Reviews tagging 'Fatphobia'

Becoming by Michelle Obama

12 reviews

daisymoffit's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.5

Wonderful. I love auto biographies of any kind, but this one in particular was extra intriguing because not only was it the story of Michelle Obama's life- it also felt like a peek into the political landscape of the last two decades from an insider's perspective. Genuinely interesting and surprisingly hopeful & inspiring, I left this book feeling motivated to make change and grateful for the people who do. Made me cry multiple times, Michelle did a very good job. Would recommend to any woman.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

melodyseestrees's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.75

There were large sections that were interesting to read. There were also sections that were less enjoyable, such as the discussion of children eating healthier with no real mention on how to fix this in area where fresh produce are already very inaccessible as this felt bordering on fatphobia. It was not explicit fatphobia and was likely unintentional. 
She talks of her husband as almost a superhero and perfect husband. This is very sweet but also feels unrealistic. He went and made a big decision without weighing her input and it was just fine? There was just a lack of much emotion in many sections and that held those sections back from being relatable to readers who haven't been FLOTUS.
The photographs were a lovely and welcome touch, even though they were very concentrated. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Gun violence, Racism, and Death of parent

Moderate: Child death, Death, Grief, and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Fatphobia, Miscarriage, and Police brutality

annamay1021's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia and Racism

Moderate: Gun violence

imnotadorableimpunk's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infertility, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Classism

kirkspockreads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

I appreciated this. Mrs. Obama is a good writer and listening to her narrate the audiobook was a pleasure. What sticks out the most to me is her thoughts/feelings of her husband verses the things he did as President I did not agree with (bombings, drone attacks, allowing ICE to deport more immigrants than any President before him). It was also hard not to feel a little nostalgic for the 8 years the Obama were in the White House, but then I had to remind myself of the things I mentioned above that occurred under his watch and remember that not everyone was thriving under his Presidency. However, I really did enjoy the story of how they met, fell in love, and started their family. It was all VERY cute.

My other issue was her championing of dealing with “the childhood obesity epidemic in America.” BMI is not a significant way to determine someone’s health. I could rant on about this but many other fat activists already have. I will say that her putting a garden in the White House (no easy feat) and her championing of gardening in general were commendable, as well as how she took on fast food corporations and highlighted the “food desert” issue. We all should certainly have access to fresh produce and good home cooked meals. I just wish it wasn’t all wrapped around in BMI and the weight loss industrial complex.

That said, this is definitely worth a read/listen.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Death of parent

Minor: Fatphobia

katiehasanxiety's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia and Gun violence

elisanisly's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Racism, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Fatphobia, Police brutality, and War

Minor: Toxic relationship and Abandonment

molly_rose's review against another edition

hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Minor: Bullying, Child death, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mass/school shootings, and Sexual harassment

readtheroomjess's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.0

So much about this book was unexpected. It was inspiring, but not in ways I saw coming, surprisingly emotional, and sometimes infuriating. I found the parts about parenting to be most inspiring, both in how Michelle (we’re buds now, first name basis) was raised by her parents and how she and Barack (again, buds) raised Malia and Sasha. I was also frustrated and disappointed by the fat shaming and misinformation about obesity and BMI, especially as it relates to kids. I was further disappointed that she never acknowledged or addressed any of the valid criticism of Let’s Move and painted it as a universally loved and successful program. Nobody’s perfect, I suppose, so I guess she and I (and loads of doctors, dieticians, and experts) will just have to agree to disagree. Overall, I continue to love Michelle and was moved by her personal stories of tragedy and reflections on national ones, and the difficulties of public life. All in all, this was a great and unforgettable read.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming and Fatphobia

jrosebartoli415's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia