Book Review of 'Dreams from My Father

'A Story of Race and Inheritance'

Book Review of 'Dreams from My Father

'A Story of Race and Inheritance'

Introduction

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance gives a good insight of the man who is now serving his second term as the president of the most country in the world. It is a story of how his man's childhood and adolescent experiences shaped him. Born to a black Kenyan father and a white American mother, Obama struggles to understand the meaning of his identity in America. The story starts with Obama hearing about the demise of his father from his aunt from Nairobi. It is revealed that his father left him and his mother in Hawaii when he was only 2. Obama does not dwell on the news and instead reminisces on the memories of his father and his own childhood (Daniel, 2011).

Obama's maternal grandfather was a bit of a maverick himself and liked the company of Blacks. He did not fit in with then white population and this may have reflected his daughter's decision to marry a black man. After divorcing his father, the author's mother marries an Indonesian, Lolo. This man took deep interest in the upbringing of the young Obama and taught him many things on how to survive in a corrupt society, something that helped him later in his political career (Daniel, 2011).

However an ideological difference is what ends the marriage between his step father and his mother. Obama's need to understand the legacy of his father and his identity propels him to move to Chicago and serve as a social activist. In the midst of the political and racial conflict, he learns the value of faith and hope in the face of adversity. Obama discovers the truth about his Kenyan father's life when he meets his paternal family. He travels extensively through a country which is deeply poverty-stricken and in the midst of political and social instability and sees how people are resilient as they go through life in a country like that. He embraces his divided ancestry(Daniel, 2011).

Discussion

The author's writing style is clear but has underlying dark themes when it comes to the issues which press him to think beyond his understanding. The story showcases the young man's incredible survival and hope and blends with the story of the ordinary black population. He finally accomplishes a sense of belonging after struggling with his identity and his divided inheritance. While at college, the young black man chose his friends carefully on the basis of the categories they fell (Daniel, 2011). This was done to create a certain self-image and soon this became a lifestyle. The author sticks to narrating the story from his own point of view. While working as a social activist, he decided to organize black people and make an effort to change society at a grass-root level. He found a job as financial writer and one day while at work, he got a call from a ...