Chapter 1

As the book opens, Obama reminisces about strolling the grounds of the White House as he narrates small memories from his time as president. He then turns to his own history and upbringing. Obama’s mother and grandparents raised him with strong ethical standards and had high, though not political, aspirations for him. As a high schooler, he was not a particularly promising student—being more focused on basketball and socializing than his studies—until he came across some classic books at a rummage sale and fell in love with reading. In college, he became fascinated with movements for social change and began an intense process of studying how to change the world. 

Upon graduating, he became a community organizer in Chicago, working to improve people’s lives on a neighborhood level. The successful movement to elect Harold Washington, the city’s first Black mayor, inspired Obama to consider running for public office. He chose to attend Harvard Law School, where he excelled as a student and achieved public recognition as the first Black head of the Harvard Law Review. Those watching his career assumed a successful future for him in law and, if he so desired, politics.

Chapter 2 

Obama met Michelle LaVaughn Robinson, a lawyer and native of Chicago’s South Side who was assigned to guide him through his first internship during law school. After graduating, he made the decision not to be a law clerk but instead to return to Chicago and continue his work as a community organizer while working at a civil rights law firm. He then married Michelle. They both found jobs that used their law experience and began living a fulfilling community life. The opportunity to run for a seat in the Illinois State Senate arose, and Obama decided to take it, in spite of his mother’s worsening uterine cancer. He collected signatures to get on the ballot and made the difficult decision to use a state rule to prevent the position’s current Democratic occupant from running again. 

Obama’s mother died during his campaign, and he was unable to get back to Hawaii in time to say goodbye. Obama served as state senator for eight years. He often found his work frustrating because he believed his fellow lawmakers made decisions based on their political advantage rather than on morality. During this time, his daughter Malia was born. Michelle felt that Obama often fell short in his family duties, leading to arguments. Obama decided to run for United States Congress but lost in a landslide.

Chapter 3

With Obama still serving as state senator, he and Michelle raised their children peacefully for two years. During this time, he formed the vision of a campaign that would unify America across political lines. He decided to run for statewide office as a senator. He persuaded Michelle that he should run, and he got the well-known political media consultant David “Axe” Axelrod on board. Obama gained national attention for giving a speech opposing the war in Iraq, creating momentum for his campaign. He was invited to give the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, expanding his reputation on the national stage. His popularity and the lack of a viable opponent brought him victory in the Senate race. 

In office, Obama built a staff, headed by Capitol Hill veteran Pete Rouse, and made connections with important senators such as Harry Reid, the Democratic senate majority leader. Obama’s passion for decreasing the global nuclear weapon supply—a principle known as nuclear non-proliferation—led him to take an international tour of nuclear-related sites with Republican senator Dick Lugar. While they were traveling, Hurricane...