Two stars because it's advertised as a "Behind the Scenes" look at the Obama administration. It's more of a "lessons learned during my career in politics, which includes working with Barack Obama" type of book. It reads like ten blog posts compiled into a book; it's organized around different qualities, such as leadership, resilience, and kindness. So the book confused me because the timeline jumped all over the place as Mastromonaco told stories illustrating these qualities, some of which include Mr. Obama, but many do not. There is a touching story involving Mr. Obama and Mastromonaco's cat at the end. It's a fun quick read, but I think I expected something different.

Sidebar: I think 12/Hachette Book Group publish amazing books (Dave Cullen's Columbine and I recently read Tribe by Sebastian Junger) so I had high expectations.

Sarah Bessey has some big ideas. Yet she manages to remain respectful toward others' viewpoints, while remaining loyal to her own convictions. This is probably the hardest thing to pull off when writing, and she does it quite well. I feel the book gives a great sense of who she is, and I would be able to read something and possibly guess she wrote it. Her writing about Biblical issues is good, but like any book, her writing about her personal experiences make the book stand out.

I have always said Game of Thrones is too violent for me. I don't appreciate violence toward women especially. And yet.. in my research and now finally reading the book, I'm still drawn to the story. George R.R. Martin is a fantastic storyteller. His writing got clunky and heavy on the descriptions (800 pages!), but the split narratives helped me keep everything straight, and despite the density, I feel I have a good understanding of the characters and the world.

This book stands apart because Martin has chosen to tell the story from male and female perspectives, all who live out differing values. There are men and women are thirsty for the throne (a stereotypical male motive as evidenced in Tywin and Daenarys); there are men and women want nothing but peace (Sansa, Samwell); and then there are the characters who accept what they must do in war (Catelyn, Tyrion). And of course there are the baddies (Joffrey). Yes, women are horribly mistreated in this world, probably due to its medieval-like setting where women were traditionally marginalized, and where physical power determined who would rule. Those mores aren't going anywhere. But there are also strong women who lead and fight. There are women (and men) who use the power they have to elevate their status, maybe not with physical strength but with mental fortitude. These varying degrees of ruthlessness, determination, and even resignation, all in the name of claiming the throne, are interesting played against each other. And so the characters will keep me going, at least as long as they're written as complex people. While the world is typical of a fantasy novel, the characters are not.

4.5 stars. McCullough is an amazing historian, storyteller, and curator of American life.