I have to lower my expectations to say I really enjoyed this book. While they weren't insanely high, I've heard Michelle Obama speak. I've seen the way she acts. She was the first First Lady I ever felt connected to as a person. I find her to be a poised, intelligent, kind, and genuine person. She was an accessible public figure and she was and still is cool.
While a lot of these traits come through in the book, along with her inspiring commitment to some very important causes, I couldn't help but feel like she was talking out loud, in written format, rather than writing a book. This created a disjointed feeling in the narrative for me. Although the flow was chronological, sections within chapters didn't easily connect, and transitions were few and far between.
The best part is the book takes you through the dynamics of Michelle's entire life. You see how each stage added onto the previous to move her down her own path. Even though she eventually must ride as a passenger on the path of someone else, she quickly makes even that situation her own. I love how she refuses to do things the way people did them before. I like that she pushed the envelope in the name of normalcy and never traded her compassion and natural self for diplomacy.
Given a deep look behind the curtain, it was nice how prominently the Obama kids and Michelle's family featured in the book, and how little Barack's own experiences made an appearance. I appreciate that Michelle kept things solely from her perspective. What I didn't love was that her story gets interrupted by forced flourishes of language, smilies, metaphors, etc. You suddenly feel like you're reading an editor's words and not the author's, whose straightforward approach to storytelling is distinctive.
Aside from the writing issues, I'm glad I read this book. It's an inspiring story about a woman who found normal even with it was almost completely out of sight. It's about someone who took their position seriously in the world and used it to speak out about her own passions and help those people who touched her heart the most deeply. I loved her connection to groups of people whose collective voices weren't loud enough to make a big noise on their own. She made the noise with them and for them, and that's important.
I only wish it was written differently. Michelle is an engaging and dynamic speaker. On stage and in interviews she has impact, but I kept tripping over the narrative while reading her. I still do recommend this book since it's a unique life story, but be prepared for a looser connection between sections, and more telling than showing as you learn about this incredible woman.
We need to reconnect with our country's illustrious past. We need to be inspired by the accomplishments we've made as Americans. We should stop resting on our laurels, expecting handouts, and comparing ourselves to others. It's what we used to do, how we used to think, that can save our country today which unfortunately, as Friedman and Mandelbaum point out, has a lot of problems.
There weren't any surprises in the book as to what's wrong with our country and how we might attempt to fix it. The unique thing about this book is the presentation of the issues. Each problem is put into its historical context - how did we get here, what's perpetuating the problem, and how can we remedy the situation. In general, regardless of any specific issue, we as a country need to take control of our future through action. We need to stop being complacent and entitled and relearn how to compromise in order to get the job done. We need to find the middle ground within the solutions to our major problems and stop ignoring their existence.
The book was really interesting all around, but way too much was covered to sum up in a simple book review. The authors focus on the issues of debt, education, jobs and the economy, technology, and politics. Not only do the authors show you the issues present in these areas, but they so fully explain each situation that you, as the reader, feel educated yourself by the end of each section, able to form your own opinions. I found myself particularly interested in what the authors had to say about the need to stress the importance of education, how doing this can support job availability and economic growth. So many jobs will become available as the baby boomer generation retires and customized education could help prepare today's young people to fill those spaces. They also spend a lot of time talking about the political system today and its flaws - how the two-party system has driven out politicians into extreme, opposing camps and how a single person's support of an independent candidate can influence the political agenda and force our leftists and rightists onto some middle ground.
There's so much I don't understand about the way things are done in our country right now at the higher levels. I see so much waste and too many distractions. I felt like what I learned in reading this book has given me hope and encouraged me to think positively about what our future can bring; that even a little voice can lead to change.
