This novel is a political roman a clef that tells the story of David, a young black man who joins a political campaign for president (loosely based on the Obama campaign). He takes on the task of fundraising (never a fun job asking for money) and we learn of the friendships he develops with the other campaign workers. While I think the writing was good, I had a hard time connecting with this book – it just seemed like a lot wasn’t happening. I am at an age where I remember when Primary Colors was published which told the story of the thinly disguised Clintons and Bill’s bid for the presidency and I can’t help comparing the two books. Unfortunately, there isn’t much of a comparison and I found Great Expectations to be greatly lacking.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for a review copy. However, due to my low rating of this book, I will only be posting my review on Netgalley.

Delighted to include this title in the March edition of Novel Encounters, my column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for the Books section of Zoomer, Canada’s national culture magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)

Great Expectations is the debut novel of Vinson Cunningham, and details the main character's musings on religion, family, and politics while he works on the campaign of the Senator, a stand-in for Barack Obama.

I think the milage of this book will depend entirely on what type of book a reader is looking for. The writing on a sentence to sentence level is good. The main character is more of a detached figure, so I don't think this book will work for those who need to feel connected to the main character's emotions. He thinks only vaguely about his daughter or his family. He seems deeply unattached to his life or circumstances, which is perhaps realistic for someone in their early 20s, but makes for a hard book to empathize with.

My complaint about this book is that it the campaign doesn't feel like a well-developed setting. The main character's observations are often triggered by seemingly random events, so it doesn't feel necessary to center it around the campaign, other than the fact that Cunningham worked on Obama's campaign. It's inherently interesting dressing for observations that don't connect and are less interesting.

The writing was great, the premise was interesting and I enjoy a first person narrative. I didn't connect with the character as much as I wanted but loved his writing and felt it was a very nice coming of age story, set within the Obama election. I do wonder why he chose to never name the famous people (Obama included) when everyone knows who he is talking about, I suppose it's so he is not name dropping but it felt a little forced to me.

Thank you Netgalley & Hogarth Publishing for an eARC ♥️

"Great Expectations" is a gripping debut novel that delves into the thrilling world of politics and personal growth. Through David's eyes, we witness the electrifying atmosphere of a historic presidential campaign, and the idealism and passion that drive people to work tirelessly towards a common goal. At the same time, we see David grapple with his own insecurities and conflicts, as he tries to find his place in the world and make sense of his relationships with family and loved ones.

The book raises important questions about identity, race, religion, and the search for meaning in our lives. It's a coming-of-age story that will resonate with anyone who has ever struggled to find their place in the world. The writing is engaging and evocative, making it easy to get swept up in David's journey.

One of the strengths of the book is its ability to balance the political and personal narratives, creating a rich and nuanced story that will appeal to readers with different interests. The characters are well-developed and relatable, and the dialogue rings true.

This was a DNF for me, not because anything was horrible, but because the stream of consciousness writing style just is really hard for me. For people who like that style, this book would be a really great fit. The narrator is compelling and the fictional take on Obama's campaign is interesting. I may revisit this eventually, but for now I found myself skimming for the jist of the plot instead of savoring the prose and it didn't feel like I'd be able to give a fair review at the end.

“Great Expectations” by Vinson Cunningham is about a young man’s work on the campaign of a rising politician. It’s basically Barack Obama but a fictionalized version. It is Cunningham’s debut novel and was somewhat hard to read.

Great Expectations by Vinson Cunningham is a beautifully written meandering novel about an aloof young man who becomes a campaign worker on Barack Obama’s first run for President (although Obama is only referred to as “the Senator”). The book is loosely based on Cunningham’s experiences working on this campaign. Initially, I found the behind-the-scenes description of fundraising for a campaign, what took place at the sponsored events and the confusion and lack of direction of the main character interesting. As the book progressed, I found his digression into religion to be confusing as it relates to the campaign story. The connection was lost on me. This is obviously a talented writer with an amazing vocabulary, but I felt he threw too many things into the coming-of-age and political campaign story. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. I had great hopes for this one, but found I just couldn't finish it. I got about a third of the way through, but so disliked the main character and the thinly veiled campaign--yes, it's about Obama's campaign, so why not just actually talk about that? It was annoying to me that is was disguised at all.

The main character just drifts along, doing the minimum or less to help the campaign. At one point, actually discarding information about a volunteer who turns out to be a great asset. That's pretty much when I decided I'd had enough. I'd rather read a nonfiction book that gives me insight into the actual campaign than try to second guess what is true and what is made up.

The writing style is fine. I just really found I had no interest in reading the rambling story any more. There didn't seem to be any real plot, at least not as far as I read.

An excellent character study in the backdrop of Obama’s 2008 Presidential campaign. There is some exceptional writing throughout, but I was often wondering when the story would be moved forward. You experience the passage of time through various campaign and social events but our character’s arc doesn’t venture far from where we began.

The novel is strongest when it is in the present and often when David is interacting with multiple characters. In my opinion, the strongest part of the novel is David’s basketball dialogue and reflecting on how personalities can tell us so much about a person.

I was often puzzled by the reminiscing tangents into David’s past when exploring his past encounters didn’t really tie into the overarching story and seemed wedged into the novel. I wanted a reason to care about these characters and their motivations, but it never really developed.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

Readers looking for a well-written book with very little plot and a lot of introspective musing about race, privilege, politics, art, etc. may enjoy Great Expectations by New Yorker writer Vinson Cunningham. Protagonist and confused twenty-something David gets hired as a fund-raiser for the Senator closing resembling Obama towards the end of the first Presidential campaign. As he moves up and around in the organization he finds many interactions and events to inspire his deep thoughts but don’t build much more of a character than we meet at the beginning. I found most of the book too philosophical and rambling for my taste, but the talent of Cunningham still shines through.

If you're looking for gossipy scuttlebutt on the Obamas, look elsewhere. Author Vinson Cunningham intentionally reaches for higher ground with his beautifully wrought novel about a "Senator" from Illinois and the 20-something presidential campaign worker who undergoes a transformation while working on the election while a nation nervously awaits great things ahead. Cunningham writes with the elegance of a poet and the artistry of a born storyteller/social anthropologist. "Great Expectations" is aswirl with thought-provoking ideals and observations centered from a Black single dad at the crux of what could be a historical moment that goes way beyond who "The Senator" is himself. Cunningham is an exciting, and much-needed new voice in fiction. (I received this book as an ARC)

Great Expectations has a lot going for it. It is, for one, a fictionalized insider's view of the successful campaign of Barack Obama for the presidency of the United States, a campaign on which Cunningham worked as a staffer. Mostly, it sticks to the behind-the-scenes role of a fundraiser for the campaign, an insouciant young man who stumbles into the campaign at the behest of a friend and is surprisingly successful in this demanding role. As we know intuitively, no matter how innocent and inspirational a political campaign may be, the underbelly is a different thing altogether; I found that I was quite often put in mind of a very fancy restaurant at which I once worked briefly, all glitz on the outside and a warren of messy, depressing back hallways behind the scenes.

The problem here is that, once one has established all of this—the casual sexual connections, compulsive drinking and casual drug use, the smarmy vanity of the wealthy, the borderline illegal fund-raising—this book really doesn't have much to say. There is a certain artificial, temporary vitality that comes from being involved in something great, but the glory does not seep down to the lower levels, where all of this can come to seem merely manic and obsessive. Our protagonist remains aloof from all this but nonetheless gets caught up in the maelstrom as it crests toward the election.

This aloof, lazy coolness David, our hero, wears like a protective carapace is, above all, what does not allow this book to rise above mediocrity. It is a misconception, common among the young, that an attitude of ironic cynicism is more sophisticated and interesting than embracing the moment and riding the wave of a great movement. This is, number one, not true—such cynicism is, at bottom, intellectually bereft—and, number two, deeply boring. David drifts into this job, drifts from one sexual encounter to another, drifts from hotel room to campaign event, from one woman's bed to another. Yawn. This story has been told a thousand times.

I do look forward to reading more of Vinson Cunningham, though. Now that he has gotten this out of his system, perhaps he can write a novel with characters and situations about which we truly care. His is a breezy, propulsive voice that, one hopes, will one day be put to better use than this.

I loved the first person perspective of this one. I felt like I really got to know David and loved watching the high and low points of his evolution on the campaign trail. It was also fascinating to watch the candidate grow in fame over time and see the access both David and other donors had to him dwindle over time.

There were portions of the read that got a bit like a monologue that I got lost in, but I do think those moments really did help to develop Dave's character. A quick read with a rewarding (although maybe somewhat expected, based on historical events :)) ending.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

I was super interested in this book from its description, and I thought the writing was excellent. However, it didn't come together as a novel as well as it could have. The internal musings and social commentary were interesting, but there wasn't that much of a story to grab onto. All in all, I have mixed feelings about recommending this one - a very specific kind of reader would like it, but a lot would be put off by it, too. Also, the cover just doesn't work for the book.

Vinson Cunningham is a talented writer. There is a lot to like here. It's a novel-length slice-of-life type of book. The narrator is interesting but not quite as compelling as the events surrounding him. I found myself wanting to follow other characters around instead.
I split into to different readers with this book. Reader one, the academic, was into it. She could see what Vinson was doing here and thought there was a quiet sort of brilliance to his artistry.
Reader two, the storyteller, reluctantly realized that although this strategy was artistically kind of brilliant, it didn't quite work for her and, fair or not, left her wanting more from the main character, David. Yes, David is young and has no idea who he is or who he will be. He is using/clinging to his religion as an identity (or as a shield or excuse), and it is not working well for him. Yes, that is painfully beautiful to experience. However, reader two was over it and over him. Reader two was craving other voices, other experiences. Reader two resented the journey because she resented David as the only driver she got.
Overall, this is an experience to experience. I am looking forward to reading more from Vinson Cunningham.

Thank you to Vinson Cunningham, Random House Publishing Group, Hogarth, and NetGalley for a chance to read this book.

Can’t say I enjoyed this very much. It sounded intriguing when I first requested an arc but it fell a little short for me.

I was intrigued by the story of the young college drop-out “ landing” on the staff of an historic presidential campaign.

As a some-times political junkie, I was interested in this book. And, I enjoyed the portions that discussed strategy, networking and campaign staffing. I lost my way during the narrator’s introspective meanderings. It felt like parts of each narrative were juse “ set pieces” to showcase the writer’s vocabulary and descriptive skills. It just didnt work for me.

A different editor may have helped create a different focus in this book, but as much as i was interested in the political portions, I was equally disinterested in the narrator’s personal reflections.

Caveat for all: if you don’t like introspective, character-building reflection, do not read this book. If, however, you love the written word in all its beauty and distinguished best, read it and savor it. Cunningham’s writing is erudite, and the storyline often wanders off on engaging tangents as we get to know the narrator.
The novel is loosely based on Obama’s run for president. However, it shows the seldom-seen inner workings of a campaign: the phone calls, money-seeking, travel, and setting up appearances for the candidate, which gain him more money.
While the writing is superb, and I loved every bit of the book, it felt as if the author was trying to throw a bit of everything into his work. I have seen reviews that suggest it would have fared better as a book of short stories, and yes, I can see how that would be a spectacular work. In my opinion, the novel would reach a wider audience if it had fewer selections of prolonged contemplation or those totally off the tenor of the story. Stellar work, though!
Thank you to NetGalley and Hogarth. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book provided by the publisher, Annick Press, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An obviously autobiographical novel about a 20-something Black man who is a fundraiser for an upstart Black presidential candidate. With lots of tangential meanderings on different topics (religion, music), this might have been more enjoyable as a series of essays or a straight-up memoir.