Biden will publish 'Promise Me, America' memoir after the November
midterm elections
[July 15, 2026]
By HILLEL ITALIE
NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Joe Biden will publish a memoir this
fall, publisher Little, Brown and Company told The Associated Press.
“Promise Me, America,” which Biden says will touch upon everything from
the economy to his decision to drop his bid for reelection, is scheduled
to come out Nov. 17.
The timing of the book — two weeks after midterm elections in which
Democrats seek to regain control of Congress — could raise concerns
within his party. Many Democrats remain divided on Biden's legacy and
his ill-fated determination to seek a second term in the White House,
and leaders hope to keep the fall campaign focused on the record of
Republican President Donald Trump.
“'Promise Me, America' is about the challenges we faced as a nation.
It’s about the decisions I made and why I made them,” Biden said in a
video statement accompanying Wednesday's announcement. “Most of all,
it’s about my faith in the promise of America.”
Reports of Biden's book have circulated for more than a year, and the
former president himself has referred to it during public remarks,
appearing to suggest it would be released before November's election.
Biden, who will turn 84 three days after the publication of “Promise Me,
America," has long presented himself as an upholder of standards and
traditions; presidential memoirs are one of them. With a handful of
exceptions, modern presidents since Harry Truman in the 1950s have
published books about their White House years. Little, Brown declined to
release financial details for ”Promise Me, America," although presidents
have usually reached deals worth at least seven figures.
The book's title echoes a 2017 memoir by Biden, “Promise Me, Dad,” which
centered on the death of his son, Beau Biden.
Vowing as a candidate to “restore the soul” of his country, Biden was
sworn into office in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the
aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump
supporters seeking to stop his certification as president. Biden's term
was defined by a wide range of conflicts and achievements, from his
handling of wars in Ukraine and the Middle East to the passage of
ambitious infrastructure and economic aid bills. But many readers will
likely want to know more about his health while president, including the
disastrous debate in June 2024 against Trump that led to his giving up
his reelection bid. Then-Vice President Kamala Harris, who ran instead,
lost decisively to Trump.
Former first lady Jill Biden wrote in her own book that her husband
seemed so weak and disoriented during the debate that she feared he was
having a stroke. In “View from the East Wing,” published in June, she
noted that the White House had initially said he was suffering from a
cold.
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This book cover image released by Little, Brown and Co. shows
"Promise Me, America" by Joe Biden. (Little, Brown and Co. via AP)
 “The biggest lesson for us, I think,
was that if you don’t explain something well enough then the
question won’t go away,” she wrote. “There was never a satisfying
enough explanation offered for Joe’s debate performance, and a lot
of people never got over it.”
Biden was the oldest man to serve as president and his health was a
source of speculation for much of his term; Biden and his White
House advisers have faced intense criticism from Democrats and
Republicans for allegedly concealing the extent of his problems. A
notable book release from 2025, Jake Tapper's and Alex Thompson's
“Original Sin,” was subtitled “President Biden’s Decline, Its
Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again.”
That year, Biden announced he had been diagnosed with prostate
cancer.
Biden's previous books also include “Promises to Keep,” a campaign
work published to boost his run for president in 2008, when Barack
Obama was the eventual nominee and Biden his running mate. ”Promise
Me, America" comes out during a year when nonfiction sales have
declined and few political books have caught on, although recent
bestsellers have included Vice President JD Vance's “Communion” and
an inside account of Trump's second term, by New York Times
reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, “Regime Change.”
A Little, Brown spokesperson said that Biden plans to tour on behalf
of the book and give interviews. In his video announcement, Biden
said that many people had been asking him how he was doing.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time with my family. I’m dealing with a
cancer diagnosis, been getting treatment, and it’s going really
well,” he said. “I want to thank all those who have offered their
prayers and support and well-wishes. It’s meant the world to me and
to Jill.”
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