I have a great honour to read Justin Trudeau’s autobiography, entitled “Common Ground.” It was a very rich and interesting book in terms of content and what it had to say. In my opinion, reading it makes it even more interesting because the current Prime Minister of Canada wrote the book himself. He told about everything that happened to him during his political career. His father, Pierre Trudeau, was the former Prime Minister of Canada. Of course, he could have inherited his position to his son, as is the case in many countries, but he didn’t. Justin, focusing only on his strengths and struggling against various obstacles, independently managed to become the Prime Minister of a huge country, Canada. Many people write only about their successes, but Justin also noted his shortcomings and omissions that he made along the way. Of course, we all have the right to make mistakes, and understanding the mistake and not allowing it in the future is what makes us move forward and develop.

I liked that the book was not written for him, but he wrote it himself. The impressions of the Prime Minister of Canada cannot be captured in this book, since it is translated, but the essence and plot really captivated me. I understood how difficult it can be for a person to achieve his goal. This proves once again that no matter how difficult and bumpy the path is, it can and should be overcome. The author proved this to me in the last pages. He was accustomed to misfortune since childhood: his parents divorced when he was only 15 years old. While he was a teacher in Quebec (one of the Canadian provinces), his brother Michel died on November 13, 1998. He was sledding on Kokanee Lake when an avalanche drowned him. When the author learned about this, he immediately rushed from Quebec to British Columbia, which was very, very far away. When he arrived, she could not hold back her tears, as they had been good friends and supporters of each other since childhood.

Michel and Justin were inseparable friends, who could only be separated by death, which is what happened. I lived these lines with the author, I tried to understand his feelings as accurately as possible when writing the lines. I sincerely wished that Justin Trudeau would finally achieve his cherished goal after such a harsh, difficult path.

His mother had married another man after the divorce. The main reason for the separation was that the parents had very little contact. But at the same time, they travelled a lot. Every year they travelled around Canada and visited different attractions, which shows what an active life they led and that they were deeply familiar with the problems of the country.

Despite various criticisms and difficulties, scepticism and gossip, Justin Trudeau rose to his feet and defeated his political enemies. I remember an interesting incident from the book: he once participated in a real wrestling competition, where his opponent was a former governor. He was so fat that he could not move normally. Justin knew that if he got hit once, it would be a knockout. So he decided to go for a more cunning move. He gradually tired the governor, who did not guess the trick. The latter was eventually knocked out due to exhaustion.

Despite the above-mentioned incident, Justin always had love and respect for officials and elders. One day he was walking with his father, Pierre Trudeau, when they were met by the chief of police. Justin was small at the time. He stuck his tongue out at the chief of police, and his father, making a remark, explained that this was not the right thing to do. After this, significant changes were observed in Justin’s behaviour for the better.

Justin was accustomed to going to meetings with various officials since childhood. And this habit continued in the later days of his life. Justin always respected officials, as I already mentioned, he used to say that they (officials) no matter how big they are, they are also people, and they should be respected. I would like to remind you of a passage from this book: the words belong to Pierre Trudeau, who said that he is not afraid of a strong man, but that he is afraid of a man who reads a lot of books.

He loved to travel to African countries. I liked the fact that even though he was the son of a former prime minister, he had not developed and instilled the mindset and desire to always achieve the best. He visited underdeveloped African countries and helped those people with his abilities.

Justin graduated from one of the best schools in Ontario. Justin was very sociable: he organized many different parties to which he invited everyone. After graduating, Justin began working in one of the schools, where he taught English and French.

It is very interesting and important that Armenians played a big role in his life. As a child, the current prime minister listened to the songs of Canadian-Armenian singer-lyricist Raffi Kavukian, which were lullabies. How he described in his book, “the songs were like fairy tales”. A Canadian-Armenian from his circle named Anna, who served as a caretaker and an influential figure in his upbringing, advised him to seriously engage in politics (if I’m not mistaken), expressing confidence that Justin would succeed. Trudeau highlights Anna’s kindness, commitment, and warmth in his thoughts about her, illustrating the enduring influence she had on his morals and personality. Another Armenian named Gregorian served as president of both Brown University and the New York Public Library. Trudeau refers to Gregorian as a mentor and inspiration in his life, saying that he had a significant influence on his development both intellectually and personally.

Strange as it may seem, Justin Trudeau began his political career at a gas station. He was waiting to pay his bill when he realized that the people were dissatisfied with something. According to Justin Trudeau, he became more aware of the problems and worries of regular Canadians while he was talking with them in common settings, such as a petrol station. At that moment, he took a board and drew a picture of his campaign on it. And it was thanks to this picture that he became the main object of criticism. In conclusion, this type of story demonstrates how small, routine events can serve as catalysts for more significant decisions, such as entering the political arena.

Canada is a fairy-tale world for Justin Trudeau. I understood that for this man, his country is truly a value, an unshakable, not easily given value. He always paid attention to age, gender equality and the rights of both sexes. He was not racist, so he was very concerned about the behavior that many people showed towards black people. I greatly appreciate the Prime Minister’s efforts to combat gender inequality and racism.

During his campaigns, he was with his people every minute and every second and did not abandon them. Analyzing his speeches, I realized that this is the most important foundation of democracy. He has always helped the ordinary citizen, given him importance and place in his country. The important thing is that he is a man of action, he does something that he promised during his speeches. Of course, there are some programs that are still being developed and implemented, but for the most part, he has undoubtedly not broken his promise.

Justin Trudeau, not looking at any obstacle, went forward, and the nation believed in him, believed that this man truly loves his country, his people, is ready to give his life for his country and fight to the end. In conclusion, I would also like to note that his mother, sons and wife, Sophie Gregoire, also played a big role in his life. There was a time when Sophie would write a text for Justin to read, as the Canadian leader recalls. His family supported in every way a kind, friendly, purposeful young man who would later become the 18th Prime Minister of Canada.

Summary: This book really became a source of great motivation for me. It not only told about the path of a person who had set a clear goal for himself, but also showed what kind of strength, perseverance and determination are necessary to achieve that goal. The book places a strong emphasis on the fact that life is full of challenges and setbacks that can feel insurmountable at times. But our hero ignored all the obstacles and kept moving on, overcoming each one.

His story was full of inspiration and hope, which makes you believe that even the greatest difficulties can be overcome if you have dedication and faith. The hero showed that the trials we face on our life’s path are not only difficulties, but also opportunities to make us stronger. And, in the end, he achieved his goal, proving that dedication always deserves a reward, an end result.

For me, this book was not only motivational, but also educational. It made me rethink my own goals and believe that any dream can come true if you are willing to fight for it.

P.S. As you can see, what I have written above is chaotic, which is not accidental. I wanted to present it in such a way that through different episodes the reader can analyze, understand and independently form the personality of our main character. Thank you for attention, and for the end, I am fully confident that the “Common Ground” stands as one of the most exceptional books, that I have privilege to read and I recommend all of those who are looking for their motivation, who have some lack of self-confidence. Undoubtedly, this book can serve very well as a teaching manual. And there will undoubtedly be occasions to browse it again in the future.

The Armenian version of the analyze is here.