A Different Kind of Power

The Sunday Times bestseller The New York Times bestseller A Guardian Summer Reading Hottest Book Pick

This is not just a book for people who follow politics, but for anyone who has ever doubted themselves, or wanted to make a difference.

"An essential, inspiring read" – Natalie Portman

"Fascinating and engaging ... makes us yearn for an era of courage and hope" – Nicola Sturgeon, The Observer

The deeply personal memoir from the former prime minister of New Zealand, then the world's youngest female head of government and just the second to become a mother in office.

Jacinda Ardern grew up the daughter of a police officer in small-town New Zealand, but as the 40th Prime Minister of her country, she became a global icon for her empathetic leadership that put people first. She guided her country through unprecedented challenges, from the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks to a global pandemic. She advanced visionary policies to address climate change and child poverty. And all while juggling first-time motherhood in the public eye.

This is the inspiring story of how a Mormon girl plagued by self-doubt changed our assumptions of what a leader can be. A Different Kind of Power is more than a political memoir. Powerfully evocative and refreshingly open, it is a profound insight into how it feels to lead and it asks: what if you, too, are capable of more than you ever imagined?

"Clear-eyed and luminous" – Bill Bailey

"Warm and funny ... emotionally rich and candid" – The Guardian

"Wonderfully frank and open" – The Rest is Politics: Leading