I read this at around the same time that Donald Trump was being indicted. Two figures more polarised one will not find. It is an account of Obama’s early life ending just before he sets off for law school and was written when he was a senator I believe, so quite an old book now. This book is slick, sophisticated, intelligent, wise, well considered, and has a deeply reflective moral centre. All things that one would expect from a leader and particularly from the president of a country. That Donald Trump ever became president is inexplicable enough but the fact that even now, people are questioning as to whether his indictment might strengthen his chances of being re-elected would be laughable if not so tragic. Trump is the opposite of all of the above and anyone that fails to notice this obvious reality is an utter fool. In fact that’s an understatement. So far fetched are these events that I do wonder sometimes where the hidden cameras are.
That aside, this is an interesting a deeply personal book, more so than I had anticipated. Race is the overriding theme, which, though of course important, I did find a little overpowering and didn’t allow much room for anything else. Either way, as one might expect, very well written and scholarly.
The only other criticism I would have is the cover. Whoever thought it was a good idea to have him wearing a green/blue shirt on a blue background?