Dreams from my Father by Barack Obama

Several months ago I noticed this in Lib's bookshelf and asked to borrow it. With the election looming, I decided to prioritize reading it sooner rather than later.

This is Obama's first book, following his early life through his matriculation into Harvard Law School. The first third of the book covers his early childhood, including when he lived in Indonesia and subsequently Hawaii. The second third addresses his years as a community organizer in Chicago. The final section of the book talks about his time in Kenya, a lengthy visit with his father's side of the family after his father's death.

What I was most struck by was how honest he was in the book. In a country where just ten years ago we talked about whether our president inhaled, Obama freely admits to a period in his life when he did drugs. He talks openly about race and his confusing feelings associated with being biracial. He is also very critical of his time as an organizer and what he saw in inner-city Chicago.

The book was reasonably well-edited. It was easy to read and held my attention. The one exception was a lengthy family history towards the end of the book. In other places I was surprised to see some 'Joe sixpack' colloquialisms that seemed forced.

This is the first time I've read a book written by a candidate in a current election, so I have little to compare it to. It did not seem to be written by someone looking to be president one day, which I appreciated. Either way, the contents of this book weren't going to change my vote.