The Education of an Idealist

The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir by Samantha Power
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was an interesting reading experience for me. While well-written, I found Power to be intense, supercilious, and haughty. Yet she is fully aware of this--she corners influential people in audacious fashion to promote her agendas, she won't back down or curb her remonstrations, she never seemed to be able to just hang out--always debating issues or pushing a cause. I thought man, she would be hard to be friends with. But the more I read, the more I respected Power for her commitment, her desire to make a difference, and her laser-like focus to try to make the world better. Then I grew to admire her. I still think she would be a lot to handle--but we need people who are willing to look at hard issues and to do their best to understand them, and then do something about them. She is courageous, indomitable, and persistent and she encouraged me to look around and see how I can try to make the world within my sphere of influence better.

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If I end up not making it as a journalist, will something else I learn in the process make it worth trying?