The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama

Whether or not you agree politically with Obama, you must admit he has character and integrity. He's a very inspiring, honest, educated human being, and as far as I'm concerned, one of the only politicians ever who seems to actually have the greater good in mind for the American people. He came from humble beginnings and so can see the affects of issues such as lagging health care, minimum wage jobs and faltering education on middle- and lower- class Americans.

Obama is genuine in his politics - when running for Senate, he realize he may lose followers if he answered against their beliefs, as long as he was honest. He admitted that if he agreed with the actual issue but disagreed with the manner in which legislators arrived at the policy for said issue, he would have to disagree completely because to not do so would be to lie, and that's not something he stands for.

I don't want to make this a political post, but it's hard to "review" this book without looking at the politics. I won't try to persuade anyone in any manner, I just recommend that people read his work and understand his passion before criticizing him.

Now back to the book. It's definitely not an easy read, meaning that he is so articulate, I often had to reread sections because his words flow so nicely, but I couldn't remember everything I'd read. I found it challenging to read about policy making and his campaigns for Illionis Senate, and then the U.S. Senate, and also to read about his genuine knowledge of history and the Constitution. He is a very smart man, and I wish that every American was as passionate about something as he is about policy making. His passion for politics and his ability to empathize with the American people - characteristics seriously lacking in politics today - are apparent. (Have you noticed the crowd at any of his speeches? They are by far the most vocal and energetic.)

What is the audacity of hope? It's the phrase he used in his 2004 Democratic National Convention address as keynote speaker. And this is what he writes in the book:

"The audacity of hope. That was the best of the American spirit, I thought - having the audacity to believe despite all the evidence to the contrary that we could restore a sense of community to a nation torn by conflict, the gall to believe that despite personal setbacks, the loss of a job or an illness in the family or a childhood mired in poverty, we had some control - and therefore responsibility over our own fate. It was that audacity that joined us as a people."

If you want to see where he stands on critical issues facing America, this is the book for you. Click here to read the New York Times review of his book.