moseslh 's review for:

Shortest Way Home: One Mayor's Challenge and a Model for America's Future by Pete Buttigieg

3.0

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I really enjoyed this memoir, and it's a fantastic introduction to Pete Buttigieg if you are interested in his presidential campaign. My relatively low rating is because it's a bit too much of an introduction to Mayor Pete and not enough of a "model for America's future." His biography is fascinating and his resume is quite impressive, but I felt like some things were missing. I would have liked more of a focus on the challenges South Bend has faced and any innovative methods he's used to address those. I also hoped for more of a vision of how to apply the lessons he's learned from his experience governing South Bend to other parts of the country. Furthermore, I felt that Mayor Pete was very cautious about revealing anything too vulnerable, which makes for a less compelling memoir. He does have a chapter about being gay, which he safely tucks away at the end of the book, barely alluding to his sexual orientation prior to that. He says very little about his experience in the closet. He discusses the story of his marriage to Chasten, but in a way that feels a little too picture-perfect. I certainly understand why a presidential candidate would exercise caution on this topic, but his caution makes for a less impactful and inspirational book.

All that being said, Buttigieg does have a lot of great insights, and I would still recommend the book to anyone with an interest in the 2020 election (i.e. most people).