Dreams from My Father last journal

This memoir is unique because of the nature of the story, but also because of the way it was put together. I believe it is important to read books deliberately, looking for tools the author uses to convey his points, and the reason behind why he included each detail printed in the final copy. In Barack Obama's memoir, he is writing about virtually all of his life up until the point at which he sits, typing, at the keyboard. For a person to write their entire life story in a three-hundred page book is impossible, so the editing process is important. Throughout the book, a reader should consider the title and how it relates to the content. The title is the concise statement of the focus. Effectively, Obama begins by relating stories he heard from his mother and grandparents about his father, a way for the reader to begin to know what he went through in trying to understand who his father was. This direct interpretation of the title Dreams From My Father sets the stage for a book about discovery, of questioning identity. The wording of the title is also important: Obama could have titled it Dreams of My Father had he simply wanted to relate his struggle in learning who his father was from the stories he is told. However, the From sets the reader up to read about how the dreams of Obama's father influenced his son's dreams for himself. This distinction is an important one to make, as the memoir is as complex as this interpretation suggests. 

Obama carefully edited his journey to where he sat writing the book, including images and stories that related directly to his growth and discovery. His father played a large role in the awareness he had of people, of relationships, and of learning. When his half-sister, whom he had never met, called to say she would be visiting him soon, he excitedly prepared weeks in advance for her arrival. Days before she was due to come, she called to say that their half-brother had been killed in an accident and she would not be traveling. Having never met either of these siblings, growing up half a world away from them, Obama describes his new awareness of the complexity of emotion. He is a literal example that the world is not black and white. 

Barack Obama's memoir is especially effective because of the care he took to retain his focus and evocatively illustrate his psychological and educational maturation. I admire his ability to know which details of his life to omit and which to include in order to create a focused, concise, and fascinating memoir.