Hardcover: 368 pages Publisher: Little, Brown and Company (January 10, 2012) Language: English ISBN-10: 0316098752 ISBN-13: 978-0316098755	Order book here:
		Order E-book here:

Review

The election of Barack Obama, the nation’s first black President was one of the most historic elections in the history of the country.  But before the streamers had even finished floating to the ground, the controversies started.  His election gave birth to birthers, the Tea Party, and many forms of ugliness.  How does a man survive in this hostile world, and more, how does his wife?

In Jodi Kantor’s book we get to look into the four years of the Obama Presidency.  Each chapter is dedicated to 3 or 4 months over the 4 year period.  As a reader, one gets to see the feelings/behind the scenes functioning over some of the biggest political issues.

You also get a glimpse into the personal lives of the President and First Lady.  You get to see how she struggled to find her own voice.  You’ll see the personal conflicts between her and Rahm Emanuel.  In short, you get a good glimpse at the stresses that go with being President, a job I wouldn’t take for any amount of money.

I thought the book was well written, very well researched, and it kept me engaged.  Being a bit of a political junkie, I remembered most of the scenes that took place and really enjoyed seeing some of the behind the scenes stuff that was involved.

Whether you are a fan of this President or not, I think you’d probably this book interesting, just for a look at what the President’s job is actually like.  Pick it up, give it a read, and stop back here and let me know what you think.

About the Author

Jodi Kantor began her journalism career by dropping out of Harvard Law School to join Slate.com in 1998. Four years later she became the Arts & Leisure editor of the New York Times, the youngest person in memory to edit a section of the newspaper. She has been covering the Obamas since 2007, writing about their faith, friends, marriage, roots, and family, among other topics. Jodi is a recipient of a Columbia Young Alumni Achievement Award, was named to Crain’s “Forty Under Forty” list of New Yorkers, and appears regularly on television. Though she is a Washington correspondent for the Times, she lives in Brooklyn with her family.

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Anna at Hachette Book Group for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 27th, 2012 at 2:54 pm and is filed under Books, Memoir, Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.