The Obamas

When Kantor was signing my copy of this book during an appearance at the Chicago Public Library, I asked her why she was surprised by the "controversy" it caused--since it was a "warts and all" story, naturally all the media wanted to focus on were the warts. (Of course if there hadn't been any wart......more

Jodi Kantor probably thought she was being objective but she paints a very unsympathetic picture of the Obamas. Michelle is shown as being controlling, defensive, uncooperative and an overprotective parent. The President is characterized as an extreme introvert, socially awkward and overconfident ab......more

NYT reporter Kantor tells a sympathetic story about the Obamas and how they've adapted to the Presidency and the White House. Personally, I'm amazed that everyone living there doesn't go stark, staring mad. The best analogy for their experience is probably that it's like living in an armor-plated go......more

I admit that I’m struggling to write this review. I’ll nit-pick in a moment, but for now I’ll simply say that this book was like the ultimate Dessert Book. It was voyeuristic and fun—the book equivalent of picking up US Weekly or InTouch. There was mention of how Michelle Obama’s wardrobe has played......more

There was so much information about this book, I was reluctant to read it. That would have been a mistake. The Obamas does an excellent job of explaining the conflicts between the personal and political, being black instead of white, wanting to be private within a public view,and melding unique pers......more