VINEYARD HAVEN - President Obama left the job of announcing significant diplomatic progress in the Middle East to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Friday, spending his first full day on Martha's Vineyard shopping for books with his children and playing 18 holes at a private golf club. While his staff emphasized that he was receiving regular staff briefings, Obama issued no statements about the prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace and stuck to his plan of taking it easy with his family and friends. He limited himself to just one brief excursion in public - a stop with daughters Sasha and Malia at Bunch of Grapes Bookstore in Vineyard Haven. Security officers blocked off Main Street while the president was inside, and hundreds of people gathered behind yellow police tape in an effort to catch a glimpse of the family, according to pool reports. The president, wearing jeans, a polo shirt, and a Chicago White Sox cap, left the store with two brown bags of books, including 'Freedom' by Jonathan Franzen. Obama spokesman Bill Burton said the president also brought books from Washington for his stay at his rented Chilmark estate, Blue Heron Farm, but the White House has not released a list. 'While he's here he's probably going to spend some time playing some basketball out where he's staying, going to the beach,' said Burton. 'I have a feeling he's going to get some ice cream. He's a big fan of the ice cream on this island.' A frequent golfer, Obama played at Vineyard Golf Club in Edgartown, where he also played last year. Rounding out his foursome were Eric Whitaker, a friend from Chicago; US Representative James Clyburn,, a South Carolina Democrat and the House majority whip; and Marvin Nicholson, the White House trip director, who is a former golf caddie and a former aide to Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. Though Obama is taking some time off, his staff is still taking every opportunity to drive home the message that his economic policies rescued the country from a depression. Asked how the president's current trip differs from last year's, Burton replied: 'The difference between last year's vacation and this year's is that since his vacation, the automotive industry is back on its feet, health care reform has passed, and the economy is now moving in a different direction than it was moving in before.' Clinton and special envoy George Mitchell, speaking at a press conference in Washington, announced a deal Friday to renew the Mideast peace talks. It was a major accomplishment for the Obama administration after 20 months of effort to revive negotiations. Burton said Obama spent the morning reviewing memos on the economy prepared by his advisers in Washington. Homeland Security Adviser John Brennan, gave Obama a daily security briefing. Brennan told reporters he has 'immediate access' to the president during vacation in case of a national security emergency. 'So if there were to be some type of event that would require immediate engagement with the president, I am certain I can do it as quickly as I could do back in Washington,' he said. Brennan also delivered a forceful statement condemning the early release of Libyan national Abdel Basset Mohamed al-Megrahi, who was convicted of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, and sentenced in life in prison. On the one-year anniversary of Megrahi's release, Brennan said the United States government believes the bomber should be returned to jail. 'We have made clear repeatedly that we emphatically disagree with that decision to release Megrahi,' said Brennan. 'We made that position known before the decision was made by the Scottish executive, and we've continued to make the wrongness of that decision clear to both Scottish and Libyan authorities.' 