For 16 years, Angela Merkel held the responsibility of governing Germany, leading the country through numerous crises and shaping both German and international politics and society with her actions and attitudes. However, Angela Merkel was not born as Chancellor. In her memoirs, co-written with her long-time political advisor Beate Baumann, she reflects on her life in two German states – 35 years in the GDR and 35 years in reunified Germany. More personally than ever before, she recounts her childhood, youth, and studies in the GDR, as well as the dramatic year of 1989, when the Wall fell and her political life began. She shares her experiences from meetings and conversations with the most powerful people in the world and vividly and precisely illuminates how decisions were made at significant national, European, and international turning points that shape our times. Her book offers a unique insight into the inner workings of power – and is a strong plea for freedom.