allisonisbooked's review against another edition
5.0
I read “A Promised Land” a few months ago, this book is basically that from her POV. And it is so interesting to see her side of the story, how she interpreted the events, and how it felt to be the woman in the spotlight.
This was very well written, I enjoyed
This was very well written, I enjoyed
danireneewood's review against another edition
5.0
Though I still have about two weeks of reading left, it's safe to say that Becoming is my favorite title of the year. I read through a good number of memoirs and biographies this year, as it was a goal of mine to expand my reading to genres that I hadn't spent much time visiting before. Becoming was highly anticipated for me, not just because of the media hype surrounding it, but because of the amount of respect I already had for Michelle Obama.
This title reaffirmed what I already felt and believed.
Though her life experience has been anything but ordinary, she wrote in such a way that she could be related to. Her experience in dealing with the grief of losing her father particularly stuck with me, having lost my own father earlier in life than I'd ever dreamed of.
"It hurts to live after someone has died. It just does. It can hurt to walk down a hallway or open the fridge. It hurts to put on a pair of socks, to brush your teeth. Food tastes like nothing. Colors go flat. Music hurts, and so do memories. You look at something you'd otherwise find beautiful--a purple sky at sunset or a playground full of kids-and it only somehow deepens the loss. Grief is so lonely this way."
It was the small moments like this while reading, and moments like this in every book that I read, that contribute to that shared human experience, done in only the way that writing can.
I felt my chest clench up at her struggle in balancing the trials of working to become a mother, be a mother, and balance her professional life, a life she had worked so hard to create, even though I am not a mother myself. The difficult choices faced by women every day around the world presented powerfully, and in a method that hopefully many are able to read and understand.
It's clear to me that the life of a First Lady is sacrifices: sacrifices of your day-to-day privacy, your normal habits, time with your family, and husband. It's also clear to me that she experienced trials beyond that, dealing with racist thoughts and comments from a public who have long claimed that such thoughts no longer pervade our shared consciousness.
"When you aren't being listened to, why wouldn't you get louder? If you're written off as angry or emotional, doesn't that just cause more of the same?
Michelle Obama as FLOTUS was loud in her elegance, composure, intelligence, and more. This read has only made me more certain of that.
In a time where divisiveness rules, where it's easy to spew rude comments and hate over digital media, where loving others seems fewer and farther between, it's passages like the one below that we as Americans and individuals the world over could hear more often:
"Let's invite one another in. Maybe then we can begin to fear less, to make fewer wrong assumptions, to let go of the biases and stereotypes that unnecessarily divide us. Maybe we can better embrace the ways we are the same. It's not about being perfect. It's not about where you get yourself in the end. There's power in allowing yourself to be known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice. And there's grace in being willing to know and hear others. This, for me, is how we become."
This title reaffirmed what I already felt and believed.
Though her life experience has been anything but ordinary, she wrote in such a way that she could be related to. Her experience in dealing with the grief of losing her father particularly stuck with me, having lost my own father earlier in life than I'd ever dreamed of.
"It hurts to live after someone has died. It just does. It can hurt to walk down a hallway or open the fridge. It hurts to put on a pair of socks, to brush your teeth. Food tastes like nothing. Colors go flat. Music hurts, and so do memories. You look at something you'd otherwise find beautiful--a purple sky at sunset or a playground full of kids-and it only somehow deepens the loss. Grief is so lonely this way."
It was the small moments like this while reading, and moments like this in every book that I read, that contribute to that shared human experience, done in only the way that writing can.
I felt my chest clench up at her struggle in balancing the trials of working to become a mother, be a mother, and balance her professional life, a life she had worked so hard to create, even though I am not a mother myself. The difficult choices faced by women every day around the world presented powerfully, and in a method that hopefully many are able to read and understand.
It's clear to me that the life of a First Lady is sacrifices: sacrifices of your day-to-day privacy, your normal habits, time with your family, and husband. It's also clear to me that she experienced trials beyond that, dealing with racist thoughts and comments from a public who have long claimed that such thoughts no longer pervade our shared consciousness.
"When you aren't being listened to, why wouldn't you get louder? If you're written off as angry or emotional, doesn't that just cause more of the same?
Michelle Obama as FLOTUS was loud in her elegance, composure, intelligence, and more. This read has only made me more certain of that.
In a time where divisiveness rules, where it's easy to spew rude comments and hate over digital media, where loving others seems fewer and farther between, it's passages like the one below that we as Americans and individuals the world over could hear more often:
"Let's invite one another in. Maybe then we can begin to fear less, to make fewer wrong assumptions, to let go of the biases and stereotypes that unnecessarily divide us. Maybe we can better embrace the ways we are the same. It's not about being perfect. It's not about where you get yourself in the end. There's power in allowing yourself to be known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice. And there's grace in being willing to know and hear others. This, for me, is how we become."
theraykay's review against another edition
5.0
Told in rich detail, Michelle Obama retells her life from her modest means as a child growing up in the South Side of Chicago to her life in the spotlight as a politician's wife. Becoming is about ambition, drive, and independence as an African-American woman. It is about family bonds, upbringing, and the success that comes from a loving but firm support system. Not one to take the backseat, Michelle Obama outlines her own path to the White House, alongside her husband, and she details the important role she played in shaping initiatives that helped children and women find their voice. This memoir is honest, poetic, and real.
sandst's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this, it made me tear up and it made me laugh. She beautifully narrates her life, talking about identify, being a black woman, growing up without any means, her love for Barack Obama, her life living in the south side, in the White House, as a First Lady... and ultimately her as Michelle Robinson Obama. I’ve never really had a vested interest in her but it was so relatable. Afhf I need to remember how to write non crappy reviews
airclay3's review against another edition
5.0
While very slow in the beginning, it was so worthwhile to read! I don’t know the politics of the Obama administration other than the climate change ones, but they were a respectable First Family. I really liked learning more about Michelle Obama’s life and to learn what brought her to writing this book. I appreciated the Lin Manuel Miranda reference and Bo and Sunny too
deborahpappe's review against another edition
5.0
What a amazing woman! This is a story of resilience, hope, humility, humanity and love. It shows us that if you can do anything if you put work and your heart in it.
rhiannon123's review against another edition
4.0
A fascinating look into the Obama's story and path to the White House and life within it. Very well written but editing could've been tighter - the childhood section was long and laborious, with too much time spent describing her bus journeys to school.
I liked her focus on health and exercise and how she expressed that in the White House.
I liked her focus on health and exercise and how she expressed that in the White House.
jvos's review against another edition
5.0
There was so much hype around this book that I had decided to wait a bit to read, but then somebody gifted it to me while recovering from surgery. I don't know why (maybe because of the hype??), but I didn't have high expectations with this book, but oh my...I REALLY enjoyed reading this and have thought of it often since finishing. I knew some of Michelle's story, but this filled in the gaps with so much more. I also found it interesting to read about her perspective through campaigning and being in the White House in all the various roles she held.