Pete Souza

Oh my, was this entertaining and illuminating. President Obama's staff photographer during his terms in the White House, juxtaposes newspaper headlines, excerpts and numerous brag/rage Tweets from our current White House resident with photos of Obama that present how differently the two men approach their role as Leader of the Free World.

Suffice to say, one comes out looking like a lost and petulant child, the other like a mature, measured leader.

It's a quick read, as it's mostly show more photographs with captions and the blurbs from 45's Tweets and related quotes/articles are (mercifully) brief. But the point is made.

I'm sure those I know who are all-in for MAGA won't care for this book, but then most of those folks who I know that are all-in for MAGA aren't trolling my Goodreads page. I'll leave it at that.

It's pretty clear who the demographic is for this book. If you fall into that category, you'll love this. If you don't, move on. Or maybe...just maybe...dive in. Having all of these incidents and moments compiled in sequential order really make a case. show less

Pete Souza was the official White House photographer during Barack Obama's 8 years in the White House. This book is such a loving retrospective of what integrity looks like, and not only in comparison to the current circus that lives there now.

I think my favourite photo was one that probably everyone has seen by now, one Souza titled *Hair Like Mine*, where Obama is bending down so that the child of one of the employees of the White House can touch his (Obama's) head, as his answer to the show more child's question of whether his hair felt the same as his own. Another hilarious photo was one Souza took during the Easter Egg Hunt at the White House, a pic of Obama and the Easter Bunny, shot from the back. Obama, upon seeing the pic, asked for copies to give to his daughters, saying that these were the 2 most famous sets of ears in Washington.

There were two other poignant quotes that I took from this book. One was from Souza, in his explanation of the debt ceiling crisis, titled *On the Brink of Default*. He said: "...by July (2011) Congressional Republicans were using the debt ceiling as a form of blatant political blackmail. The next few weeks were dominated by this issue as the president met constantly to try to reason with leaders in Congress and with his economic team to prepare for the worst-case scenario of default. This is what governing looks like". (bold letters are mine)

The last quote was one that was penned by parents from Newtown after the horrific terrorist attack there: "Newtown is thankful that you are coming to help us heal. In times of adversity it is reassuring to know that we have a strong leader to help us recover."

Maybe because I am also listening to Michelle Obama read me her book on audio, at this same time (I'm a little over half way through it), but this family just packs such a powerful punch, when it comes to integrity and being role models. Will the world ever see the likes of them again? Hard to imagine…. show less

You may have heard the term "throwing shade." I had, but wasn't sure what it meant. According to Pete Souza, official photographer during the Obama presidency, it means, "a subtle, sneering expression of contempt or disgust with someone." Hence, the name of the following book, a collection of Souza's photographs.

Pete Souza was Obama's official photographer during his presidency. As many of us, he was dismayed when Trump won the 2016 election. He has since been periodically been posting show more photographs taken during Obama's presidency to remind us of what we have lost. Many were posted without explanation or label, and may have seemed random. In this book, he presents a sampling of some of the photographs he has posted, and also includes the Trump tweet, statement, news article or other action that inspired or compelled him to post the particular photo in question. The impetus for his publication of the photos hasn't previously been revealed, and the connection was sometimes obscure, often snarky, and always on point. I found this to be an uplifting book, but sad in that it really brings home how far we've fallen.

Some examples:

--Obama shaking hands with an awestruck young cub scout; posted after Trump's disgraceful speech at the Boy Scout convention.

--Obama holding a glass of water with one hand; you can guess what instigated this.

--Bo (the Obama's dog) sitting in Obama's Oval Office chair; Bo never "leaked" in the White House.

--Photo of the secure iPad on which Obama received his daily briefings; posted the day after Trump met with the Russian ambassador and other Russians in the Oval Office (the day after firing Comey) and revealed classified information to them.

A nice diversion.

3 1/2 stars show less

You can understand the appeal the Kennedys had for an earlier generation: the Obama's are attractive, young, friendly, pleasant, and photogenic as hell. Souza had to be with the president almost constantly, and it must have been a grueling job, but his photos are amazing. So many lovely moments with children: his own and others. And so many devastating emotions.
A president who is compassionate enough to comfort people in their unspeakable loss, and to share a laugh with strangers: these are show more qualities that help. Wouldn't the world be a better place if the greatest asset a politician could have was kindness? show less