Book 146: Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When You Work in the White House by Alyssa Mastromonaco

Alyssa Mastromonaco has written a funny, intimate account of her time working in American politics. In different capacities, she supported both John Kerry and Barack Obama in their presidential campaigns and later, served as deputy chief of staff at the White House for the Obama Administration.

Although she touches on her prior positions, the author focuses on the ten years she spent working first for Senator Obama, then for presidential candidate Obama, president-elect Obama and finally, for President Obama himself. I loved her stories and perspective on the inner workings of the White House and her interactions with POTUS and other high ranking politicians and diplomats.

Although Mastromonaco could be quite self-deprecating at times, she used those stories to relay the values that allowed her to flourish: work hard, plan ahead, be kind to everyone, don't let your gender dictate your path, be yourself, ask questions, follow your intuition.

I fully enjoyed this book and thought it could be easily incorporated as required reading for any political science course; it offers a real-life perspective on what it takes to succeed in the wild and crazy world that is American politics.