Former President Barack Obama weighed in on the best pop culture of 2018 on Friday, posting his favorite books, movies and music of the year on his official Facebook page.
Sorry, television. Better luck next year.
“As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists,” Obama wrote. “It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved.”
“It also gives me a chance to highlight talented authors, artists, and storytellers,” he continued, “some who are household names and others who you may not have heard of before.”
First up on Obama’s list? “Becoming,” written by one of those “household names” he mentioned earlier, wife and former First Lady Michelle Obama.
“Obviously my favorite,” he added.
Obama then went on to recap the books he name-checked earlier in the year, including books from his summer recommendations list: “Educated” by Tara Westover, “Warlight” by Michael Ondaatje, “An American Marriage” by Tayari Jones and “Factfulness” by Hans Rosling, among others.
New books not before praised by the former president included “Feel Free” by Zadie Smith, “Florida” by Lauren Groff and “There There” by Tommy Orange.