A politics of hope

You know how, when you love a song and try to play it back in your mind, sometimes the lyrics escape recollection and you find yourself merely humming the melody? But then the song comes up on the radio and suddenly it all comes rushing back to you, and you recall every word of every verse with such sincerity and honesty that it's as though you wrote the song yourself.

That is what reading Barack Obama's book is like.

The Audacity of Hope is a blend of autobiography, political policy, and general thoughts on things like family and faith. Obama puts into words the truths that we all know deep inside, but truths we've forgotten how to listen to because attacks from one extreme push us into the other. He speaks from an American viewpoint but his reasoning is anchored on a common sense that is so transcendent that it resonates with every country.

As much as I tell myself not to get too engrossed, I will be disappointed if he doesn't become America's next president.