, we must remain rooted in the politics of optimism.