David Litt

I’m always a little hesitant to pick up a memoir by someone who is writing about their political life. It has nothing to do with the position held or their party affiliation. Generally, the stories are told this way: this happened, then that happened, then this happened. And I literally can’t survive the book. You will not find David Litt’s memoir of his years working as a speechwriter in the White House a list of things he did in chonological order. Thanks, Obama: My Hopey, Changey show more White House Years is a well written tale of landmark events of the Obama presidency that focus mostly on Litt and his desire to rise to the top, including epic failures. It’s funny, it’s honest, and it ends with an upshot of hope I was not anticipating. show less

Such a refreshing book. First of all, it's well written and often very funny. However, it also takes the reader back to a time when American politics were slightly less toxic than they are in 2023, a time that I greatly miss. And anecdotes that include President Barack Obama are always welcome.

I enjoyed David Litt's memoir a lot! He worked in the good old days as a speechwriter for President Obama.
He's self-deprecating and humorous when talking about his experiences as a 20 something White House staff person. He wasn't in the "inner circle" but did have experiences with the president. The stories were both funny and inspiring. As a listener of Pod Save America I was particularly interested in his writing about Jon Favreau and Jon Lovett who were also speechwriters for President show more Obama.
Closing the memoir with Zoe's story was just about perfect! show less

This almost felt like two different stories being told. One was that of Litt's own story of growth, and the other was that of the political ups and downs of President Obama's two terms in office.
Though, I'm not sure if it was purposeful, the memoir left me feeling emotional and nostalgic. It made me miss Obama even more than I already do. Perhaps it's because of the current political climate we live in currently, but reading about the accomplishments and moreover the character of President show more Obama, left me feeling utterly hopeless, and somehow, optimistically hopeful at the same time!
What I loved about the memoir was that it was not overly political, in the sense that Litt was not writing to shove an agenda down your throat. It read as a retelling of his time as a speechwriter for Obama. Clearly his political beliefs matched up with that of the President, so certainly you aren't left wondering what he believed, but the memoir never seems to be about convincing its readers about policies or ideas. Which can be great for anyone who is currently off put by politics. You can still enjoy the memoir.
Litt is very funny and I found myself laughing out loud throughout, which helped with keeping the tone of the book from becoming overly sentimental.
The other part I loved was that Litt did not paint President Obama in an unrealistic light. He never sets out to write Obama as a saint, or perfect, but rather admits to times where he was frustrated and disillusioned by the President, which humanizes both Litt and Obama. That felt important, and to me, made the memoir so successful.
Litt does an amazing job of capturing the hope that Obama instilled in so many young people during his time as President. That hope which is so hard to find these days. It was a refreshing reminder that there still IS hope! A reminder that was much needed.
This was a great memoir and I seemed to find it at the perfect time. show less