Vogel's new book is printed by iUniverse, a self-publishing company affiliated with Barnes and Noble, and is available online. Utahns may also spot the book at college bookstores and at Obama campaign events.

The essays are written by a range of people — black, white and people of mixed races, a high school student and a nontraditional college student with a 14-year-old daughter, experienced political activists and Sarah Carter, the granddaughter of President Jimmy Carter, who recalled her first political donation — $50 to Obama when he was running for Illinois state Senate.

Many people in their early 20s are apathetic about politics, with memories of President Bill Clinton sex scandals and current divisiveness over the Iraq war, said Duke University graduate student Stephen McIntyre, 24.

"I think a lot of people, a lot of twentysomethings, we grew up in a political era that hasn't been flattering," said McIntyre, a BYU graduate who contributes to the book. "A lot of people are kind of frustrated with politics. People are cynical."

Not surprisingly, book reviews from the Obama campaign are positive.

"Sen. Obama applauds the efforts of Joseph Vogel and the thousands of young people across the country who have joined this campaign to change this country," an Obama spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, wrote in an e-mail. "The issues young people are facing today are serious, and Senator Obama will make sure young people have a voice in the White House."

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com