Larry

This book would be better suited as a lecture for graduate-level physics students than the casual fan of science and the cosmos. At least three quarters of the book is dedicated to particle physics, and I didn't really see the tie-in to a "Grand Design". It's mainly one big pitch for M theory being the "theory of everything", but it didn't connect with me. The narrator has a great voice and is easy to listen to, which made it possible for me to stick through the entire reading.

Learning about the inner circle of advisors. It was astonishing to see the amateurism of his entire staff, not just himself.

By getting to know the people he brought from Chicago and their backgrounds, it makes it easier to understand the decisions (or lack thereof) that he's made along the way.

Not sure.

I don't think there was a single "big" moment, but the impression I came away with was seeing a person who is far more narcissistic than I had imagined. I also got the impression that Obama just WANTED to be president, but doesn't really LIKE being president or having to make the tough decisions and compromises necessary to be successful. I also realized that Obama has changed the norm for the Democratic party. His extreme left bent makes it almost impossible to craft compromises, even though he doesn't seek compromise anyways. The current Bill Clinton comments that contradict Obama policy are almost predicted by this book. Everything highlighted in this book is still in the news to this day.

I didn't know Valerie Jarrett was black!!

If you're a casual fan of astrophysics (ie: Discovery Channel), then this might be too deep for you. I can't imagine too many people outside of graduate physics students who would fully appreciate the material presented...

Most of us realize by now that the mainstream media is controlled by the left. Breitbart does a great job of explaining how it got that way, and gives valuable insight as to how they operate. Breitbart got to the point where he could predict with great accuracy how the liberal media would respond to a story or event before they actually did. Any conservative planning on running for office had better buy this book and memorize it, or risk becoming "Palinized" in their campaign. A fantastic "how-to" book on dismantling and counter-attacking the baseless charges leveled by the left wing media. Hint: Offense, not defense.