The Audacity of Hope

The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama

Category: Political/Memoir Grade: A-

Every indication is that Barack Obama is going to emerge as one of the primary political leaders of the next decade whether he runs for President next time or not. Because of that alone, I'd recommend anybody interested in where the country is going pick up a copy of this book. Whether you agree with Obama's politics (for the most part, I do) or not, his thoughts are going to be a big part of framing the debates of the next few years.

That said, the other reason to read Obama is that he's just an amazing writer. His first book, Dreams of My Father, is incredible, especially since it was written before he became a politician. This new book is really serving a very specific purpose and you have to remember that as you read. That purpose, of course, is to set Obama on the path to the Presidency. He's not quite as candid as he was in his first book, but, for a politician there really seems to be a lot of soul baring going on.

His chapters on the constitution and politics are written by a politician. They're well constructed, informative and give you a good idea of his position on a lot of issues and also a good glimpse of what his style might be. Of course, he has relatively little power right now, so it'll be very interesting to see if his, centrist, listen-to-everybody, comprising style would last when he's got his fingers on the button.

To get a better idea of his ability as writer, though, pay special attention to the chapters on faith and family. Its really beautiful writing. If the President thing doesn't work out, he's definitely got a future as a writer.

This book ended by making me hope Obama does decide to declare his candidacy. I'm pretty sure at this point I'd support him, but, whether you would or not, you'll see that an Obama candidacy would really raise the quality of the discussion during the election. Here's hoping that the other candidates rise to his level instead of sucking the soul out of this guy.