I bought this book a while ago from Borders, sometime after the Democratic National Convention in 2004. That was when I first heard of Barack Obama, junior senator from Illinois. He seemingly came out of nowhere, a quickly rising star and I wanted to know more about him. I'd decided I would read a nonfiction book for every 3 fictions and I chose this one for the first of the year.
I really liked his voice. The story he tells is poignant and compelling. I did not know this before but Barack Obama is multicultural. He had a black African father and a white mother who'd relocated to Hawaii with her family (from the midwest!). His mother's parents were somewhat liberal and left the midwest not only because of restlessness but because they didn't care for the bigoted views there. Still they were taken aback at the idea their daughter would marry a black man.
Unfortunately for Obama, his father did not stay and he grew up wondering about the man. His mother remarried an Indonesian man named Lolo and for a short time, they all lived in Indonesia where the young Obama saw first hand what life was like for the poor. And boy, talk about multicultural experiences!
On the road to trying to "find himself" Obama has some very enlightening experiences and encounters and he is honest about them all as he examines who he is. He eventually makes it to Kenya and meets his other family.
I thought this was a very inspiring book! Read it to hear a fresh, honest voice--one that hasn't been jaded by the politics machine yet!
Posted by Cassie at January 28, 2007 04:00 PM | TrackBack