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historyguru2007's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
tgannon's review against another edition
5.0
No matter your politics, it’s always important to hear the perspective of the person whose office is in oval.
blaineduncan's review against another edition
5.0
Being the president of the United States is fucking hard!
And because of all of the difficulties and issues which come with the job, it’s interesting to see how a man who is measured, intelligent, and decent make the big and small decisions all the while facing scrutiny from nearly all sides.
Though the book gets bogged in places on the minute details of policies, Obama doesn’t let that hinder either his writing or his sense of narrative.
Critics will stomp their feet that the book is nothing more than expository on his administration — and it is, in parts — but having that full view with such a sage voice makes it better. The best, though, is Obama’s jokes and insights about his political colleagues. Who knew the man had such gusto for the curse word?
It’s a tome, yes, but it’s enriching and excellent.
And because of all of the difficulties and issues which come with the job, it’s interesting to see how a man who is measured, intelligent, and decent make the big and small decisions all the while facing scrutiny from nearly all sides.
Though the book gets bogged in places on the minute details of policies, Obama doesn’t let that hinder either his writing or his sense of narrative.
Critics will stomp their feet that the book is nothing more than expository on his administration — and it is, in parts — but having that full view with such a sage voice makes it better. The best, though, is Obama’s jokes and insights about his political colleagues. Who knew the man had such gusto for the curse word?
It’s a tome, yes, but it’s enriching and excellent.
ameliatmoss's review against another edition
4.0
I too would write a memoir explaining every decision I made as President after I was President. I mean, I see the appeal in retroactively getting to explain yourself and hopefully having the dumbdumb American public understand that it's a hard fucking job and I was in a real pickle sometimes. That being said, this was not easy to read or understand and is for sure not for the American public. I don't necessarily have a better suggestion for organizing the book, nor do I have suggestions on how better to explain incredibly complex matters, but I'm a smart person and I was re-reading some of the stuff like....this sounds fuckin fake. Which brings me to my last point, reading this reinforced my idea that the government is kind of bull shit and capitalism is scary and everything is made up.
4/5 stars though because it was interesting even though it made me feel like an idiot.
4/5 stars though because it was interesting even though it made me feel like an idiot.
danielledenie's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.25
anniedreitzler's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.75
Really interesting but a touch dense.
khornstein1's review against another edition
3.0
Well...I'm a fan and I found this a tad dull. More than a tad if you've been following the news over the years. Lots of thanking people and describing situations we already know about. I liked the parts about his childhood and family so maybe I'd be better off reading one of his earlier books...or Michelle's.
bootless_bandit's review against another edition
4.0
While I disagree with many of the policy decisions made by former President Barack Obama, this memoir helped me to get insights into who he is, and why he made the decisions that he did. It left me with a greater respect for who he is as a human being.
adellama_05's review against another edition
4.0
Tells a responsible coverage of the world's events from 2008 to 2012 in President Obama's first term. It's funny and emotional where it should be. Gives a layperson (me) a great (I felt so) introduction to the functioning of the US federal government administration as you see it being run. Things that happen in this book include: handling the 2008 financial crisis, passing the Affordable Care Act, starting to withdraw from Iraq and expand operations in Afghanistan and other good stuff.