Cunningham’s debut novel seems in many ways like a natural fit for the summer list. It was praised by Ron Charles for “how elegantly Cunningham explores the mind of this young Black man struggling to divine his role in a nation woven from money and faith,” and it seems particularly indebted to Marilynne Robinson, one of Obama’s favorite authors. But there’s a crucial dealbreaker: It’s hard to imagine the former president endorsing a novel about his 2008 campaign, written by a former assistant in his White House. That said, he has highlighted books by Ben Rhodes and, of course, Michelle Obama.
