First published 2019
Pete Buttigieg chronicles his journey from Harvard and Oxford back to South Bend, Indiana, where he became America's youngest mayor at 29. The book weaves together his personal story with the city's revival. Buttigieg describes growing up among abandoned factories and freight trains, then leaving for elite education and consulting work at McKinsey. He returned home to tackle the challenge of reviving a former industrial powerhouse. His memoir details the concrete work of governing: fighting gun violence, renaming streets, attracting technology companies, and launching an ambitious plan to reclaim 1,000 abandoned houses in 1,000 days. He served in Afghanistan as a Navy officer while in office. The most personal chapter covers his decision to come out publicly in a newspaper editorial before winning reelection with 78 percent of the vote and meeting Chasten Glezman, who became his husband. Buttigieg presents his story as proof that both people and places can reinvent themselves in unexpected ways.
Genres: business, american, politics, autobiography, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, reinvention
Setting: Harvard, Indiana, McKinsey, Oxford, South Bend
Period: Afghanistan, 21st Century
352 pages · Hardcover · Liveright