Michelle Obama masterfully balances wit and wisdom, levity and sincerity in her memoir spanning from her childhood on the Southside of Chicago to her last days as the First Lady of the United States. Her memoir is a testament to how we can all be swept up in other people’s dreams, and the courage and resolve it takes to follow your own. Even reading this in 2022 as a 26 year old woman, there are some timeless themes in Obama’s work that will stay with me for years to come.

Becoming by Michelle Obama is my first proper audiobook. The experience of "reading" an audiobook was engaging on its own, making me believe that audiobooks might need to be the golden standard for reading memoirs. There's something about Michelle's voice (at 1.6 speed), relaying to me her journey towards the White House and out of it, that was gripping as much as it was rousing. I didn't expect it, but there were specific moments (such as her childhood, her foray into young adulthood, the inevitable shrouding of death as time passed) that made my eyes water and taught me a thing or two about the gross violence of aging, parenting I might want to one day emulate, the "advantage of an advocate", and what it might mean to be a competent, intelligent, articulate person who cares. 

What an excellent first audiobook. There were some fleeting moments of meandering, where I would tune out, but that fact that her storytelling would make me audibly gasp, or stop washing the dishes to listen more intently, was a new experience for me entirely. Whoever edited Becoming deserves a raise and a tip of the hat. I approached this book not knowing much (or caring, really) about the Obama family, and now on the other side of Michelle's book, I can only really hope that our politicians in the Philippines would have but the same dedication, commitment, and desire to achieve the common good for the Filipino.

I highly recommend this book. 

this book offers a rare glimpse into the former first lady's life before and during her tenure in the white house. i particularly enjoyed reading abt michelle's journey towards finding her own purpose-driven work, and her juggle of work and family life which im sure resonate w/ countless women. the minute ways inequality dis-levels the playing field were revealing, while her hope and integrity were at times inspiring as well.

however, the pacing's a bit off for me: the book was quite slow going in the beginning, then simply blasted thru her time in the white house--8 yrs of jam packed life--in simply a couple chapters. i wish there were more, at least a lil more details and events described. surprisingly, becoming also didnt elicit much emotions from me, thus the seemingly-unpopular-opinion of 3ish stars.

As you get into the third part of the book, the sequence of events seems to get looser and chapter placements become somewhat arbitrary, which I think made it slow in parts to get through. The beginning of the book and particularly Michelle Obama's upbringing is really interesting and a great reminder that anyone could make a difference with perseverance and the right opportunities. Raises some interesting questions too.