
Amazon Prime Free Trial
FREE Delivery is available to Prime members. To join, select "Try Amazon Prime and start saving today with FREE Delivery" below the Add to Cart button and confirm your Prime free trial.
Amazon Prime members enjoy:- Cardmembers earn 5% Back at Amazon.com with a Prime Credit Card.
- Unlimited FREE Prime delivery
- Streaming of thousands of movies and TV shows with limited ads on Prime Video.
- A Kindle book to borrow for free each month - with no due dates
- Listen to over 2 million songs and hundreds of playlists
Important: Your credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. If you're happy with Amazon Prime, do nothing. At the end of the free trial, your membership will automatically upgrade to a monthly membership.
Buy new:
-28% $20.79$20.79
Ships from: Amazon Sold by: MatSamStore
Save with Used - Good
$1.44$1.44
$3.98 delivery March 5 - 6
Ships from: glenthebookseller Sold by: glenthebookseller
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
Image Unavailable
Color:
-
-
-
- To view this video download Flash Player
-
-
VIDEO -
Hostages No More: The Fight for Education Freedom and the Future of the American Child Hardcover – June 21, 2022
Purchase options and add-ons
From coronavirus lockdowns to critical race theory in the classroom, it has become crystal clear that America’s schools aren’t working for America’s students and parents. No one knows this better than Betsy DeVos.
Long before she was tapped by President Trump to serve as secretary of education, DeVos established herself as one of the country’s most influential advocates for education reform, from school choice and charter schools to protecting free speech on campus. She’s unflinching in standing up to the powerful interests who control and benefit from the status quo in education – which is why the unions, the media, and the radical left made her public enemy number one.
Now, DeVos is ready to tell her side of the story after years of being vilified by the radical left for championing common-sense, conservative reforms in America’s schools.
In Hostages No More, DeVos unleashes her candid thoughts about working in the Trump administration, recounts her battles over the decades to put students first, hits back at “woke” curricula in our schools, and details the reforms America must pursue to fix its long and badly broken education system. And she has stories to tell: DeVos offers blunt insights on the people and politics that stand in the way of fixing our schools.
For students, families and concerned citizens, DeVos shares a roadmap for reclaiming education and securing the futures of our kids – and America.
- Print length320 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherCenter Street
- Publication dateJune 21, 2022
- Dimensions6.35 x 1.3 x 9.3 inches
- ISBN-101546002014
- ISBN-13978-1546002017
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.
Explore your book, then jump right back to where you left off with Page Flip.
View high quality images that let you zoom in to take a closer look.
Enjoy features only possible in digital – start reading right away, carry your library with you, adjust the font, create shareable notes and highlights, and more.
Discover additional details about the events, people, and places in your book, with Wikipedia integration.
Frequently bought together

Customers who bought this item also bought
From the Publisher
Meet the Author
Betsy DeVos is a leader, innovator, accomplished business leader, and champion for freedom. Having served as the 11th U.S. Secretary of Education from 2017-2021, she delivered historic reforms to improve education and ensure civil rights are protected. For more than three decades she’s led the fight for policies that allow students and their parents the freedom to choose the best educational option for them. Betsy is the former chair of the American Federation for Children, The Philanthropy Roundtable, and the Michigan Republican Party, and has served on numerous boards, including the Kennedy Center and the American Enterprise Institute.
From the Introduction
Americans have never been as receptive to fundamental change in our education system as they are today. But decades-long experience in the education freedom trenches has taught me that this new receptivity must translate into political will—bipartisan political will. That means Democrats have to rethink their role as the political arm of the school union bosses. And many Republicans have to reevaluate their reluctance to act boldly to advance school choice.
The time has come for a truly new approach. We tried throwing truckloads of money at schools. That didn’t make them open any sooner during the pandemic. We tried banning poisonous ideologies like critical race theory, but that hasn’t—and won’t—drive the tendency to indoctrinate our children from our public schools.
The answer is education freedom.
Editorial Reviews
Review
―Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
“In this timely new book, Betsy provides a compelling look at the progress made in education under our administration and offers fresh ideas to put America’s children first and prepare them to achieve and live the American Dream. This is a book for every parent, grandparent, and concerned citizen who cares about the future of America and generations to come.” ―Michael R. Pence, 48th Vice President of the United States
“Hostages No More provides readers an inside look at the opposition Secretary Betsy DeVos faced from the day she was nominated and throughout her four years, and her honest efforts to reorient America’s public education system around individual students. Since the introduction of our industrial education model two centuries ago, nearly all students have been held hostage to a single, one-size-fits-all system. Hostages No More takes readers into the back room battles to provide every student with a quality, individualized education. And in a surprise twist, culminates with Secretary DeVos’ very public battles to rely on science, put students first, and re-open America’s public schools – in opposition to the nation’s two largest teachers’ unions fighting tooth and nail to keep public schools closed.”―Jeb Bush, 43rd governor of Florida
“No one has a bigger heart for students and has done more to ensure parents matter in education than Betsy DeVos. I know from experience working with her, you can count on Betsy to put our children first. COVID made clear that too many of our schools aren’t working for American families. In Hostages No More, she lays out the path forward to get our education system on the right track. It’s an important guide for parents across our great country.” ―Governor Kim Reynolds, State of Iowa
“Long before Betsy DeVos gained national attention as the Secretary of Education, I witnessed first-hand how passionate and devoted she was to the fundamental right of every child in America to have the best education possible ‘regardless of their zip code.’ I have respected and admired her since the very first day I met her many years ago, mostly because she lives her life giving of her time and treasure to better the lives of others because she herself has been so blessed. And she’s done her homework! Over her three decades of work in education she’s learned how to fix our broken educational system and through this book, Hostages No More, you will learn how to as well.”―Kathie Lee Gifford
“Betsy DeVos has been a leading voice in the most important civil rights fight of our generation – providing parents with real choice in the what, where, and how their child is taught and ensuring that access to a quality education is not determined by a child’s wealth, race, or zip code. In Hostages No More, Betsy offers an exciting vision for education freedom and an educational system that empowers parents and families, to give all students a real chance at success.”
―U.S. Senator Ted Cruz"In Hostages No More, Betsy DeVos provides a clear vision for how educational freedom can unlock opportunities for students of all backgrounds. This is a roadmap for parents, teachers, and entrepreneurs who believe that hope starts with education based in equal opportunity."―Arthur C. Brooks, Professor, Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School, and #1 New York Times bestselling author
“…a fierce fighter and a fierce voice for the rights of our children and for the rights of parents to a first-class education.”―Condoleezza Rice
“This is probably the most important book on education that you can read right now…This is a great, great book and has some real solutions in it from a person who has been destroyed by the media…you will be amazed to hear her real story in the book. She has real solutions. It’s all about education freedom. Grab the book. It’s an important book, it’s actually a really good read…a must read.”―Glenn Beck
About the Author
Learn more at BetsyDeVos.com.
Product details
- Publisher : Center Street (June 21, 2022)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 320 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1546002014
- ISBN-13 : 978-1546002017
- Item Weight : 1.2 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.35 x 1.3 x 9.3 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #877,734 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #597 in Government Social Policy
- #710 in Education Reform & Policy
- #1,522 in History of Education
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book informative and well-written. It provides useful information about education, articulating the problem and providing a solution clearly.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They say it covers important topics in an interesting way.
"Excellent book. Highly recommend to all...." Read more
"...This book is a sleeper. It is a really interesting and deep discussion of education peppered with her real world life and experience which makes it..." Read more
"...I am more impressed with Betsy decides dedication than ever. A must read!" Read more
"A must read for anyone who cares about children or education...." Read more
Customers find the book informative and interesting. It provides important information about education, with a deep discussion peppered with personal experiences. The book clearly articulates the problem and offers a solution.
"...It’s time for us to stand up and fix that. This book clearly articulates the problem and also clearly gives the solution: let the money follow..." Read more
"Excellent book. Highly recommend to all. Provides excellent insight into our currently flawed educational system, but with educators such as Mrs...." Read more
"...This book is a sleeper. It is a really interesting and deep discussion of education peppered with her real world life and experience which makes it..." Read more
"informative read..." Read more
Reviews with images
Written for youth advocates
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 12, 2022Who should read this book?
Anyone who has children, plans to have children, knows someone with children, or cares at all about educational quality or justice for all children and families.
Who will not want to read this book?
Anyone involved with school unions or maintaining “the system” on behalf of those who benefit financially from it (to the detriment of our children and country).
My summary:
In a country that says we ALL have the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, in our current public education system this is not true.
It’s time for us to stand up and fix that.
This book clearly articulates the problem and also clearly gives the solution: let the money follow the student and this will open up education freedom for ALL students- i.e. “hostages no more”.
I have given away 4 copies and plan to give away several more.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 14, 2023Excellent book. Highly recommend to all. Provides excellent insight into our currently flawed educational system, but with educators such as Mrs. DeVos and if people listed we will be back on track. This is one great read!
- Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2022It is quite embarrassing for the greatest nation in the world to have so many people who can not read and write or do math. I work in a school and I see a lot of teachers who are under paid for the amount of work they do. I know the union that represents them work hard to better their conditions but at the same time I see the destructive behaviors of a lot of union possess. The pandemic certainly detailed that. I think most teachers will agree, the public setting is not for every student. I saw that with my own kids. I had one who was not challenged enough and one who struggled. It would have been nice for us to have options that would have been better for our kids. Fortunately our kids did survive and are both successful in their lives thanks to hard work and support we gave them. We are very proud of their accomplishments. But far to often in my position at the school, I see kids who do slip through the cracks and do not get the quality education they deserve. This book reiterates that point. I know the administration I work with tries their very best and I am thankful for that, but I know we can better as a nation to serve our kids with school choice. Thanks Betsy for what you do and telling your story.
- Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2022I bought it and did not know what to expect. This book is a sleeper. It is a really interesting and deep discussion of education peppered with her real world life and experience which makes it matter. I found it a fascinating read. Very well done and very well worth reading.
- Reviewed in the United States on September 13, 2022DeVos is a champion for optimizing education for all children, a position that threatens tradionally-funded public education and Randi Weingarten’s teacher’s unions. DeVos was disappointed in Pres Trump because he didn’t lead his campaigns on education freedom, making her feel sidelined. Unions have failed children because their priority is keeping publicly funded jobs in place for their own enrichment, not actually preparing students for the real world. DeVos describes several examples of successful alternatives to tradional funding. It’s important to know this position because it has been shouted down by the counterproductive unions. DeVos would dismantle the Dept of Education and leave the issue to the states rather than letting federal puppeteers control local issues. I agree with her.
- Reviewed in the United States on September 23, 2022A bold new vision from a woman who has been in the trenches for decades, fighting for American children to receive better education choices.
Betty DeVoss is a champion for children!
- Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2022Betsy Devos did a great job and service to
Parents who care about their child’s education. She’s an amazing humanitarian and describes to a “t” the reasons for the failings of the public school system. It’s too bad she couldn’t have remained the education secretary because she would have done so much good for our education system. She explains how the school unions have become so politicized that they no longer have our childrens interest at heart.
- Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2022you cannot criticize betsy devos without first reading this insider's account from working within the trump administration to try to improve public education.










