Who Thought This Was a Good Idea?
And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When You Work in the White House
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Who Thought This Was a Good Idea?
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Narrated by:
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Alyssa Mastromonaco
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Lauren Oyler
About this listen
If your funny older sister were the former deputy chief of staff to President Barack Obama, her behind-the-scenes political memoir would look something like this....
Alyssa Mastromonaco worked for Barack Obama for almost a decade and long before his run for president. From the then-senator's early days in Congress to his years in the Oval Office, she made Hope and Change happen through blood, sweat, tears and lots of briefing binders. But for every historic occasion - meeting the queen at Buckingham Palace, bursting in on secret climate talks or nailing a campaign speech in a hailstorm - there were dozens of less-than-perfect moments when it was up to Alyssa to save the day. Like the time she learned the hard way that there aren't nearly enough bathrooms at the Vatican.
Full of hilarious, never-before-told stories, Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? is an intimate portrait of a president, a book about how to get stuff done and the story of how one woman challenged, again and again, what a White House official is supposed to look like. Here Alyssa shares the strategies that made her successful in politics and beyond, including the importance of confidence, the value of not being a jerk, and why ultimately everything comes down to hard work (and always carrying a spare tampon).
Told in a smart, original voice and topped off with a couple of really good cat stories, Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? is the brilliantly funny, frank and inspirational memoir from a savvy political star.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©2017 Alyssa Mastromonaco (P)2017 Little Brown Book GroupWhat listeners say about Who Thought This Was a Good Idea?
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kai1
- 10-03-2019
This was a great idea!!
SO good! Loved listening to this after listening to Michelle Obama's book "Becoming" cos it felt like it was in-keeping with the theme. I'd never heard of her before and honestly as an english chick living in Australia my interest in american politics starts and ends with Obama. My only criticism is it felt a little short and i wanted to hear MORE MORE MORE about her time at the whitehouse.
What is there is good though, and she really has a great narrative style and it kept me at the gym longer than i normally would so i could listen some more. I think listen to this if you liked Michelle Obama's book or Sheryl Sandbergs Lean in.
Just to let you know, I work for Audible, but the views expressed in this review are 100% my own.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sarah Loomes
- 19-10-2020
A great read!
I really enjoyed this book, both from a story but also found it really insightful with career and lifestyle advice.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 09-09-2021
Entertaining
Great behind the scenes look at running The White House & life with POTUS
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- rivini
- 15-02-2019
Overall amazing!
Such a wholesome reminder that politics when Obama was around used to be better! Good for you, Alyssa!
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Lee Rankin
- 25-02-2024
Terrible
I had listened to Becoming and Rodham and enjoyed both of these. I found the behind the scenes and their history interesting. But I disliked this audiobook so much I gave up after about 3 hours.
I couldn’t stand the narrators voice ( who was actually the author) nor her tone. She had no intonation in her voice at all. Very bland. Which I thought was odd given that she was the author.
I found the book to be quite self indulgent on her part and really irritated me that it seemed to be more of a book about her than to be more about behind the scenes of the White House which was what I was expecting. Perhaps that’s what it was meant to be, but just wasn’t what I was expecting.
Also I thought way too much talk of her periods and stomach issues.
Kudos to her for achieving so much in her career at a young age but I just couldn’t go on any further.
Sorry to leave a bad review but have to be honest
Maybe it would be a little better if it was read rather than listened to.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Reni
- 12-04-2021
Exhausted
Thought it was going to be interesting to get a different insight and in some small way it was. However the whole story line is very confusing, Alyssa jumps a lot between events and times or situations. Personally didn't like it, but that's just my opinion.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Jennifer
- 28-08-2017
Disappointing
Although the topic is interesting the reader's voice was irritating and childish. And the constant referrals to her period, tampons and bowel movements was annoying. Overall a disappointing listen.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- JayKay
- 30-12-2023
Who Thought This Book Was A Good Idea? Audible I Want My Token Back
How could Audible price such a bad book as a single credit? At only 6 hours of listening this would be bad value if it was a good book…. It isn’t.
Self-indulgent from the outset there are whole chapters that mislead the reader into thinking this is meaningful insight into life under Barrack Obama. It isn’t. It’s one woman’s attempt to cash in on time spent in that administration with the political insights few and far between.
For sure if you want to read about a Washington DC cat, or the lack of tampon machines in the White House…..read on.
But if you’re looking for real insight into life on the road or in the staff of Obama, forget it. This book is a total fraud on the reader and Audible should be refunding all those who buy it.
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