Former President Joe Biden is set to publish a memoir titled Promise Me, America this fall, according to publisher Little, Brown and Company, as reported by the Associated Press. The book is scheduled for release on November 17, 2026, just three days before Biden’s 84th birthday and two weeks after the midterm elections in which Democrats aim to regain control of Congress.

Biden said in a video statement accompanying the announcement, “Promise Me, America is about the challenges we faced as a nation. It’s about the decisions I made and why I made them. Most of all, it’s about my faith in the promise of America.” The memoir will cover a range of topics from economic issues to his decision to drop his bid for re-election.

Reports of Biden’s memoir have circulated for over a year, with the former president previously hinting at a release before the November elections. The timing of the book’s publication has raised some concerns within the Democratic Party, as many remain divided over Biden’s legacy and his pursuit of a second term. Party leaders hope to keep the fall campaign focused on the record of former President Donald Trump.

Biden’s presidency began amid significant challenges, including the Covid-19 pandemic and the aftermath of the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by Trump supporters. He campaigned on a promise to “restore the soul” of the country.

Promise Me, America arrives in a year marked by a decline in nonfiction sales and few political books gaining widespread attention, although recent bestsellers include Vice-President JD Vance’s Communion and Regime Change, an inside account of Trump’s second term by New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.

Sources