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A review by niamhreviews
Becoming by Michelle Obama
5.0
It's brilliant. She's brilliant.
Around this time last year, I read Hillary Clinton's post-election memoir 'What Happened', in which she reflected on her time running for President for the second time in 2016. It was poignant, eloquent and intelligent, which prompted me to give it five stars and include it in my favourite books of that year. Michelle Obama's memoir of her life will most definitely sit near the top of my favourite books of this year.
Somehow, she manages to discuss everything from her childhood on the South side of Chicago to her education at some of the elite universities in the USA to helping husband Barack campaign for political office right up to the Presidential race. She talks frankly about her time as First Lady, with brief interludes of personal moments with incredibly influential people, especially her time working with Queen Elizabeth II. Obama is funny, personable and vastly intelligent, and it shows through her excellent writing.
One thing I found very emotional about this book was her discussion of her work outside of being the First Lady. You can tell after the first few chapters that her love of children- not only her own- are always at the heart of everything she does. You hear her joy at setting up mentoring programmes for young women, the running of her 'Let's Move' and 'Let Girls Learn' campaigns, the creation of the White House vegetable garden with local kids, her trying to make sure that her daughters have the best opportunities they can have. But you can also hear her pain at the horrors of the Sandy Hook massacre, of children affected by gun violence and gangs, of just wanting to make things better.
Michelle Obama will never enter politics- she has made that very clear. But I very much hope that she continues to inspire women, both young and old, with her passion, her intelligence and her want to change the world for the better. This book is incredible and if I could, I would press it into the hands of everyone I know.
Around this time last year, I read Hillary Clinton's post-election memoir 'What Happened', in which she reflected on her time running for President for the second time in 2016. It was poignant, eloquent and intelligent, which prompted me to give it five stars and include it in my favourite books of that year. Michelle Obama's memoir of her life will most definitely sit near the top of my favourite books of this year.
Somehow, she manages to discuss everything from her childhood on the South side of Chicago to her education at some of the elite universities in the USA to helping husband Barack campaign for political office right up to the Presidential race. She talks frankly about her time as First Lady, with brief interludes of personal moments with incredibly influential people, especially her time working with Queen Elizabeth II. Obama is funny, personable and vastly intelligent, and it shows through her excellent writing.
One thing I found very emotional about this book was her discussion of her work outside of being the First Lady. You can tell after the first few chapters that her love of children- not only her own- are always at the heart of everything she does. You hear her joy at setting up mentoring programmes for young women, the running of her 'Let's Move' and 'Let Girls Learn' campaigns, the creation of the White House vegetable garden with local kids, her trying to make sure that her daughters have the best opportunities they can have. But you can also hear her pain at the horrors of the Sandy Hook massacre, of children affected by gun violence and gangs, of just wanting to make things better.
Michelle Obama will never enter politics- she has made that very clear. But I very much hope that she continues to inspire women, both young and old, with her passion, her intelligence and her want to change the world for the better. This book is incredible and if I could, I would press it into the hands of everyone I know.