Barack Obama: As 2018 draws to a close, I'm continuing the tradition of sharing my year-end lists.

[kpete]

Barack Obama

As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists. It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved. It also gives me a chance to highlight talented authors, artists, and storytellers – some who are household names and others who you may not have heard of before. Here’s my best of 2018 list - I hope you enjoy reading, watching, and listening.

Here’s a reminder of the books that I read this year that appeared on earlier lists:
Becoming by Michelle Obama (obviously my favorite!)
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die by Keith Payne
Educated by Tara Westover
Factfulness by Hans Rosling
Futureface: A Family Mystery, an Epic Quest, and the Secret to Belonging by Alex Wagner
A Grain of Wheat by Ngugi wa Thiong’o
A House for Mr Biswas by V.S. Naipaul
How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt
In the Shadow of Statues: A White Southerner Confronts History by Mitch Landrieu
Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
The New Geography of Jobs by Enrico Moretti
The Return by Hisham Matar
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Warlight by Michael Ondaatje
Why Liberalism Failed by Patrick Deneen
The World As It Is by Ben Rhodes

Here are my other favorite books of 2018:
American Prison by Shane Bauer
Arthur Ashe: A Life by Raymond Arsenault
Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday
Feel Free by Zadie Smith
Florida by Lauren Groff
Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom by David W. Blight
Immigrant, Montana by Amitava Kumar
The Largesse of the Sea Maiden by Denis Johnson
Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence by Max Tegmark
There There by Tommy Orange
Washington Black by Esi Edugyan

My favorite movies of 2018:
Annihilation
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
Blindspotting
Burning
The Death of Stalin
Eighth Grade
If Beale Street Could Talk
Leave No Trace
Minding the Gap
The Rider
Roma
Shoplifters
Support the Girls
Won’t You Be My Neighbor

And finally, my favorite songs of 2018:
Apes••t by The Carters
Bad Bad News by Leon Bridges
Could’ve Been by H.E.R. (feat. Bryson Tiller)
Disco Yes by Tom Misch (feat. Poppy Ajudha)
Ekombe by Jupiter & Okwess
Every Time I Hear That Song by Brandi Carlile
Girl Goin’ Nowhere by Ashley McBryde
Historia De Un Amor by Tonina (feat. Javier Limón and Tali Rubinstein)
I Like It by Cardi B (feat. Bad Bunny and J Balvin)
Kevin’s Heart by J. Cole
King For A Day by Anderson East
Love Lies by Khalid & Normani
Make Me Feel by Janelle Monáe
Mary Don’t You Weep (Piano & A Microphone 1983 Version) by Prince
My Own Thing by Chance the Rapper (feat. Joey Purp)
Need a Little Time by Courtney Barnett
Nina Cried Power by Hozier (feat. Mavis Staples)
Nterini by Fatoumata Diawara
One Trick Ponies by Kurt Vile
Turnin’ Me Up by BJ the Chicago Kid
Wait by the River by Lord Huron
Wow Freestyle by Jay Rock (feat. Kendrick Lamar)
And in honor of one of the great jazz singers of all time, who died this year, a classic album: The Great American Songbook by Nancy Wilson

Link to tweet

https://www.facebook.com/barackobama/posts/10156393283416749

[underpants]

1. That's a lot of reading

[cilla4progress]

2. Are you effin' kidding me?

THIS GUY? This coool, smart, elegant, classy, caring, thoughtful person was President of this mess of a count ry for 8 YEARS???! And took SOOOO much shit for it???

And passed the most meaningful legislation to help Americans with their worst most abhorrebnt problem - being bankruptedfor gettog sick??? And was pilloried by so many for it - still is?

There truly are a bunch of dumbshits in this country.

Threw away our country, our planet, our paradise.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

3. The more one reads, the better one speaks......

Which is why reading should remain the #1 Avenue to a better life as ome's vocabulary and knowledge expands.

[Persondem]

4. That's more than trump has read in his whole life and by that I mean the list, not

the actual books. trump actually reading a book is just inconceivable, ignorant twit.

[volstork]

8. trump probably can't even read

the directions on his Preparation H.

[Persondem]

19. That would explain why he keeps swelling ... :) nt

[Mira]

11. I'm howling

in my kitchen. Through my tears.

[Hamlette]

5. thanks for posting this

[NJCher]

6. welllllllllllllll

I think I can assume that Barack Obama doesn't sit around reading on the internet like I do.

I used to read that many books in a year (and not necessarily of that quality), but my reading has been cut to about 2 per cent of that because of all the time I spend on the intertubes.

[OMGWTF]

7. Obama is a True Gentleman and Scholar, and a Very Cool Dude

We went from class to crass; I hope we can recover from this orange shitstain and that we never allow this to happen again.

[groundloop]

10. "never allow this to happen again".... take a look back at what happened after Nixon

After Nixon resigned and Gerald Ford pardoned him many felt that the repub party was toast, they'd never recover from that embarrassment. Look who stole the White House just 6 short years later (yes, stole - as in making a secret deal with Iranian dissidents who were holding American hostages) and really paved the way for the repub raping of our country.

Sorry, I realize this is a bit off-topic, but to have any chance on getting the US back on the path that President Obama started we have to be ever vigilant against the right wing stealing yet another election.

[Ilsa]

9. It's a lot of reading. But I wonder how much

"Free" time he has? I'm sure he stays really busy and most of his days are structured with multiple commitments, public events, and travel. They are empty nesters, right? If I didn't have a job, housework, looking after people who depend on me, etc, I'd have more time for reading. Most of my reading now is before I fall asleep. I really envy him getting to read so much. I find it very attractive, even if it had mostly been fiction.

[Cal Carpenter]

16. I work 60+ hours a week and usually read at least 2 books a week

Don't watch much TV and most of my internet time is when I have time to flake off at work (like right now, lol).

Not trying to be snarky by saying this, btw, just saying it is possible and it doesn't mean you have a ton of leisure time or anything.

[Retrograde]

21. Less than a book a week

I average two per week, including audio books. The audio books are great for multi-tasking: I listen while exercising or doing household chores. I don't watch much TV, either. For all I know Obama is one of those people who keeps a book on his phone for reading in odd free moments.

[uponit7771]

22. You can do a couple of Audio Books a week, very interesting listening

[ChazInAz]

12. The movies!

I'm a voracious reader, myself, so I don't need to comment on the volume of his reading.
But the Movies!
Two of my favorites in there: Annihilation and The Death of Stalin. One, an enigmatic, intelligent science-fiction film, t'other a savagely black comedy. Way to go.

[Yavin4]

17. The Death of Stalin is one of the truly funniest movies that I've seen in years.

Great comedies are rare and people need to see this film.

[uponit7771]

23. +1, Love the list of movies ...

[Javaman]

13. and not to be outdone (as always) the orange asshole chimes in...

"I read a book too! "lord of the..." something. I don't remember the rest. Too long! boring! low energy!"

[Faygo Kid]

14. Hey, not fair! Trump read a book this year, too.

https://www.amazon.com/Go-Read-Dick-Jane/dp/0448434059/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_img_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=PY0W9RK574BWPXW0FPBG

[akraven]

20. Didn't even have to look that one up!

I remember it from preschool, and I'm 64...…

I read 7 to 10 books a week (which drives hubby nuts as he's always tripping over them) but have to work around kitty, who likes to sleep on them, hardback or soft cover.

We watch very little television, but will be buying some more of the movies on President Obama's list. We especially want to see Black Panther, but our local store sells out as soon as it comes in. Guess we'll have to go to online ordering - iffy because we live way out and delivery is sporadic.

[Cha]

15. KR!

[allgood33]

18. I love this guy! Barry trolling Trump. What could be better. One problem

Trump won't read the lists.