Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    Can't Is Not an Option: My American Story
    Unavailable
    Can't Is Not an Option: My American Story
    Unavailable
    Can't Is Not an Option: My American Story
    Audiobook (abridged)4 hours

    Can't Is Not an Option: My American Story

    Published by Penguin Random House Audio

    4.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    A rising star in the Republican Party shares her inspirational memoir of family, hope, and the power of the American Dream.

    Decades before their daughter surprised the nation by becoming governor of South Carolina, Nikki Haley's parents had a dream. Ajit and Raj Randhawa were well-educated, well-off Sikhs in the Punjab region of India. But despite their high social status, the Randhawas wanted more for their family-the opportunities that only America could offer.

    So they left behind all they had known and settled in Bamberg, South Carolina (population: 2,500). As the first Indian family in a small Southern town in the early 1970s, the Randhawas faced ignorance, prejudice, and sometimes blatant hostility. Nikki remembers stopping at a roadside produce stand with her father, who always wore his traditional Sikh turban. Within minutes, two police cars pulled to make sure they weren't thieves.

    But the Randhawas taught their children that they should never think of themselves as victims. They stressed that if you work hard and stay true to yourself, you can overcome any obstacle. The key is believing that can't is not an option.

    The family struggled to make ends meet while starting a clothing business in their living room, eventually growing it into a multimillion- dollar success. At age twelve, Nikki started to do the bookkeeping and taxes after school. After graduating from college and entering the business world, she watched business owners like her parents battle government bureaucracy and overregulation.

    Her frustration inspired her to get into politics and run for the state legislature. That first campaign, against an entrenched incumbent, led to racial and religious slurs and threats-but Haley, like her parents, refused to back down. She won on a promise to fight for reform, lean budgets, and government accountability, which is exactly what she did-much to the dismay of South Carolina's old guard politicians.

    Soon she had a reputation as a conservative leader who could get things done. In the same state where her family was once ridiculed, she inspired a diverse grassroots following. In November 2010 she was elected South Carolina's first female governor and first nonwhite governor, and only the second Indian American governor in the country.

    Haley's story, as told firsthand in this inspiring memoir, is a testament to the power of determination, faith, and family. And it's proof that the American Dream is still strong and true in the twenty- first century.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateApr 3, 2012
    ISBN9781101555026
    Unavailable
    Can't Is Not an Option: My American Story

    Related to Can't Is Not an Option

    Related audiobooks

    Political Biographies For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    Reviews for Can't Is Not an Option

    4.5/5

    16 ratings3 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      I absolutely love Nikki Haley and was overjoyed to see she had written a book. Her life story is absolutely inspiring, and she goes into her policies as well. Here’s to hoping she’s our first female President!
    • 5/5
      Nikki Haley has written an outstanding book.
      The events described herein make you feel as if you are personally present there and hearing and watching what all is going on.
      The personal heartbreaking and torturous experience which author had to navigate through in her political journey is very revealing and touching. She has proved herself to be a woman with steel nerves and unparalleled determination, clarity in vision and faith in her God.
    • 5/5
      I gave this book 4.5 stars primarily because it was a story which kept me reading to the end, in just a few short hours I was able to follow Governor Haley's interesting life. I knocked off only half a star because it was boilerplate in the respect that a politician spends most of their memoir recounting their political triumphs. Not to take those away from them, but I am more interesting in their life story, especially a story like hers. She learned to deal with adversity and it made her a stronger person; she was neither white nor black and found her way through childhood better for it. Gov. Haley also learned the struggles of small business owners and those shackled by goverment regulations.In short, her personal story was inspiring; the book's format was standard fare.